Hi John, I am not suggesting "diversity first" or above all. Technical qualifications and experience matter a lot. Also, diversity means more than just national origin or skin color or gender. It means diversity of experience, diversity of opinion, and diversity of interest, alongside all that other stuff. We have always been at risk of a monoculture forming in our leadership ranks, and it has from time to time. It's up to the NOMCOM to keep that from happening. Eliot On 26.09.18 15:01, John C Klensin wrote: > > --On Wednesday, September 26, 2018 00:12 +0200 Eliot Lear > <lear@xxxxxxxxx> wrote: > >> Hi Brian, >> >> Nice piece of work. I'd suggest one additional section: >> >> Diversity >> >> It's important that the IETF leadership be comprised of >> individuals who have diverse genders, cultures and >> backgrounds. The blindspots of monocultures, no matter their >> dimension, can lead to solutions that themselves circumscribe >> the value and relevance of our organization. > Eliot, > > While I agree with you about the value of diversity and the > dangers of monoculture, I would urge caution about using this as > a criterion for IETF leadership. Making a decision between two > otherwise-equivalent candidates on the basis of diversity is > fine and I would strongly encourage it. > > However, I've watched a couple of examples recently (neither of > the ones I have in mind had anything to do with the IETF or the > Internet although there is at least one closer to home) in which > diversity has become such a dominant consideration that subject > matter expertise and other job-specific skills are, at best, > secondary or tertiary considerations. > > It seems to me to be particularly important that we avoid > "diversity first" models for the IESG, where the relationship > between Areas (including the General Area/ IETF Chair) and > particular required skill sets is such that, if one person is > weak on required knowledge and skills, there is typically at > most one or two people able to compensate and they are > overloaded. > > I see the IAB as somewhat less critical with regard to > individual positions, but, from experience, if there is not an > adequate balance of technical skills and perspectives and people > able to stand up for them, it leads to a range of troubles, so > diversity should reasonably be part of the mix in > decision-making but should still not dominate. > > best, > john > >
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