Network Working Group                                          L. Daigle
Internet-Draft                                                    Editor
Expires: May 26, 2004                        Internet Architecture Board
                                                                     IAB
                                                       November 26, 2003


         IAB Processes for management of liaison relationships
                        draft-iab-liaison-mgt-00

Status of this Memo

   This document is an Internet-Draft and is in full conformance with
   all provisions of Section 10 of RFC2026.

   Internet-Drafts are working documents of the Internet Engineering
   Task Force (IETF), its areas, and its working groups.  Note that
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   Drafts.

   Internet-Drafts are draft documents valid for a maximum of six months
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   The list of current Internet-Drafts can be accessed at
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   The list of Internet-Draft Shadow Directories can be accessed at
   http://www.ietf.org/shadow.html.

   This Internet-Draft will expire on May 26, 2004.

Copyright Notice

   Copyright (C) The Internet Society (2003).  All Rights Reserved.

Abstract

   This document discusses the procedures the IAB uses to select
   organizations to form and maintain liaison relationships with.  It
   further discusses the expectations that the IAB has of such
   organizations and of the people assigned to manage those
   relationships.








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Table of Contents

   1.  Liaison Relationships and Personnel  . . . . . . . . . . . . .  3
   2.  Aspects of Liaisons and Liaison Management . . . . . . . . . .  4
   2.1 Liaison Relationships  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  4
   2.2 Liaison Manager  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  4
   2.3 Liaison Communications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5
   3.  Summary of IETF Liaison Role Expectations  . . . . . . . . . .  6
   4.  Security Considerations  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  7
   5.  Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  8
       References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  9
       References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
       Authors' Addresses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
       Full Copyright Statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11





































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1. Liaison Relationships and Personnel

   The IETF, as an organization, has the need to engage in joint
   endeavors with various other formal organizations.  For example, as
   the IETF is one of many Standards Development Organizations, or SDOs.
   Increasingly, SDOs find it necessary to communicate and coordinate
   their activities involving Internet-related technologies, to avoid
   overlaps and to manage interactions between their groups.  They do
   this in many ways: they send people to each other's meetings, they
   exchange email and more formal notes call "liaison statements", and
   they hold formal meetings.  These relationships are generically
   referred to as liaison relationships.  Often, a person is designated
   to manage a "liaison relationship"; that person is generally called
   the "IETF liaison" to that organization.

   The IETF has chartered the Internet Architecture Board to manage
   liaison relationships.  In its charter [2], the IAB states that

      The IAB acts as representative of the interests of the IETF and
      the Internet Society in technical liaison relationships with other
      organizations concerned with standards and other technical and
      organizational issues relevant to the world-wide Internet.
      Liaisons are kept as informal as possible and must be of
      demonstrable value in improving the quality of IETF
      specifications.  Individual members of the IETF are appointed as
      liaisons to other organizations by the IAB or IESG as appropriate.

























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2. Aspects of Liaisons and Liaison Management

2.1 Liaison Relationships

   A liaison relationship is set up when it is mutually agreeable and
   needed, in the view of the other organization, the IAB, and the IETF
   participants conducting the work.  There is no set process or form
   for this; the IETF participants and the peer organization approach
   the IAB, and after discussion come to an agreement to form the
   relationship.

   The IAB's expectation in setting up the relationship is that there
   will be a mutual exchange of views, resulting in documents developed
   in both organizations.  If the peer organization wants the IETF to
   adopt a document, someone from that organization may propose and
   Internet-Draft following the usual procedures, or an IETF participant
   may do so.  Such work will be accomplished in an IETF working group
   in the usual manner, chartered and managed by the IESG according to
   IETF procedures [1].  The peer organization often has different
   organizational structure and different procedures than the IETF,
   which will require some flexibility on the part of both organizations
   to accommodate.  The IAB expects that the peer organization will use
   the relationship carefully, allowing time for the processes it
   requests to occur and not making unreasonable demands.

2.2 Liaison Manager

   As described above, most work on mutually interesting topics will be
   carried out in the usual way within the IETF and the peer
   organization.  Therefore, most communications will be informal in
   nature (e.g., working group, mailing list discussions, etc).

   From time to time, it may be important for the peer organization to
   send a more formal communication, making a request or declaring an
   official position.To ensure that communications are smooth and the
   results proper, the IAB requests that any such formal email or
   liaison statement to an IETF organization, the following be copied:
   statements@ietf.org, the appropriate working group, the IAB-
   designated liaison manager, and the relevant area directors.  The
   email will generally be addressed to the area director, if the matter
   is larger than a single working group, or the working group chair.

   The function of the liaison manager, or "liaison", is to ensure that
   communication is maintained, is productive, and is timely.  He or she
   may use any businesslike approach to that necessary, from private
   communications to public communications, and bringing in other
   parties as needed.  If a communication from a peer organization is
   addressed to an inappropriate party, such as being sent to the



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   working group but not copying the AD or being sent to the wrong
   working group, the liaison manager should redirect or otherwise
   augment the communication.

   Since the IAB is ultimately responsible for liaison relationships,
   anyone who has a problem with one (whether an IETF participant or a
   person from the peer organization) should first consult the IAB's
   designated liaison relationship manager, and if that does not result
   in a satisfactory outcome, the IAB itself.

2.3 Liaison Communications

   Communications between organizationns use a variety of formal and
   informal channels.  The stated preference of the IETF, which is
   largely an informal organization, is to use informal channels, as
   these have historically worked well to expedite matters.  In some
   cases, however, more formal communications are appropriate.  In such
   cases, the established procedures of many organizations use a form
   known as a "liaison statement".  Procedures for sending, managing,
   and responding to liaison statements are discussed in draft-baker-
   liaisons.






























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3. Summary of IETF Liaison Role Expectations

   While the requirements will certainly vary depending on the nature of
   the peer organization and the type of joint work being undertaken,
   the general expectations of a liaison appointed by the IAB are as
   follows:

      Attend relevant meetings of the peer organization and report back
      to the appopriate IETF organization any material updates.

      Carry any messages from the IETF to the peer organization, when
      specifically instructed (in this case, the message does "represent
      the IETF").

      Prepare occasional updates -- e.g., to the IAB, an AD, a WG.  The
      target of these updates will generally be identified upon
      appointment.

      Ensure that any liaison statement addressed to the IETF reaches
      the appropriate destination within the IETF, and work to ensure
      that whatever relevant response from the IETF is created and sent
      in a timely fashion.





























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4. Security Considerations

   The security of the Internet is not threatened by these procedures.
















































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5. Acknowledgements

   This document was developed as part of a conversation regarding the
   management of draft-baker-liaisons, and the authors of that document
   contributed significantly to it.














































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Normative References

   [1]  Bradner, S., "The Internet Standards Process -- Revision 3", BCP
        9, RFC 2026, October 1996.

   [2]  Internet Architecture Board and B. Carpenter, "Charter of the
        Internet Architecture Board (IAB)", BCP 39, RFC 2850, May 2000.












































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Informative References


Authors' Addresses

   Leslie Daigle
   Editor


   Internet Architecture Board
   IAB

   EMail: iab@iab.org






































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Full Copyright Statement

   Copyright (C) The Internet Society (2003).  All Rights Reserved.

   This document and translations of it may be copied and furnished to
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Acknowledgement

   Funding for the RFC Editor function is currently provided by the
   Internet Society.



















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