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ICANN CEO Search Committee Announces CEO Candidate Criteria: Deadline for Application Submission is 20 September 2015

21-Jul-2015 | Source : ICANN | Visits : 6538
LOS ANGELES - Following the announcement by ICANN CEO Fadi Chehadé, who has been CEO since 2012, that he will be departing ICANN after the ICANN Public Meeting in March 2016, the ICANN Board of Directors established a search committee to plan and execute a strategy to identify CEO candidates for submission to the Board, according to ICANN. The committee was established at the Board's 21 June 2015 meeting, and its membership consists of George Sadowsky (chair), Rinalia Abdul Rahim, Cherine Chalaby, Steve Crocker, Chris Disspain, Markus Kummer, Ram Mohan and Ray Plzak.
 
All candidate inquiries must be directed to Odgers Berndtson (contact email below).

ICANN: The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names & Numbers
ICANN's global public interest mission is to promote the stability and security of the global Internet through coordination of the unique identifiers that comprise its naming and addressing systems - numbers, names, and protocol parameters.
 
ICANN's mission touches all countries and it fulfills it by engaging with a large global community of actively participating stakeholders representing the domain name industry, governments, businesses, academia, NGOs and individuals, dedicated to keeping the Internet secure, stable and interoperable. ICANN has three meetings a year that gather about 1,500 participants each.
 
ICANN was formed in 1998 as a Californian public benefit not-for-profit corporation. ICANN's current baseline operating expense budget (excluding initiatives) is about US$113 million, mostly derived from fees levied on domain name registrations.
 
The past three years have been key in establishing ICANN as a global organization. In addition to the hub office in Los Angeles, USA, ICANN has hub offices in Istanbul, Turkey, and Singapore, and engagement offices in Beijing, Brussels, Geneva, Montevideo, Seoul and Washington. The organization currently has 325 staff spread across 30 countries.
 
In addition to the globalization of the organization, the new generic Top-Level Domain (gTLDs) Program was developed, which includes gTLDs in both Latin and non-Latin scripts such as Arabic, Chinese, and Cyrillic that allow people to use a domain name in their native language or script. More than 1,300 new gTLDs are expected to be delegated in total.
 
ICANN's multistakeholder model is essential to the organization's ability to serve the global public interest and to enhance its accountability and the trust in its work. The organization is currently undergoing substantial global community-led efforts to strengthen this model.
 
The ICANN website (http://www.icann.org) provides extensive information about the organization and the way it works.
 
Some key characteristics of ICANN's are:
 
ICANN as an Organization

ICANN is a unique not-for-profit organization that comprises and serves a broad, global group of stakeholders from across all sectors that work to develop its policies through an inclusive "bottom-up" process
Transparency, inclusion, and participation form the basis of its conduct of business and its accountability towards stakeholders and the larger public
ICANN's open and transparent policy development mechanisms promote well-informed decisions based on advice from a diversity of views. ICANN staff supports policy development processes by the community, the Board's steering/validation role, and executes the resulting policies
There is a delicate balance of distributed/shared responsibilities between the ICANN staff led by the CEO, the global volunteer community, the Board of Directors and the stakeholder constituencies
ICANN within the Internet Governance Ecosystem
ICANN is part of a broader, distributed Internet governance ecosystem with other major players including key partners in the technical community. These actors work together to preserve one single, interoperable and permissionless Internet
ICANN works closely with related technical organizations, and each performs their technical functions within their own well defined and limited remit.

ICANN also works with a growing number of non-technical players in the Internet governance ecosystem (including IGOs, NGOs, foundations, governments, associations, as well as private organizations) and participates within its specific remit and responsibilities for the Internet's system of unique identifiers
Candidate Profile
ICANN requires a public interest-minded leader with a combination of business, diplomatic and organizational skills to assume the leadership of a successful multi-stakeholder organization. Candidates will be expected to demonstrate to the highest degree possible the following experience and skills. These have been grouped in no particular order under several headings that embody the multi-faceted nature of the role:
 
ICANN seeks candidates motivated to increase the effectiveness of the global Internet for the benefit of all.
 
Management and Operational Experience
Solid record of achievement in respected public, corporate, academic service, NGOs, foundations, and/or other public service institutions
Proven record of strengthening, fostering and consolidating operational excellence
Previous experience working with and/or on Boards of non-profit and/or profit organizations
Ability to foster consensus-building
Significant experience of, and achievements in, a multi-stakeholder environment, and an understanding of policy development processes.

Experience in fostering diversity
Strong operational experience running an established organization of substantial size, with ultimate responsibility for all key functions
Success in managing the continued evolution of a dynamic organization, with complex legal issues and significant contractual relationships
Experience in resource allocation and the management of competing priorities
Experience in establishing, strengthening and consolidating business systems and processes
Good negotiator who would be able to represent ICANN and present it well in potentially adversarial environments

Global Experience
Understanding of relevant political and policy processes, with awareness of current Internet issues around the world
Global exposure: experience working in leadership roles in different countries and with different cultures
Experienced leadership of dispersed international teams of significant size and active and diverse stakeholders
Experience managing complex and global process work flows and an ability to anticipate issues and advance pre-emptive action
Strong diplomatic skills, ability to balance between all facets of a complex ecosystem, including technical, business, and political aspect
Significant experience interacting and engaging with media
Close familiarity with the ways in which governments, the Internet technical community, civil society, business sector interests and regulatory authorities interact
Leadership Style

Intellectually engaging, contributes to 'thought leadership,' helps to define vision and strategy, and leverages the organization's competencies

Appreciates the aspects of multilingualism and how this affects many players in the developed and the developing world
Appreciates and handles the geopolitical currents and pressures that will affect the future of a global organization
Understands and demonstrates empathy, and instills that quality throughout the organization as a core part of the values and mode of operation.

Thrives on motivating a high level team of functioning specialists
A consensus builder, catalyst and motivator, who is practiced at, and enjoys, working in partnership and persuading others
Embodies and practices the inclusive and empowering multistakeholder approach and encourages significant volunteer involvement
Personal Characteristics
Aligns with ICANN's values: integrity, trust, humility, technical excellence, and public service
Multicultural with language skills, practiced communicator and public speaker
Strong belief in the value of the Internet: conscious of its role and complexity, fully embraces ICANN's mission, its accountability requirements, and its bottom-up process

Relishes work within a community empowered organization, while taking into account the different interests of the different communities in a balanced and fair way
Excellent interpersonal skills at all levels
Committed to strengthening diversity
Ability to generate trust with all stakeholders and respect their input
Adept at rapid assimilation and adjustment to new environments
Understanding of Internet technology and the Domain Name Industry
Able to work within ICANN's technical remit in a rapidly evolving Internet governance ecosystem, ensuring the evolution of the organization within such a framework
Familiarity with /understanding of Internet technologies and, in particular, an understanding of the global Internet's systems of unique identifiers, including domain names, protocol parameters and addresses, and the functioning of domain name registries and registrars
Understanding of the domain name industry and its market structure and dynamics, including issues of competition, privacy, intellectual property, consumer protection and branding
Understanding of Internet addressing challenges and opportunities, including deployment of IPv6, exhaustion of IPv4, and the implications of IPv4 scarcity on the fundamental Internet architecture
Understanding of the Internet Governance Ecosystem
Understand the institutional environment of the Internet and its administrative governance systems, such as RIRs, IETF, IAB, ISOC, W3C, and other organizations
Awareness of the international dimensions, and the ability to interact with government and intergovernmental stakeholders
Knowledge of the UN system and other international organizations and processes
Candidates may not match every single criterion listed above, but those who reach the final shortlist will satisfy many of them.
 
The candidate will be expected to work at ICANN's United States headquarters in Los Angeles, California. Substantial travel will be required.
 
APPLICATIONS
Applicants should submit a current curriculum vitae and a cover letter specifically linking their background and abilities to the candidate profile above. Applications should be submitted by e-mail to:
 
icann-ceo@odgersberndtson.be
 
Attachments should be submitted in RTF, Word, or PDF format.
 
The period for acceptance of applications closes on 20 September 2015.
 
ICANN is an equal opportunity employer. Employment selection and related decisions are made without regard to sex, race, age, disability, religion, national origin, color or any other protected class.
 
ICANN values applications from candidates with demonstrated skills in languages in addition to proficient written and spoken English.
 
Odgers Berndtson Assignment Team
Bernard Tobin, Senior Partner, bernard.tobin@odgersberndstson.com
David Webber, Partner, david.webber@odgersberndstson.com
 
 
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