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The IAB Role

The Internet Architecture Board (IAB) is chartered both as a committee of the IETF and as an advisory body of the Internet Society (ISOC). The IAB supports the operation of the IETF. It provides architectural input into IETF technical activities in addition to sponsoring and organizing work in the IRTF. The IAB serves as a source of advice and guidance on technical, architectural, and procedural matters related to the Internet and its enabling technologies. The IAB Charter is specified in [RFC 2850].

Architectural Role

A principal role of the IAB is to take a broad and long-range perspective, offering input into the planning and coordination among different areas of Internet activities, including those of the IETF and IRTF. Collectively, IAB members possess expertise spanning a broad range of technologies under IETF and IRTF. The IAB is expected to pay attention to important long-term issues on the Internet and ensure that these issues are brought to the attention of the groups that are in a position to address them and that the right people within these groups are in contact with each other.

The IAB maintains open communications channels with other bodies engaged in Internet governance, including ICANN, the Regional Internet Registries, and ISOC, and provides technical and architectural input as appropriate. Members of the IAB also participate in outreach activities, primarily aimed at increasing the visibility of the IETF, representing the Internet's Technical Community while supporting the multistakeholder approach to Internet Governance.

As needed, the IAB collaborates with ISOC to offer advice and guidance to the Internet community on technical, architectural, and policy matters related to the Internet and its enabling technologies.

Organizational Role

The IAB has various roles within the organizational structure of the IETF. While these roles require administrative rather than technical work, they form a significant part of the IAB's activities.

  • The IAB is responsible for interfacing with other organizations on behalf of the IETF. It does this primarily through its liaison process. When necessary, IAB members will engage more directly with other organizations.

  • The IAB reviews the charters of new and existing IRTF RGs. The IAB receives regular feedback and status overviews from IRTF RGs and provides input to the community from an architectural perspective.

  • The IAB serves as an appeal board for complaints of improper execution of the standards process, handling appeals related to IESG standards decisions.

  • The IAB handles appeals on matters related to the IETF LLC.

  • The IAB provides direction for the administration of the IETF's protocol parameters registries (the IANA function).

  • The IAB has a role in the IETF Nominations Committee process: the IAB confirms the IETF Chair and the Area Directors (IESG).

  • The IAB selects the Independent Submission Editor [RFC8730] as well as the Chair of the Internet Research Task Force (IRTF) and oversees the IRTF's activities [RFC2014].

  • The IAB appoints ISOC Board of Trustees (BoT) members and similar positions in other Internet governance bodies.

  • The IAB is responsible for appointing one of the Chairs of the RFC Series Working Group (RSWG) and a voting member of the RFC Series Approval Board (RSAB) as specified in [RFC 9280].

All IAB members need to be prepared to participate (to varying degrees) in these activities.

Organization of the IAB

To enhance institutional memory and facilitate the development of medium and long-term activities, the IAB organizes its work into several areas, including technical programs and administrative support groups (see https://www.iab.org/activities/programs/). A technical program is a long-term activity composed of a body of technical experts from the wider community (see RFC 2850 Section 2.1). Program outputs can include IAB documents and statements. All IAB members are expected to review and comment on program outputs that represent the consensus of the IAB. Administrative support groups assist the IAB in carrying out its responsibilities to the community. To ensure that all IAB activities have IAB participation, members of the IAB are expected to actively participate in one or more programs or administrative support groups.

The IAB schedules workshops on topics of interest from time to time, and IAB members are encouraged to attend these as well.

In addition, the IAB selects a Chair for a one-year term at the March IETF meeting, after new members are seated. There should be at least two members (among the newly selected slate and the incumbents) who are willing and able to take the role of Chair.

IAB Member Qualities

The IAB is most effective when it is composed of a diverse set of individuals with a broad range of technical skills, architectural perspectives, and backgrounds.

The IAB should have members with technical leadership experience, operational management backgrounds, research or academic backgrounds, implementation experience, and experience in other bodies involved in Internet governance. Likewise, the IAB should have members who have had experiences with differing technical challenges and requirements, including those that vary by geographic region. IAB members must be willing and able to collaborate with one another to develop a shared viewpoint.

Some IAB activities are very specialized - for example, managing liaison relationships with other SDOs on behalf of the IETF. The IAB should have members with sufficient managerial skills to understand the issues that need to be addressed by the IAB, as well as to manage and document inter-SDO liaison relationships on a strategic basis.

While some IAB members should have expertise in the IAB's current technical program topics, it is more important for the IAB to have members who are experienced in building and managing teams of volunteers and who can motivate program work, and direct them even in the absence of in-depth knowledge about specific technical topics.

The IAB members are expected to be active and able to dedicate sufficient time to IAB work, who are self-driven in identifying topics of broad community interest, and who use the IAB's levers -- programs, workshops, and IAB-stream publications to produce concrete outputs. This includes proposing new technical programs, new IAB-stream RFCs, and new IAB activities, rather than only sustaining the existing ones.

The IAB also has regular technical discussions with invited experts on selected topics that could be of interest to the Internet community. The IAB should have members with experience and an interest in organizing such information exchanges with industry, academia and civil society.

While these characteristics are all important, individuals have different strengths. The IAB, as a whole, benefits most from a complementary and diverse set of skills that are balanced across all aspects of the role.

Time Commitment

The time commitment for an IAB member ranges from at least 10% to 20% or more per week (with significant week-to-week variability), depending on involvement and activities. Full-time engagement is expected during IAB strategy meetings, and IAB workshops. Some positions and activities require a higher time commitment. These include chairing the IAB, liaison coordination, leading a program, organizing IAB workshops, and serving as IAB liaisons to the IESG and the Nomcom.

It is expected that IAB members also actively participate in IETF activities. Simply tracking the various mailing lists and documents can take up to a day a week. About a quarter to half of the time is spent on organizational activities. Leading a program is an equivalent time commitment to chairing a working group; active participation in a program can take additional time.

The typical time commitment for the IAB Chair is three days a week, and this position may require more travel. The IAB Chair is an ex officio member of the IESG and must devote time to IESG meetings, including a yearly strategy meeting, which is often but not always adjacent to the IAB strategy meeting.

The IESG may call upon IAB members to aid in the evaluation of new work in the IETF by reviewing documents and charters, acting as IAB Shepherds for a BOF, and other tasks, potentially adding to those numbers.

The IAB hold regular teleconference calls; currently, approximately one formal business meeting a month, and several informal calls per month. Because of the wide geographic spread of the IAB, it is not expected that members will attend every call, and best effort is made to assure that the timing of calls is equitable. While asynchronous tools are used, IAB members that are able to regularly attend will be able to contribute more effectively.

IAB members should plan to arrive at IETF meetings at or before the start of the meeting week. The time commitment during the meeting week includes time on Sunday, early mornings during the week, during meal times, and Friday after scheduled meetings conclude. IAB members are expected to cover and report on BoFs during the week.

The IAB typically holds an annual strategy meeting of one to three days, full-board meetings at least six times per year, and regular teleconferences as needed to fulfill its responsibilities.

Travel funding is not available from the IAB for any of its members to attend any of the activities described above.

References