Want To Be The CEO of ICANN?

ICANN needs a new CEO. The current CEO has tendered his resignation and will be vacating the position early in 2016.

So who is going to replace him?

Will the new CEO be American?

Will they be a woman?

What kind of background will they have?

While nobody has the answers to any of those questions yet, we now know what kind of criteria ICANN is seeking in their new CEO. We also know what the deadline for applications is  – September 20th.

The role, which is based in ICANN’s Los Angeles HQ, requires extensive travel.

Earlier today ICANN published details on the CEO search criteria.

If you’ve been around ICANN over the last few years then most of the criteria won’t come as a surprise.

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

Finding anyone who fulfils all of those criteria is going to be hard and anyone who gets close to meeting all the criteria is probably going to be either an “industry insider” or someone who has been observing it for a time.

The application process is being handled by an executive search company – Odgers Berndtson. It looks like the project is being handled out of their Brussels office, which has also been used by ICANN in the past with the NomCom.