Re: Generalist ADs?

[joel jaeggli <[e-mail]>]

On 3/26/15 10:38 AM, Black, David wrote:
> Hi Spencer,
> 
>  
> 
> I usually leave “silly rabbit ...” lines to the ADs - they’re better at
> that than I am ;-).
> 
>  
> 
> Currently, with the exception of the IETF Chair, ADs are selected with a
> strong focus on specific expertise in an Area.  I was suggesting adding
> a few “At-Large” ADs who would be selected with a strong focus on
> generalist skills, and I think I saw other comments in favor of adding
> generalists to the IESG during discussion of the initial area merge
> proposal.
> 
>  
> 
> The At-Large ADs could serve as out-of-area ADs to spread the WG
> management load.  In addition, the existence of At-Large AD positions
> could help the NomCom; if for some Area, the preferable slate of new AD
> candidates and continuing ADs is missing an important chunk of
> expertise, perhaps one of the good At-Large AD candidates would have
> that expertise.
> 
>  
> 
> Thanks,
> --David

The job description I wrote for the operations and management AD role to
be filled this time was the following... this is probably one of the
more, if not most generalist AD role.

** Operations and Management AD **

The primary technical areas covered by the Operations and Management
Area include: Network Management, AAA, and various operational issues
facing the deployed Internet such as DNS operation, IPv6 operation, routing
operation and operational security.

Unlike most IETF areas, the Operations and Management Area is logically
divided into two separate functions: Network Management and Operations.
This year, the Operation AD role is open, so specific expertise desired
for the open position includes a strong understanding of or experience
with the operation of large scale transit or access networks and
services, as well as edge networks.   Among the other areas, the Operations
portion of the OPS area  intersects most often with the Routing, Internet
and Security areas.

Desired characteristics for this position includes an understanding of AAA
protocols, network management protocols and their deployed uasge, DNS
and  Routing with respect to topics covered by working groups in the Ops
area.

There is an expectation that an operations AD will be reasonably conversant
(generalist) with the full stack associated with internet services
without necessarily being a domain expert.

Another important role of the Operations and Management AD is to
identify potential or actual management or operational issues regarding
IETF protocols and documents in all Areas, and to work with the other
Areas to resolve those issues. This implies a strong understanding of
how new and updated protocols should be managed, including aspects
related to configuration, monitoring and alarms. It also implies a good
understanding of the operational environment in which protocols are
used, a  cross-area comprehension of the Internet architecture,
and a knowledge of IETF protocols. Note that breadth of technical ability
is perhaps more important than specific technical expertise.

Cross-area expertise in any Area would be useful. Security as part of
network operations and network management is an important topic. The
Operations and Management Area also interacts with the operator
community, operator organizations like NANOG, RIPE, and other SDOs doing
work in network management.