Background
One of the main focuses of RALOs is, and always has been, outreach. RALO leaders and staff work hard together to ensure that organizations or associations across the world with similar goals to those of the ICANNcommunity know about At-Large and are motivated to be part of it. In order to manage this, they need to gain the ALS status and be supported during the engagement phase of their At-Large activities.
At a glance
With a significant increase in the number of accredited At-Large Structures (ALS) and individual members joining the At-Large community over the last several months, an At-Large Onboarding Program is launching this month. The aim of this new staff-initiated program is to facilitate ALS and individual member participation within the Regional At-Large Organizations (RALOs) and to promote policy development activity within At-Large and ICANN.
Recent Developments
During the ICANN53, staff formally presented the At-Large Onboarding Program to At-Large community members where it was widely well received.
The At-Large Onboarding Program, which will be held periodically whenever there are a number of new ALSes and individual members, consists of the following activities:
· Welcome to At-Large Webinars: A set of two "Welcome to At-Large" webinars will be held with new ALSes' representatives and individual members. The first webinar will be an informal introduction to At-Large support staff where staff will introduce themselves, explain their roles, and how they can assist the ALSes and individual members, followed by a question and answer session. The second webinar will consist on a formal introduction with the At-Large Chair and Regional At-Large Organization (RALO) Chairs. This webinar will offer new ALS representatives and individual members an opportunity to introduce themselves formally to the At-Large Chair and RALO Chairs, and receive an overview of At-Large and its policy development methods by the Chair, as well as an explanation on how to engage in RALO activities by the RALO Chairs.
· Additional Assistance: A special New At-Large Member Skype Chat Helpline aimed at providing additional assistance to new ALS representatives and individual members for a period of three months will be set up to enable new members to liaise with At-Large support staff covering multiple time zones. At the end of the three months, they would be directed to their RALO Skype chats and encouraged to engage with experienced members. This At-Large Member Skype Chat Helpline will be added formally to the ALS accreditation process.
· New ALS Onboarding documents: The current ALS onboarding documents, including the ALS Starter Kit and ALS Beginner's Guide, will be merged and updated by staff to better reflect current At-Large activity. Additionally, the welcome/onboarding message to new ALS members will be translated into Spanish and French, since it currently only exists in English.
Next steps
The inaugural Welcome to At-Large webinar was held on 16 July 2015; representatives from nine At-Large Structures were invited to introduce themselves and to discuss At-Large structural and support issues with members of staff. Subsequently, those same ALS representatives met with the Chair of the ALAC and the RALO Chairs as part of a more formalized first-step into At-Large activities.