What to expect: Participant Edition

This document is an overview of the IETF Guides Program, including basic information, a recommended schedule of interaction and suggestions for communicating with your assigned Guide.

Welcome to the Guides Program! We hope this program will help you integrate into the IETF community quickly and start on a pathway to achieve your goals for this meeting.

If you have any questions, please contact the IETF Guides Program leads.

  • The New Participant FAQ will help answer common questions.  The Guides Program Expectations outlines the expected standard behavior.  We suggest reading it through prior to signing up to be in the program. 
  • It may take some time for you to determine what your goals are  in relation to your participation in the IETF.  Your Guide can assist in discovering what those goals are and how best to use IETF procedures and common practices.    
  • Either the Guide or the New Participant may request a new match at any time. If this occurs, please notify the program leads so that replacements can be found.
  • New Participants should try to be available for a few conversations, email communications and in-person meetings during an IETF meeting. A sample framework for the Guide/New Participant journey is provided below and can be modified as needed.
  • Please note that IETF Guides are volunteers and donate their personal time.  They also have goals to accomplish at IETF meetings, but have offered to spend some time with you to help you get involved with the IETF.  Their total time may be limited to a few interactions.

This is an example of what a typical interaction schedule could look like between a Guide and their New Participant.  The timing will vary depending on the schedules, availability, and time zones of each person involved.  When you start interacting with your Guide will depend on when you were connected with your Guide.  The goal is to make a best effort.

Timing Communication
2-3 weeks prior to the IETF meeting

Introduction email 

  • Message from the Guides Program Leads introducing you to your assigned Guide
  • Your Guide should reach out to you to introduce themselves. Feel free to reach out to them too.
1 week prior to the IETF meeting

Check-in with your Guide

  • Do you have any questions based on prior discussions and review of the materials?
  • Do you have your general schedule for the week figured out?
IETF meeting week

Meet up with your Guide

  • If possible, meet with your Guide in-person early in the week.  
  • If you have time later in the week, meet with your Guide to check-in and see how the meeting is going. 
  • If meeting in person is not possible, send email to follow-up with any questions you may have.
Post meeting week (not required)
  • Your Guide may follow-up with you via email or teleconference to see how everything went.  
    • Do you have any remaining questions?
    • Do you have any suggestions to improve the New Participant and/or Guides experience?
  • This would be the end of your Guide/New Participant relationship unless you both agree otherwise.

Possible questions to ask your Guide:

  • What working group meetings should I attend during the week?
  • Are there any people you think I should connect with based on my interests or ideas and goals? Can you facilitate an introduction to any of these people?
  • What do you think I need to do to make the meeting a success? 

Your Guide is there to help you, and likely knows many things that "you don't know you need to know".  Make the most of this unique opportunity!