ICANN and change: failure two-thirds of the time

At first sight, it may seem nonsensical to identify ICANN as failing to change. The organization has explicitly recognized the need to adapt to remain relevant, and has even hard-coded reviews into its bylaws.

Every one of the organization's nine component parts goes through a review every five years, on top of which there are four independent reviews into the organization's functioning every three years. There is even a dedicated staff team and board committee to manage such reviews.

However there are a number of structural and cultural flaws that continue to make such reviews ineffective. They include:

• Imposition of outside views onto a resistant staff
• Focus on process over results
• Widespread failure to communicate effectively and honestly
• A culture of heckling
• Tendency to ignore problems
• Failure to see changes past implementation