The annual hotel site selection process that organizers will follow
in FUTURE SIGCOMM conferences is:

0) The conference Chair (or local arrangements designee) is the official 
   contact with the ACM hotel negotiator (Ann Marie Ferrara) ---  to be 
   one point of contact for Ann to send RFP's and Hotel Contracts to 
   for review and OK.  ACM needs there to be a single representative from the 
   group that will give direction to ACM and have the authority to make 
   decisions.

   SIGCOMM requests that the official contact hold a (phone) meeting 
   to review the contract with the ACM sigcomm program director Erica, 
   the conference coordinator Chris and the SIGCOMM chair Craig, before 
   making a final decision.

1) Locals select a list of hotels that they might be interested in
   and give that list to ACM's hotel negotiator. 
        (could be all hotels in the city, or in a certain location,
        or a specifically selected set).

        If the locals want to visit the hotels and browse, they
        should do so without talking to anyone from the meeting facilities
        group (just a casual walk around, peeking into rooms if open).

   Locals, conference advisors, and ACM look over the conference list of
        requirements, clarifying what is required in the RFP vs what is 
        on our wish list (such as extra rooms for possible small 
        mtgs/workshops).

2) ACM will then send out a request for proposal (containing the
        conference list of requirements) to the list of hotels.

3) Hotels will respond with a proposal, which in essence is a casual statement
        of agreement that they can support the requirements, at a given $
        rate, but they do not hold any space for the conference.

4) ACM sends to the locals a summary of all proposals received.

5) Locals pick one or more hotels that they are interested in,
        but do not contact the hotel meeting facilites group.

6) ACM asks for a contract from the small list of hotels, that
        the locals are considering.

7) Hotel responds to ACM with a contract (often at better pricing than
        in step 3 above, with rooms assigned to each of the events),
        which are forwarded to the locals.  (Space is being held tentatively
	with the mutual understanding that both parties will move forward
	expeditiously to finalize the contract.  If another group shows 
	interest in the space and dates, the hotel would let us know.  
	Officially nothing is guaranteed until it is in writing and 
	signed by both parties.)

8) Locals schedule a site visit with the meeting facilities group
        of the hotel, and walk through each room/event, and resolve
        any miscommunication, and make sure that you have appropriate
        rooms reserved....  If desired, an additional site visit
        can be set up with any of the sigcomm conference advisors.

9) Once all issues are resolved and possibly, contract is modified,and signed.
        The Signator on the contract will be the SIG Chair unless the 
	conference TMRF is approved and then it's the Conference Chairs 
	(we typically ask the conference year chairs to sign off as well 
	in both cases to indicate they endorse the contract and it meets 
	their needs).

9/6/2001  18:30p.m.  drafted by C. Edmondson-Yurkanan