Summary

Recommendation ITU-T A.7 describes working methods and procedures of a focus group such as its establishment, terms of reference, leadership, participation, financing, support and deliverables.

The creation of focus group working guidelines, including continued coordination with their parent group, could facilitate the swift development of deliverables by the relevant study groups.

ITU-T focus groups are a flexible tool for progressing new work. Such flexibility may allow for groups developing a wide range of deliverables. Since there have been many instances in which the membership of a focus group does not have experience in the development of technical specifications, it has been common that focus group deliverables, although useful, needed to be reworked by the relevant study groups.

Appendix I provides guidance to study groups and focus groups when implementing ITU-T A.7 focus groups that aim at producing specifications that can be efficiently streamlined from focus group deliverables to ITU-T Recommendations or informative texts.