The 2026 IEEE/IFIP Network Operations and Management Symposium (NOMS 2026) will be held 18–22 May 2026, in Rome, Italy. First organized in 1988, NOMS follows the 38-year  tradition of NOMS and IM as the IEEE Communications Society’s primary forum for technical exchange on network and service management, focusing on research, development, integration, standards, service provisioning, and user communities. Under the theme “AI for Management and Management for AI”, NOMS 2026 seeks original contributions that address recent developments and technical solutions for the management of emerging and future networks and services. The theme emphasizes the dual role of artificial intelligence: as a driver empowering network and service management, and as a workload that demands reliable, scalable, and sustainable infrastructures. The NOMS 2026 program will feature a rich set of sessions, including keynotes, tutorials, technical sessions, experience sessions, demos, posters, panels, and dissertation sessions.

TOPICS OF INTEREST

Authors are invited to submit papers that fall into or are related to the following topics of interests:

Management of Networks

    IP Networks
    Wireless and Cellular Networks
    5G network and Beyond (6G)
    Quantum Networks
    Optical Networks
    Virtual Networks and SDN
    Home and Access Networks
    Fog, Edge and Cloud Networks
    Enterprise and Campus Networks
    Data Center Networks
    Industrial Networks
    Vehicular and Autonomous Systems Networks
    IoT, Sensor and M2M Networks
    Information-Centric Networks
    Mission Critical Networks

Management of Services

    Multimedia and Immersive Media Services
    Over-The-Top Services
    Content Delivery Services
    Cloud Computing, Edge Services, and Computing Continuum
    Internet Connectivity and Internet Access Services
    Internet of Things Services
    Security and Privacy Services
    Context-Aware Services
    Information Technology Services
    Service Assurance
    Management of AI Workloads and Services

Management of Businesses

    Economic Aspects
    Multi-Stakeholder Aspects
    Service Level Agreements
    Lifecycle, Process, and Workflow Management
    Legal, Regulatory, and Compliance Perspectives
    Privacy Aspects
    Organizational Aspects

Functional Areas

    Fault Management
    Configuration Management
    Accounting Management
    Performance Management
    Security Management

Management Paradigms

    Centralized, Hierarchical and Distributed Management
    Integrated Management
    Federated Management
    Autonomic and Cognitive Management
    Policy- and Intent-Based Management
    Model-Driven Management
    Proactive Management
    Energy-aware Management
    QoE-Centric Management
    Zero-Touch and Self-Driving Networks

Management Technologies

    Communication Protocols
    Middleware
    Overlay and Peer-to-Peer Networks
    Cloud Computing and Cloud Storage
    Data, Information, and Semantic Models
    Information Visualization
    Software-Defined Networking
    Network Function Virtualization
    Orchestration
    Operations and Business Support Systems
    Control and Data Plane Programmability
    Distributed Ledger Technology
    Digital Twins
    Programmable and AI-Driven Network Architectures
    AI-based management (Reinforcement Learning, Generative AI, …)

Methods

    Mathematical Logic and Automated Reasoning
    Optimization Theories
    Control Theory
    Probability Theory, Stochastic Processes, Queuing Theory
    Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
    Evolutionary Algorithms
    Economic Theory, Game Theory and Business Models
    Risk Management Methods
    Monitoring and Measurements
    Data Mining and (Big) Data Analysis
    Computer Simulation Experiments
    Testbed Experimentation and Field Trials
    Software Engineering Methodologies

Authors are invited to submit original contributions that advance the state of the art in network and service management. Submissions should emphasize both novelty and impact, supported by theoretical analysis, simulations, testbeds, or real-world deployments.