The issues that matter in this election center on the future of the IEEE, which is likely to become a vastly different organization in the next decade. Four people are running for president in an election by mail-in ballot (for which the deadline is Nov. 1).

In this election, such seemingly mundane matters as the IEEE logo have been belabored as major issues. Indeed, the basic tenets of the IEEE are being re-examined from top to bottom.

All four candidates have said that they favor keeping the logo and that there are more important things to worry about: attracting more members, expanding the coffers and streamlining operations. But the biggest problem may be getting more engineers to care. Though the IEEE is the public voice for electronics engineers, many of them aren't members. That's too bad.

Consider the H1-B issue, which has sustained a heated flow of letters to EE Times. The IEEE and IEEE-USA, which is also having its election now, can make engineers' voices heard where it counts. IEEE presidents sit before Congress. The more members they represent, the more clout they have.

And as for money, well, we're talking about Washington. Does anyone think that H1-B has become an issue in the presidential race because the entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley are just fun guys whom the pols want as friends?

H1-B is the most public issue right now, one that prompts some conflict between the IEEE and IEEE-USA. But whatever the issue, it takes both organization and money to be heard.

The IEEE's monetary concerns extend to issues as far-reaching as revising its standards activities, examining its paid staff and funding the various regional groups. Somehow, the winning candidate has to make the regions and many of the other groups realize that they can't set their own private agendas and then send the bill to IEEE headquarters. Fiscal responsibility works both ways.

At the same time, the new president will have to set the tone for the focus of the IEEE. The quick pace of change and the sharp fragmentation within the ever-growing electronics industry mean that splinter groups now handle technical matters that once were in the purview of the IEEE.

Many members have started to focus on personal growth, using the IEEE's resources to keep abreast of technology and learn non-technical skills that will help them survive in this ever-changing environment. Should that be the IEEE's new focus?

The IEEE is an important organization for promoting the cause of individual engineers, and it's done a lot for them. Members must take an active role in the election. And it certainly would be wise for non-members to sign up and give something back to their profession.

If you haven't sent in your ballot, see www.ieee.org/organizations/corporate/candidates.htm and decide for yourself who's the best candidate. Then vote.