The volunteers who run IEEE-USA have an incredible challenge ahead as they attempt to create an institute that meets the needs of roughly a quarter of a million members in an era of fragmentation and fast-paced changes. Like leaders of for-profit companies, they must develop strategies that are focused yet adaptable as technology and business environments change. But unlike corporate chieftains, these unpaid managers don't have the luxury of focusing their core competencies on target markets. They have to respond to all members, as well as the corporations that employ those engineers.
The challenge came to a head at the recent Professional Development Conference. This annual meeting is designed to give engineers the soft skills-such as public speaking, project management and resume writing-they need to advance their careers. This year's nontechnical conference drew about 250 people over the Labor Day weekend.
The conference is an expensive proposition, particularly since many of the attendees are IEEE-USA volunteers whose expenses are picked up by the institute. After a fact-gathering period, the board voted overwhelmingly to skip the 2001 conference to give it time to revise the meetings so that they may draw more members, with an eye on reducing or at least containing costs. That's a sound business decision.
But the volunteers who devote so much time to putting together the program and solving the logistical problems of running the conference do their job quite well, and they take satisfaction in it. Aware of concern over expenditures, they had been trimming costs for this year's conference and the one they expected would be held next year. And they were upset to learn that without a public hearing, the IEEE-USA board had canceled the 2001 meeting.
After an impassioned public request near the close of this month's conference, 2001 president Ned Sauthoff agreed to re-examine the decision based on the changing financial models.
That's the way things should work, particularly in a volunteer organization. Decisions are often made without a full debate, but the decision-makers should be flexible.
Now comes the real work of figuring out whether there's a fiscally responsible way to get important career-building information out to members who want to improve their nontechnical skills. Let's hope that there is. It's difficult to attend these meetings and not come away convinced that engineers can learn a lot from them.
But obviously, financial concerns must be met, as they must with the technical conferences as well.
It's heartening to see the dedication of IEEE volunteers as they do everything they can to provide value to members.
It's a good time to appreciate the efforts that go into running this huge entity. And it's time to remind members to vote for the leaders who will take the organization further into the new century.
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