Unit Chair – Section, Chapter, Affinity groups

Unit Chair – Section, Chapter, Affinity groups Ed Palacio, Dr. Charles Rubenstein, Bob Pellegrino c.rubenstein@ieee.org e.f.palacio@ieee.org bobpellegrino@ieee.org

Agenda • Governance - Chair’s place in IEEE. Responsibilities, Authority, and Accountability. Organizational linkage • Administration and Reporting - Administrative and reporting requirements • Tools – variety of tools available • Programs – organizing, structuring, running and reporting activities • Affinity Groups and Chapters – role and importance of various affinity groups and society chapters • Vitality & Sustainability – focusing on the member, succession planning, recruitment and retention.

Governance Chair’s place in IEEE. Responsibilities, Authority, and Accountability. Organizational linkage

Section Chair • You are the highest ranking elected volunteer leader of a primary IEEE Geographic core Unit • As such, you are acting as a Local General Manager with significant: • Authority • Responsibility • Accountability • All within well specified boundaries

Sections CoverBroad Scope Locally Member& GeographicActivities Board GeographicUnit Structure Regions Technical ActivitiesBoard Areas Areas Parent Committees- WIE,YPs, LMC, Consultants Network Divisions Section IEEESocieties&TechnicalCouncils Affinity Groups Chapters Sub- Sections Student Branches Councils SBChapters SBAffinityGroups

Your Domain is Quite Broad • You are primarily responsible for the oversight, coordination, finances and reporting of all local member engagement activities within your geographic boundaries • Section Level • All Society Chapters within your domain • All Affinity Group activities within your domain • All Student Branch Activities within your domain • Volunteer Officer Development/Succession • As well as the overall health of your Section

Your are not Alone in this Journey • There is a significant superstructure established for the sole purpose of having you succeed • Regional Officers • Area Coordinator • MGA Parent Units – YP, WIE, Students, LM • Societies • MGA Staff They can all provide guidance, best practices, tools and data to help you in your endeavors

You cannot, and are not, expected to do this alone • Your Section Organization must be built to allow you to delegate many of these tasks • Your Section must resemble the Regional structure • Chairs and Vice Chairs • Secretary and Treasurer • Society Chapter Chairs • Affinity Group Chairs • Programs Coordinator or Programs Chair • Student Activities Coordinator and Student Activates Rep • Newsletter, Webmaster, Awards, Nomination and Appointment In the end, your organizational structure should be designed to allow you to fulfill your organizational mission

YOUR Section is Unique • Whereas there is many things that all Sections have in common, YOURS is quite Unique • Make it your primary duty to understand how/why • YOUR Section has some very specific characteristics • Geographic constrains • Demographics • Industrial Influences • Academic Interests • Technical Interests • Understanding these are what will eventually determine if you are indeed … Inspiring, Enabling, Empowering and Engaging your member.

Guiding Documents – Words to live by • YOU must assure that your Section is compliant with all the following documentation • IEEE Constitution • IEEE Bylaws • IEEE Policies • MGA Operations Manual ( section 9,10, 11) • Region Bylaws • Section Bylaws ( If you have them and as approved by MGA and Region) • Section Operating Procedures

Understanding and Managing Risk • It is YOUR job to understand the level of risk you undertake: • Financially • Contractually • Legally • It is OUR job (Region, MGA, IEEE) to help you do this • If your Section is conducting or plans to conduct any of the following, make sure you seek appropriate council from above: • issuing invoices to vendors for rendering of services related to IEEE activities; • opening a local bank account; • collection of membership dues; • financial sponsorship of a conference; • offering an educational accreditation program; • compensating individuals for work performed on a full or part-time basis; • purchasing or leasing property: • publication of papers and magazines.

Administrationand Reporting Administrative and reporting requirements

Administratively, YOU are running an Operating Unit • As such, you must think both long term and short term • Mission, Values, Vision and Strategy • Yearly Operational Plan • Programs/Activities/Initiatives • Budget and a detailed plan for Expenditures • You must also establish a drumbeat for assessing status and correcting if things go out of plan

YOU are responsible for Required Responses • Whereas your Section Secretary and Treasurer are tasked with the primary reporting responsibilities • It is YOUR job to make sure it gets done • YOU must report, by Feb 28th • Meeting Activities for Units and Subunits • New Officers and Officer Changes • Finance Reporting • If done timely…by Feb 28th… every unit and subunit will receive a 10% bonus.

Additional Requirements • YOU as well as various other officers within your organization must take required training • Ethics • Compliance • YOU and other officers must sign appropriate Conflict of Interest forms More to come in Treasurer and Secretary Session

Tools Variety of tools available

What is available for you to do your job • SAMIEEE - web enabled tool that allows ad-hoc querying, reporting, and downloading of IEEE membership data. Access to this system is limited to registered users with designated or automatic access. • vTools - simplifies administration by offering web based software, reduces time spent managing activities, and assists in member development. • IEEE e-Notice - electronic newsletter subscription service that has been developed for IEEE organizational units to facilitate email distribution of newsletters, meeting notices, and IEEE conference materials. • Section Vitality Dashboard - monitoring tool for use by section leaders that provides a real time, top-down status view of their section vitality metrics and key activities. • IEEE Center for Leadership Excellence Training for Geographic Unit Leaders – Web based training for everything you need to know about your leadership position within your geographic unit.

Programs Organizing, structuring, running and reporting activities

Programs are a direct way YOU deliver Value to your Membership • There is a vast array of Activities/Programs your Section can undertake • Small/Medium/Big • Technical/Professional/Social/Educational • Face to face/web-based • Section/Affinity Group/Chapter/Student Branch/Joint • Initiated/conducted • Tailored and suited for your Section • The most successful Sections plan a repertoire of all of the above • First and Foremost, understand your Section’s needs and wants! • Secondly, understand what your Section can undertake, staff, and deliver • Volunteer staffing • Financial implication • Risk • Thirdly, if uncertain, seek help from above – Region, MGA, Societies, and IEEE Staff are all here to help.

Section Program Essentials • Bad News/Good News • Section Program Types • Running Your Program: Volunteers! • Advertising Your Program • Reporting Your Programs & Activities • Funding Programs, Approvals and RISK • THE Section Program Essential…

Bad News/Good News • Calendar Year The ‘bad news’ is that your term of office starts January 1 and you were elected - at best - the November before but your members want activities immediately! • Academic Year The GOOD NEWS! is that your section and previous chair probably have activities planned for the next few months <grin>. BUT… DON’T RELAX there’s plenty to plan for through the rest of the year!

Section Program Types - 1 • Section Meetings (ExCom and General) • Section Annual Awards Dinner/Banquet • Chapter Meetings • Chapter Technical Programs, Seminars and Workshops • Society Conferences in your Section • IEEE-USA/Professional Activities Meetings • PACE Programs and Meetings • Student Professional Awareness Conference/Experience • Career/Government Activities

Section Program Types - 2 • Affiliate Group Meetings • WIE, YP, Consultants Network, LM, etc. Programs • Other Local Meetings • World Maker Faire (22-23 September, Hall of Science Queens, NY) • First Robotics, and other STEM Programs • Region/Area/Other Meetings • Region 1 Student Conference (23-25 March, NYIT) • IEEE-USA Future Leaders Forum (26-28 July, Austin TX)

Running Your Program: Volunteers! • Section, Chapter, or Group Selects a ‘Champion’ • Determine if Program is CEU-eligible • Think Micro-Volunteering… Break the tasks into small pieces: speaker selection, registration, PR, CEUs, facilities management, etc.

Advertising Your Program • As soon as your section approves the budget for a program you should begin to advertise it! • Use vTools! for registration • Send PR to your Section eNotice and Web Master • Send PR to R1 Webmaster (greg.gdowski@gmail.com) • Rule of Thumb: Three (3) emails or newsletters or announcements are needed before folks get the message!

Funding Programs & Approvals Needed • Funding Programs for Members The Section budget typically covers the cost of refreshments at Chapter and Affinity Group programs for members… PACE Programs can obtain up to $500 in matching funds • Approval Requirements Some programs require more funds than the Section can afford to make available. They require a Section ExCom passed budget. If a conference or mini-conference, they require IEEE registration (ICX form) and if contracts for space, catering, etc., exceed $5000 will require IEEE Staff review and approvals at the REGION Level.

Program Fees, Vendors, Donors/Patrons • Program Fees Whenever a Conference or Workshop, etc., budget is more than a few hundred dollars there are typically registration charges. To calculate what these charges should be to generate at least a 20% surplus for other Section activities, first divide the expenses budget by the number of anticipated paying attendees = BASE cost. Student/Life MEMBERS: 10% over BASE IEEE Members (and Student non-members): 25% over BASE Non-Members: 25% over Member fee (or 50% over BASE) • Vendors and Donors/Patrons Vendors typically pay $250-500 per table top space Donors/Patrons provide funding for breaks, lunches, etc.

Program RISK • RISK… In business we recognize that without risk there is typically no reward. IEEE is a Not-For-Profit 501(c)3 organization, but we are also Not-For-Loss <grin>. Every program that requires donor or registration fees to cover expenses presents a risk to IEEE. Any contract signed by volunteers on behalf of IEEE has a level of risk if the event is cancelled or if insufficient rooms or food and beverages are sold. Typically penalty terms are in the event contracts. PLEASE request that the Region 1 Conferences Coordinator review any contracts BEFORE anyone signs them as they may require special handling or approvals.

Reporting Your Section Programs vToolshelps pre-fill the L-31 Meeting Form as well as provides a means for Free or Fee program registration • Report ALL your programs and activities to: Your Section ExCom Your Section Members Your Area Chair Region Committee(s) that oversee the particular activity

THE Section Program Essential… Make it Fun for your Officers Make it fUn for your Volunteers Make it FUN for your Members Retention and new members are sure to follow

Affinity Groups and Chapters Role and importance of various affinity groups and society chapters

Our Membership is Diverse and Unique • Every Member has a set of characteristics that will define how they look at the value that their membership provides them. • Our member will all sit in each of the various categories provided below • Grade – Student, Graduate Student, Member, Sr. Member , Fellow • Career – Academia, Research, Industry, Government • Technical Expertize – One or more of the many Technical Societies or fields within the profession • Demographics – age, gender, other, location • Career Life Cycle – Student, Early Career, Mid-Career, Late Career, Post career Within your specific IEEE community… Many needs

Affinity Groups • Affinity Groups allow you to look, understand, and address the needs of your members from a behavioral point of view. • Our recognized Behavioral Groups ( Affinity and..) • Young Professional • Women in Engineering • Consultant Networks • *Life Members – to include not just the member grade but post career members • *Students - to include behavior and not just a member grade. * These are Member Grades, however, from a behavioral point of view we can look at their characteristics

Affinity Groups provide a portal towards membership behavior • Each Affinity group has a unique set of preferences and needs that must be addressed to maintain a level of satisfaction and interest for continuance in the Institute • How to communicate • Social preferences • Manage and use time • Professional and career needs • The future of the Institute is clearly related to how well we can attract and maintain all of the groups identified, and specifically Students, YP’s and WIE’s.

Society Chapters • IEEE is first and foremost a technical society • The technical activities of your Society Chapters are the lifeblood of your Section • Healthy Chapters with Frequent , Focused and Locally Meaningful Activity are a necessary aspect for conducting a healthy Section IT is YOUR job to make sure that these chapters are properly staffed, managed and engaged in activities that satisfy the needs of your local technical communities

Vitality & Sustainability Focusing on the member, succession planning, recruitment and retention.

A Little on Organizational Theory • Organizations are never fixed/stable… you are either getting better or getting worse, growing or declining • Your membership is always changing • Expectations • Demographics • Needs/wants • Competition is always there trying to gain on you (take way your members) • Other Institutions/Interests • Other vehicles that deliver similar content • Time/Money A High level of Customer(Membership) Intimacy needs to be established to succeed

A little bit more on Organizational Theory • Your Organizational Structure/Policies/Processes are essential in being able to focus on Member and deliver value • Effectiveness is more important than Efficiency • Leadership is everything • Stewardship is everything Given the IEEEE Policy of rotational Volunteer leadership – Succession Planning, Leadership Selection and Leadership Development are key to your Section’s success

The Last bit of Organizational Theory • Diversity and Vitality are tightly linked • Vitality and Sustainability are tightly linked • Sustainability is accomplished by: • Focusing on member needs • Satisfaction drives retention • Retention is more important than Recruitment • Retention drives Recruitment • Focusing on Volunteer needs • Leadership Selection & Development • Training

SECTION / CHAPTER VITALITY-SUCCESSION PLANNING Robert M. Pellegrino IEEE Region 1 Section Vitality Coordinator bobpellegrino@ieee.org

Succession Planning via Mentoring • Experienced and seasoned Section and / or Chapter volunteer members should be called upon to mentor and provide guidance to new Section or Chapter volunteer members. • Mentoring can be done on a one-to-one basis or in a group setting such as at a Section or Chapter Executive Committee Meeting. • New IEEE volunteer members should be invited to attend Executive Committee (Excom) Meetings to observe the operating procedures of the Excom. • New volunteers should be given small assignments on Committees or Chapters to give them a sense of responsibility.

Mentoring Methods - 1 • Keep volunteer members interested and engaged in Section/Chapter activities. • Make them feel that they are an important and integral part of the success of the Section/Chapter. • Invite them to assist a Section or Chapter Chair at one of the group’s program / technical meetings by handing out speaker’s notes; taking meeting attendance; recording minutes of a meeting; buying the refreshments; etc.

Mentoring Methods - 2 • Experienced IEEE volunteers can provide guidance to the newer volunteer members by explaining procedures and processes during an Excom meeting. Examples are: • Explaining: • The approval of an agenda. • The discussion and approval of previous meeting minutes. • The purpose of a “motion” and “second” and who can make a “motion” during a meeting. • The purpose of a budget line and financial reporting during the Treasurer’s report to the Excom. • The importance of submitting revenue and expense vouchers to track activities. • The review of various Chapter and Committee reports to the Excom.

Mentoring Methods - 3 • After an IEEE volunteer member has served on a Section, Chapter or Section Committee for a number of years and has shown their dedication and commitment they should be considered for an officer position. • Create a “Member-at-Large” (MAL) position(s) on the Section or Chapter Excom if none exists. • Move the dedicated volunteer to this position so that they can attend Excom meetings on a regular basis and observe the proceedings of the Excom. • After one or two years as MAL they should be ready for additional responsibilities as Secretary and eventually as a Section or Chapter Chair.

SECTION / CHAPTER VITALITY –THE NOMINATION / ELECTION PROCESS Robert M. Pellegrino IEEE Region 1 Section Vitality Coordinator bobpellegrino@ieee.org Officer Training Session

Nominating Committee & Election Process Guidelines • Use these guidelines for the election of officers (Chair, Vice-Chair, Treasurer & Secretary) • Guidelines are applicable for Sections, Subsections, Society Chapters and Affinity Groups. • Guidelines depict election process throughout the year and should be used when current officer term is expiring.

Appointment of Nominating Committee • January – Section / Chapter Chair appoints an N&A (nominations & appointments) or Nominating Committee Chair and Committee. • Chair has option of just appointing the Committee Chair and he/she appoints committee members. • Committee Chair & members should be Senior or Junior Past Section Chairs or experienced members of the Section or Chapter who are not current elected officers or intending to stand as a candidate for elected office.

Call for Nominations • Nominating Committee Chair prepares a “Call for Nominations” announcement to be sent via the vTools e-Notice system. • The announcement e-Notice should include a notice regarding petition candidates. • Examples of a Section and Chapter “Call for Nominations” announcement can be found on the Region 1 website. • Note: The Society Chapter announcement shall be sent only to the particular Society Chapter members.

Nominating Committee Vetting of Potential Officer Candidates • Month of June – Responses from Section membership are due back say by June 15th from all prospective candidates. • Nominating Committee meets to review & evaluate the qualifications of potential candidates. • Committee determines the proposed slate of officers by end of June. • The proposed slate shall include not less than two (2) nor more than three (3) candidates for each officer position when possible. • The term “when possible” is key here since there may only be one candidate qualified or nominated for each position.

Candidates Not Recommended • Candidates (IEEE Section members) nominated but not recommended by the Nominating Committee shall be notified that they were not recommended and may consider becoming petition candidates in the election process. • If these candidates want to continue as a “Petition Candidate” they must establish a petition for the particular officer position. • Their petition must be signed by 1% of the eligible voting members (active IEEE members) of their Section or Chapter. • The Petition Candidates must return their petition by say August 15th to the Section Chair and Secretary. • Successful petition candidate names are to be forwarded to Nominating Committee Chair for inclusion in the proposed slate of Section/Chapter officers. These names are to be designated as “Petition Candidate” on the election ballot.

Unit Chair – Section, Chapter, Affinity groups