Policy and Procedures, Part 1
SECTION 1. MEMBERSHIP
SECTION 2. CORPORATE ORGANIZATION
2.1. Officer Position Descriptions. (approved 20 May 2006)
2.1.1. President. (approved 20 May 2006)
The duties of the President include the oversight of all activities of the Signal Processing Society, including but not limited to, awards, conferences, membership, publications, technical directions, strategic and long-range planning, etc. The President is responsible for the TAB Five-Year Society Review and Publications Review with the assistance of the Vice Presidents. The President directly supervises the Executive Director, who manages the staff activities. The President is responsible for enforcing the Society’s Constitution, Bylaws, and Policies, and ensuring that the Society is compliant with IEEE’s Constitution, Bylaws, and Policies. The President is a member of the IEEE Technical Activities Board and represents the Society’s point of view. The President is responsible for bringing IEEE and TAB issues that affect the Society’s operations to the Board of Governors’ attention. The President acts as an ambassador for the Society at IEEE meetings or meetings of other organizations, representing the Society’s message as determined by its Board of Governors.
The President chairs the Society’s Board of Governors and Executive Committee. The President only votes to break a tie. The President is an ex-officio, voting member on all Society Boards and Committees.
2.1.2. President-Elect. (approved 20 May 2006)
The duties of the President-Elect include the oversight of strategic and long-range planning activities for the Society, by means of conference calls and in-person meetings of the Long-Range Planning and Implementation Committee; chairing the Board of Governors Long-Range Planning Retreat and chairing the annual Executive Committee Strategic Planning meeting; preparing agendas and documentation for the retreats and tracking action items; assisting in the creation of the TAB Five-Year Society Review document; and representing the Society at IEEE meetings or meetings of other organizations on strategic and long-range planning activities or on other Society activities as requested by the President or by the Society’s Board of Governors.
The President-Elect chairs the TC Review Committee and acts as a liaison to the Board of Governors regarding all activities of this committee.
The President-Elect chairs the Long-Range Planning and Implementation Committee and acts as a liaison to the Board of Governors for all strategic and long-range planning activities; he/she serves on, and is a voting member of, the Society's Board of Governors and Executive Committee.
2.1.3. Vice President-Awards and Membership. (approved 20 May 2006)
The duties of the Vice President-Awards and Membership include the oversight of Society award activities and Distinguished Lecturer nominations; presentation of Society awards at the Society’s annual Awards Ceremony usually held in conjunction with the ICASSP conference; solicitation of nominations for IEEE Technical Field Awards, Best Paper Awards, Major Medals, or other awards given by IEEE or any of its organizational units in the areas of signal processing; solicitation of nominations for awards in the area of signal processing given by non-IEEE entities; solicitation of SPS Senior Members as candidates for nomination to IEEE Fellow grade; tracking membership trends; drafting strategic and long-term plans regarding the Society’s awards and membership activities for recommendation to the Board of Governors; overseeing the activities of the Society’s Chapter activities; assisting in the creation of the TAB Five-Year Society Review document; and representing the Society at IEEE meetings or meetings of other organizations on award and membership matters or as requested by the Society’s President or Board.
The Vice President-Awards and Membership chairs the Awards Board and acts as liaison to the Board of Governors for all award, chapter, fellow, distinguished lecturer, and membership activities; and serves on and is a voting member of the Society's Board of Governors and Executive Committee.
2.1.4. Vice President-Conferences. (approved 20 May 2006)
The duties of the Vice President-Conferences include management responsibility for all Society conference and workshop teams; identification of locations to propose future ICASSP, ICIP, and any other SPS-sponsored major conference locations; recommend policy to the Board of Governors in the area of management of the Society’s technical meetings and apply such policy on behalf of the Board of Governors; enforce IEEE policy as it applies to the Society’s technical meetings; creation of strategic and long-term plans for the Society’s technical meeting activities; assist in the creation of the TAB Five-Year Society Review document; and represent the Society at IEEE meetings or meetings of other organizations on conference matters or as requested by the Society’s President or Board.
The Vice President-Conferences chairs the Conference Board and acts as liaison to the Board of Governors for all technical meeting activity; he/she also serves on, and is a voting member of, the Society's Board of Governors and Executive Committee. He/she also represents the Society to IEEE or to other organizations, on behalf of the Society, on matters concerned with the Society’s technical meetings.
2.1.5. Vice President-Finance. (approved 20 May 2006)
The duties of the Vice President-Finance include the preparation and forecasting of Society budgets as well as monitoring of the Society's expenses, surpluses, and investments. The Vice President-Finance provides guidance to the Conference Board and Publications Board on matters concerning finances, including the Society’s membership fee; technical meeting registration prices, publication fees, page budgets, etc.
The Vice President-Finance also is responsible for the minutes of the Board of Governors and Executive Committee and assisting in the creation of the TAB Five-Year Society Review document.
The Vice President-Finance serves on, and is a voting member of, the Society's Board of Governors, Executive Committee, Conference Board and Publications Board.
2.1.6. Vice President-Publications. (approved 20 May 2006)
The duties of the Vice President-Publications include the identification and appointment (with the advice and consent of the Executive Committee) of Editors-in-Chief for the Society’s periodical journals, membership magazine, newsletter(s) or other magazines; management of the activities of the Editors-in-Chief; drafting strategic and long-term plans for the Society’s publications; oversight of financial matters pertaining to the Society’s publications such as page budgets; responsible for the creation of the TAB Five-Year Publications Review document and assisting in the creation of the TAB Five-Year Society Review document; assist in preparing of new periodical and publications/products proposals; represents the Society on the IEEE Panel of Editors; and represent the Society at IEEE meetings or meetings of other organizations for publication matters or as requested by the Society’s President or Board.
The Vice President-Publications chairs the Publications Board and acts as liaison to the Board of Governors for all publication matters; he/she serves on, and is a voting member of, the Society's Board of Governors and Executive Committee.
2.1.7. Vice President-Technical Directions. (approved 20 May 2006)
The duties of the Vice President-Technical Directions is to oversee the activities of the Society’s technical community, as embodied in its Technical Committees, in order to improve the Society’s technical profile within and outside IEEE; to assist the Society in identifying emerging technologies at the nexus of signal processing; assist in the creation of the TAB Five-Year Society Review document; and to proactively engage the Society’s members in strengthening the technical mission of the Society as defined in its Field of Interest.
The Vice President-Technical Directions is responsible for chairing the Technical Directions Board. He/she is an ex-officio member of all the Society’s Technical Committees and serves on, and is a voting member of the Society's Board of Governors and Executive Committee.
2.2. Member-at-Large Position Description. (approved 20 May 2006)
Members-at-Large are directly elected by the Society's membership to represent the member viewpoint in Board of Governors decision-making. Members-at-Large typically review, discuss, and act upon a wide range of items affecting the actions, activities and health of the Society.
2.3. Editor-In-Chief Position Description. (approved 20 May 2006)
Editor-in-Chief duties include the identification of associate editors to serve across the topical scope of the periodical journal, including special issue topics and guest editors; management of the day-to-day operations in Manuscript Central with the assistance of the Signal Processing Society's publications staff; identifying areas that require strengthening the scope of the Society and working with the Society and its technical committees to achieve that goal.
The Editor-in-Chief is responsible for working with the Society's Vice President-Publications to create strategic and long-term plans for the publication they oversee. The Editor-in-Chief chairs the Editorial Board for the publication they oversee and serves on and is a voting member of the Society's Publications Board.
SECTION 3. NOMINATIONS/ELECTIONS/APPOINTMENTS
3.1. Officer Nomination Criteria. (approved 20 May 2006)
All candidates for Officer positions in the Signal Processing Society must posses records of significant technical achievement and must hold the IEEE grade of Senior Member or higher. They must be at the time of nomination, and must remain throughout the term of service, members in good standing of IEEE and of the IEEE Signal Processing Society. Candidates’ biographies must reflect some recent management experience.
Specific criteria, by position, appears below.
3.1.1. President-Elect. (approved 20 May 2006)
The President-Elect must have previously served as a member-elected Member-at-Large on the Board of Governors. The President-Elect shall be an IEEE Fellow. The President-Elect position automatically succeeds to President.
3.1.2. Vice President-Awards and Membership. (approved 20 May 2006)
The Vice President-Awards and Membership must be an IEEE Fellow and must have received one or more Society awards. The profile of the Vice President-Awards and Membership should bring positive attention to the awards program.
3.1.3. Vice President-Conferences. (approved 20 May 2006)
The Vice President-Conferences must have served as a General Chair or Treasurer for an IEEE symposium or major conference. Preferred candidates are those who have served as past General Chair or Treasurer for ICASSP or ICIP.
3.1.4. Vice President-Finance. (approved 20 May 2006)
The Vice President-Finance must have served as a treasurer of a major conference, as past Conference Board Treasurer, or in some financial capacity for another Society or for IEEE.
3.1.5. Vice President-Publications. (approved 20 May 2006)
The Vice President-Publications must have served as an Editor-in-Chief, or in an equivalent management capacity for an archival journal published by IEEE.
3.1.6. Vice President-Technical Directions. (approved 20 May 2006)
The Vice President-Technical Directions may have previously served as an elected Technical Committee Chair, and may have served in one or more of the following positions: General Chair or Technical Chair of ICASSP or ICIP; Editor-in-Chief of a Signal Processing Society sponsored publication.
3.2. Member-at-Large Criteria. (approved 20 May 2006)
Members-at-Large candidates must demonstrate that he/she is active in one or more signal processing disciplines and shall have been a member of the Society for five years or more.
3.3. Editor-in-Chief Nomination Criteria. (approved 20 May 2006)
An Editor-in-Chief candidate must have served as an associate editor, special issue editor, or in a management capacity for an archival journal published by IEEE. Preference shall be given to candidates who have served as Associate Editors of one or more Signal Processing Society archival publication.
3.4. Distinguished Lecturers. (amended 24 March 2005)
Each year, up to ten (10) technically diverse and geographically dispersed individuals shall serve as Signal Processing Society Distinguished Lecturers (DLs). The formal term of appointment shall be two calendar years with five (5) individuals appointed each year.
3.4.1. Nomination. (amended 24 March 2005)
Nominations shall be solicited by the Awards Board from the Society’s Technical Committees, Editorial Boards, Chapters and other boards and committees no later than 1 June of each year. All nominations will be considered by the Awards Board and a list of nominees and alternates, along with a list of their lecture topics, will be provided to the Board of Governors at least three weeks prior to its Fall meeting. The Board will consider this list at its Fall meeting and provide its advice and consent for the final selections, which shall be announced by the Vice President-Awards and Membership.
The list of nominees and alternates shall comprise individuals of distinction who are members of the IEEE and of the IEEE Signal Processing Society, who are recognized experts in their fields of endeavor, and who are capable of delivering a message of importance to the technical community as well as to the Society’s members organized in chapters around the world.
Following identification of the top five (5) candidates and alternates by the Board, the Society staff, on behalf of the Awards Board Chair, will reconfirm in writing the candidates’ willingness to serve as an SPS Distinguished Lecturer/Alternate.
3.4.2. Publicity. (amended 24 March 2005)
The Executive Director shall contact each lecturer and request, by fax or e-mail, a copy of each lecturer's brief biography and a listing and brief description of the lectures/short courses each DL is prepared to present. Each DL will be requested to provide such information within ten (10) working days of contact by the Executive Director.
The Executive Director shall also provide, at the time of this contact, a current listing of Society Chapter Chairs and their contact information, as well as information on working with the Chapters regarding their engagement, negotiation and expensing of travel, and any other pertinent details.
Upon receipt of the requested biography and lecture information, the Executive Director shall prepare and transmit a message by e-mail/fax to the Society's Chapters, announcing the names of the new class of DLs, providing biographical information, contact information, and the list and description of lectures/short courses for the coming calendar year. Such correspondence by the Executive Director to the Chapters also shall contain any changes to the DL program for the coming year, as well as describe the selection, engagement, negotiation, and expensing of DLs for presentations to the Chapters.
The Executive Director shall also be responsible for causing information regarding the new class of DLs to be posted to the Society's Web page, publishing the names and lecture titles in the next issue of the Society's Directory of Volunteer Leaders and Staff, and providing in a timely way full information about the Society's program for the coming term to the IEEE for publication in the IEEE Distinguished Lecturer Handbook.
3.5.Notification of General Election Results (approved 25 April 1997)
3.5.1. Notification of Candidates.
The Chair of the Nominations and Appointments Committee shall notify candidates of their success in the general election. Upon written request from a candidate for Member-at-Large, he/she may receive, on a confidential basis to the candidate, the following counts: total number of ballots mailed; total number of ballots returned; total number of votes, by candidate.
The results (vote counts) of the Society's elections shall not be published.
SECTION 4. GEOGRAPHICAL ACTIVITIES
4.1. Chapter Support. (amended 18 October 2008)
The Society shall provide financial assistance to its chapters in the form of support for travel, publicity, and coffee breaks or other small social gathering expenses for invited speakers. The maximum amount of such support available to each Chapter annually shall be determined by the Executive Committee. Reimbursement to the Chapter for invited speaker travel expense, upon submission of a completed IEEE expense form and appropriate, original receipts, shall be on the basis of approval by both the Chapters Coordinator and the Vice President-Finance.
The Society shall not, as a rule, provide other financial support to its Chapters. However, in the event of a specific request, the Chapter Coordinator shall make a recommendation to the Vice President-Finance for relief.
4.2. Assistance to Needy Colleagues. (approved 25 April 1997
The Society is aware of geographical and financial issues that may severely limit access by its members and colleagues to information about signal processing technology. For these reasons, the Society will, upon action by the Executive Committee, participate in library and other donation programs that provide service to its members and the community of peers.
SECTION 5. TECHNICAL ACTIVITIES
5.1. Technical Committees. (approved 11 September 2003)
5.1.1. Creation of New Technical Committees.
From time to time, consonant with advances to the fields of signal processing, and in order to service the many activities of the Society (publications, conferences, awards, etc.) requiring easy access to a cadre of experts in a specific technical area, it may be appropriate to create a new Technical Committee (TC).
5.1.1.2. Recommendation for a New Technical Committee.
A proposal for a new Technical Committee (TC) shall be brought to the attention of the Technical Directions Board (TDB). The proposal shall contain as much information as possible in support of the proposal for a new TC and will include a suggested scope and a rationale as to why the TC is needed at that particular time. The TDB will review, investigate, and discuss the proposal and then shall vote to recommend action by the Board of Governors. The Board shall then, at it next regular meeting, consider the proposal and the TDB's recommendation, and may act to approve, in concept, the creation of the new TC.
Following the Board's approval, as noted above, for a new TC, the Vice President-Technical Directions shall empanel a working group to develop the name, scope, management, and membership of the new TC. The efforts of the working group will be reported back to the Board by the Vice President-Technical Directions, which shall then be asked to provide final approval of the new TC.
5.1.2. Change of Technical Committee Name/Scope.
In response to changes within the technical community, it may be advisable to change the name of a technical committee. Name changes may be recommended in order to keep current with the changing vocabulary of technology or to reflect a change in scope of an existing TC.
As technology advances, activities surrounding certain disciplines may evolve, making both a change of name and of scope of a Technical Committee appropriate. In the event that such change is believed by a particular TC to be warranted, the Chair of that TC shall bring the suggested name change and change of scope to the Technical Directions Board for deliberation, discussion, and recommendation to the Board of Governors. The Board of Governors will take final action on the recommendation of the TDB.