The IEEE LEADERSHIP WIRE

1 February 2005

Index

***************************************************************************************************************** The IEEE LEADERSHIP WIRE is a report for top-level IEEE volunteers about IEEE affairs and organizational information. It is intended specifically for members of the IEEE Board of Directors, key Board committees and the six major operating boards. The newsletter is sent on or around the first of the month.
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CONTENTS:
*YEAR-END MEMBERSHIP HIGHLIGHTS
*NEW IEEE MEMBERSHIP PORTAL LAUNCHES
*IEEE XPLORE 2.0 COMING IN APRIL
*IEEE-USA SUPPORTS NEW ENGINEERING PUBLIC AWARENESS PROGRAMS
*SUBMIT IEEE FOUNDATION GRANT REQUESTS ONLINE
*IN THE NEWS

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**YEAR-END MEMBERSHIP HIGHLIGHTS**
IEEE membership increased 1.2 percent in 2004 to a total of 365,483. Higher grade memberships decreased 0.1 percent to 297,125, while student memberships grew 7 percent to 68,358. Society memberships for the year declined 4.6 percent to a total of 352,141.

For complete details, read the December Membership Development Report at http://www.ieee.org/organizations/rab/md/mdprogrpt.html.

For reference, these and other year-end statistics are online at http://www.ieee.org/portal/pages/about//quick_facts.html. This page may be accessed from the "About IEEE" rollover menu on the left navigation bar of the ieee.org homepage. The information, which is updated twice a year, is currently reported as follows:

The IEEE has

• more than 365,000 members in over 150 countries, almost 40 percent of whom are from outside the United States. More than 221,000 members are in the United States.
• more than 27,000 society affiliates.
• 307 sections.
• 1,446 chapters.
• more than 1,300 student branches in 80 countries.
• over 300 student branch chapters.
• more than 147 affinity groups.
• 39 societies and 3 technical councils.

**NEW IEEE MEMBERSHIP PORTAL LAUNCHES**
The IEEE has launched its new membership portal along with a members-only area called myIEEE.

The public site boasts the value and benefits of IEEE membership while showcasing the availability of additional membership opportunities, such as societies, affinity groups and the Standards Association. Links to member-benefit information are consolidated into drop-down menus on the top navigation bar. Also included are a "Featured Benefit" module, member profiles, membership-related announcements and more.

Members who login to the myIEEE area with their IEEE Web account will see personalized information, such as their grade, section affiliation and additional active memberships. A new feature called "Service Advisor" uses a member's technical interest profile to offer recommendations for IEEE membership offerings, conferences and publications. Links to the most commonly-used membership-management functions – joining the IEEE, renewing membership, adding services and changing profile information – are included in a single module for easy access.

The membership portal and myIEEE project was initiated in response to member feedback about the IEEE Web presence, as well as to improve communications about the value of IEEE membership.

The portal is accessible from the Membership menu on the left navigation bar of the main IEEE Web site. The URL is http://www.ieee.org/myieee.

**IEEE XPLORE 2.0 COMING IN APRIL**
A major upgrade to the IEEE Xplore(R) online delivery platform will take place in April, and will offer researchers a more functional design and enhanced usability. Features include:

• full-text search of all online content
• an automated welcome page that recognizes users' access rights
• free, basic searches for all visiting researchers -- a major change in IEEE access policy.
• "homepages" for all IEEE periodicals containing reviews of the publications' aim and scope, and links to all past and present issues and manuscript submission information
• conference proceedings grouped together to show title history, instead of displaying multiple times in title listings

For more information, visit http://www.ieee.org/products/onlinepubs/news/0105_01.html, or contact Barbara Lange, IEEE Publications Business Development, at b.lange@ieee.org.

**IEEE-USA SUPPORTS NEW ENGINEERING PUBLIC AWARENESS PROGRAMS**
Three collaborative programs designed to promote public awareness of engineers and engineering received support from IEEE-USA at the end of 2004. The ongoing programs appeal to a variety of audiences using targeted media: special events for youngsters; movies for youngsters and young adults; and television news for adults and the public-at-large.

For details on these programs, visit http://www.ieeeusa.org/communications/releases/2004/123004pr.asp.

**SUBMIT IEEE FOUNDATION GRANT REQUESTS ONLINE**
Effective immediately, those seeking grants from the IEEE Foundation may only apply via the organization's new online application. The IEEE Foundation considers projects that:

• improve education in mathematics, science and technology from pre-university through continuing education;
• preserve, study, or promulgate the history of IEEE-associated technologies;
• recognize major contributions to these technologies and their applications; or
• show promise of making a major contribution to the worldwide communities the IEEE serves or significantly advancing the profession.

For more information, visit http://www.ieee.org/foundation.

**IN THE NEWS**
The IEEE, its members, and its products and services are mentioned frequently in journalists’ reports on technology and the engineering profession.  Here are just a few recent references.

31 Dec. -- THE NEW YORK TIMES (http://nytimes.com) -- In a Letter to the Editor, Judith Gorman, IEEE Standards Association managing director, refuted the newspaper's 27 Dec. editorial criticizing the voting machine standards working group. "The IEEE voting equipment standard is being created using an open process that involves a working group with broad representation," she wrote. "The IEEE draft standard takes no positions on policy. It appropriately leaves those decisions to election officials."

23 Dec. -- DENVER BUSINESS JOURNAL (http://denver.bizjournals.com/denver/) reported the election of Michael Lightner as IEEE President-elect. The 16 Dec. issue of THE (Boulder, Colo.) DAILY CAMERA also covered his election. In other IEEE election-related stories, Ralph W. Wyndrum Jr.'s selection as IEEE-USA President-elect was in the 17 Dec. THE GARDEN CITY (NY) NEWS.

28 Dec. -- NEWSDAY (Long Island, NY) (http://newsday.com) announced the annual IEEE-USA salary survey, which showed the first drop in the median annual salary for electrical engineers since the group began tracking its members' salary data in 1972. Other articles on the salary survey were carried on 22 Dec. by IDG NEWS SERVICE (http://idgnews.net), and on 23 Dec. by both PCWORLD (http://pcworld.com) and COMPUTERWORLD (http://computerworld.com). The survey also resulted in a 6 Jan. appearance by IEEE-USA President Gerard Alphonse on CNN TV's Lou Dobbs Tonight (http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/lou.dobbs.tonight) regarding the implications of the salary decline, along with IEEE member and electrical engineer Chris Parkes of Moraga, Calif., who was interviewed on his recent career experiences.

17 Dec. -- INDIA WEST (http://indiawest.com) reported that Krishna Saraswat, a professor of electrical engineering and the Rickey/Nielsen Professor of Engineering at StanfordUniversity, had received the 2004 Andrew S. Grove Award earlier that week at the IEEE Electron Devices conference. The Award is sponsored by the IEEE Electron Devices Society and recognizes outstanding contributions in the field of solid-state devices and technology.

Jan. -- IMSA Journal (http://www.imsasafety.org/) covered the 1 Oct. dedication of the IEEE Milestone honoring the Boston (Mass.) Electric Fire Alarm System. The journal, which is published by the International Municipal Signal Association, noted the Milestone program was developed by the IEEE History Center to preserve, research and promote the legacy of electrical and electronics engineers.