Temporary Technical Program and Peer Review Associate

Job Summary

As a member of a dynamic team, the Technical Program and Peer Review Associate participates in and provides leadership for high quality technical program development and peer review processes as a service for IEEE conferences and the organizing team.

The primary responsibility of this role is to support IEEE conferences in this customer-centric service that aligns with the production of a quality IEEE program and its proceedings. This role facilitates timely and transparent quality control processes and provides role model standards for how the function is performed.

This role provides expertise, coordination, account management, compliance, and influencing, which require a thorough understanding of the strategic priorities of the assigned account as well as those of relevant stakeholders, including the IEEE client, conference planner, and Senior Management of Meetings, Conferences, and events.

The position provides guidance and the application of best practices, publication management, available resources, and required processes to IEEE Conferences and to the staff teams. They are tasked with bridging gaps and identifying strategic opportunities.

The Associate works with volunteer conference organizers, in conjunction with supporting staff teams, to provide these services and a high level of support that ensures the quality of processes and systems used in conference proceedings development and review. The Associate is responsible for performing and managing duties in support of Technical Program Management (TPM) and conference peer review activities. The Associate provides a high level of personal, customer, and volunteer support and builds and maintains professional relationships on behalf of Conferences, Events & Experiences (CEE).

The Associate provides support for research and information requests, prepares correspondence, assists in records management, supports specific conference committees, arranges conference calls, and schedules meetings to support the development of conference proceedings for an approved IEEE conference.

The Associate will interact with the global community of conference organizers, IEEE Organizational Unit leadership, including staff and volunteers, and other interested parties to ensure adherence to IEEE policies and critical conference operations and publications standards. This position must be able to work independently and with a team in a deadline-oriented environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Provides support to conference Technical Program Management and Peer Review activities.

• Provides accurate and timely responses, both written and oral communication, and routes and responds to requests and projects, including the appropriate subject matter expert for follow-up and execution as needed.

• Input and maintenance of key information as it relates to authors, reviewers, and conference management.

• Supports CEE activities, projects, and initiatives, including gathering data and performing research in support of specific conference inquiries regarding TPM and Conference Peer Review.

• Educates and assists conference organizers and authors with IEEE publishing requirements consistent with high-quality TPM and Conference Peer Review processes.

• Manages Technical Program Management process for IEEE Conferences

• Assists in tracking the workflow involved with the proceedings, processing/evaluation process/technical program management.

• Assists in the production of Technical Digests/Proceedings; Ensures authors are in complete compliance with all IEEE guidelines and copyright requirements.

• Research, innovate and propose metrics, analyses, tools or process changes to improve operation.

• Reviews and ensures all proper paperwork is filed with IEEE, included but not limited to Xplore, compliance, and publications forms.

• Assists IEEE Conference Volunteers with compliance procedures and requirements including interpretation of policies.

• Generates conference related reports upon request.

• Tracks the paper submission activities related to Invited Speakers.

• Test all upgrades and revisions to the paper management system(s).

• Ensures deadlines are being met and escalates issues accordingly.

• Supports Conference Quality team operations including but not limited to: preparation of materials for committee review, organizer communications, conference publication and sponsorship evaluation.

• Interfaces with other IEEE publication organizations to ensure efficient end-to-end operational performance.

• Maintains conference data and ensure the integrity of the IEEE Conference Database which generates all conference reporting.

Education

• Bachelor of Arts or Sciences degree in a liberal arts/sciences curriculum that stresses excellence
  in research and writing.

Work Experience

• 5 years of relevant business experience, including supporting technical program management projects and peer review practices and systems. The candidate’s background must include experience in a customer-focused business environment that demonstrates knowledge and skill in the following areas:
  • Project and task management, including skills in defining requirements, translating requirements into measurable goals and outcomes, documenting milestones and desired outcomes, planning and scheduling implementation activities, coordinating and developing communication plans, planning for training and development, and planning for and providing information sharing sessions with internal and external clients.
  • Analysis and management of administrative processes and quality efforts.

Skills and Requirements

• Must be a technologically savvy worker seeking technology solutions to business challenges—advanced competency with Microsoft Office tools, including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

• General knowledge of email. Personal experience with web social networking tools like LinkedIn or Facebook is desirable.

• Ability to understand new technology and envision integrating technologies into existing processes and systems.

• Ability to work independently and with a team in a deadline-oriented environment. Must be fluent in English and possess an above-average grasp of English grammar and syntax.

• Excellent skills in preparing PowerPoint with multi-media components for a variety of audiences.

• Must be able to write clear and effective responses to correspondence.

• Excellent reading and proofreading abilities. 

• Must stay updated on current trends to assist department management and IEEE volunteers.

• Must be able to read and comprehend incoming correspondence.

• Must communicate and interact effectively, diplomatically, and positively with all levels of staff, senior-level volunteers, Management Council, IEEE staff members, and external associations and partners.

• Must be able to plan and prioritize specific tasks, anticipate the needs of the conference program, and demonstrate resourcefulness to solve problems. 

• Ability to balance multiple projects simultaneously with minimal supervision while meeting deadlines is a must. 

• Able to think through scheduling conflicts and sort and redirect incoming correspondence to the optimum benefit of the office.

• Must be able to handle large volumes of incoming correspondence and documentation.

• Strong organization and multitasking skills.