SECTION 16 - FELLOWS

16.1  Purpose

The IEEE Computer Society shall have a Fellows Committee, the purpose of which is to evaluate candidates for IEEE Fellow.

16.2  Composition of the Committee

16.2.1  Number of Members

IEEE Computer Society Bylaws require that the Fellows Committee consist of at least seven society members chosen from among those of fellow grade within the IEEE.  However, in order to expedite the work of the committee, it is recommended that the committee consist of at least fifteen members, each of whom will be responsible for evaluating approximately fifteen Fellow candidates.

16.2.2  Coverage of Technical Scope

Committee members (also called evaluators) should be chosen so that as a group they provide sufficient coverage of current technical topics likely to match with the expertise of current Fellow candidates.  In addition, the society's technical committees and experts in the field of technical interest of the candidate may be asked for assistance in completing candidate evaluations.

16.2.3  Balance of Background

Members of the committee should have a diverse background of experience:  consulting, design, development, management, teaching, research, and so forth.  Members of the committee may not nominate or serve as references for any candidate to be evaluated by the committee.

16.2.4  Prior Service

The previous chair should be contacted for advice about last year's committee members, both in terms of length and quality of service.

16.2.5  Length of Service

Neither the chair, nor any member of the committee, shall serve for more than three consecutive years in either capacity.

16.2.6  Communication Methods

Due to the speed with which nominations must be evaluated, these guidelines and calendar assume that the committee chair and members have access to electronic mail; fax communication may also be desirable, as may express service delivery of nomination forms to committee members by the chair.

16.3  Calendar

(Figure 17.1)

16.3.1  Appointment of Chair by President-elect

The Fellows Committee chair shall be appointed by the president-elect in July for the forthcoming year.

16.3.2  Chief Staff Executive Sends Chair a Copy of Guidelines

Following the appointment of the committee chair in July, the chief staff executive shall send the chair a copy of the complete Fellows Committee guidelines, including the IEEE COMPUTER SOCIETY PPM section and other guidelines that may be developed.

16.3.3  Chair Submits Article to Computer Magazine

In November, the committee chair shall submit an article for publication in the January issue of Computer magazine regarding the IEEE Fellows program and soliciting nominations.

16.3.4  Appointment of Members

The committee chair shall start the selection and appointment process of the members of the committee in September and will complete the process no later than December of each year.

16.3.5  Submission of Nomination Forms

Nomination forms are due by 1 March of each year.

16.3.6  Assignment of Nominations and Initial Transmittal of Forms to Committee Members

The committee chair shall assign nominations for evaluation and transmit forms and materials to committee members by 5 May of each year.

16.3.7  Evaluation by Committee Members

Committee members shall supply their initial evaluations on the appropriate forms to the committee chair no later than 5 May of each year.

16.3.8   Initial Ranking of All Candidates by Committee Chair

The committee chair shall send the initial ranking of all candidates to the committee by 20 May of each year.

16.3.9  Committee Response on Initial Ranking

Committee members shall respond to the chair regarding the initial ranking of candidates by 24 May of each year.

16.3.10  Final Ranking

The committee chair shall decide if numerical rankings should be changed, or if he/she should obtain additional evaluations for individual candidates, and provide final ranking and evaluations to the IEEE chair by mid-June.

16.3.11  Committee Report

The committee chair shall send a report to the society president and the chief staff executive by 30 June of each year.

16.4  Committee Evaluation Responsabilities

Committee members/evaluators must determine whether the work of each candidate is recognized and considered outstanding in the field of activity of the IEEE Computer Society.  Second, the evaluators must provide a succinct statement of the candidate's outstanding contribution which qualifies him/her for Fellow grade.  Third, the evaluators must rate the candidate's contributions relative to the contributions of IEEE Fellows.

The IEEE Computer Society Fellows Committee is to limit its evaluation to the technical contribution of the candidate.  Other contributions, such as professional activities, are taken into account by the IEEE Fellow Committee.  The IEEE Computer Society Fellow Committee does not receive the Fellow Grade Reference Forms (B-29) completed by the referees.  These forms are used by the IEEE Fellow Committee.  However, evaluators may solicit the opinion of experts (including the referees) in the field for which the candidate is cited.

16.5  Responsibilities of Chair

The committee chair is responsible for merging the evaluators' input into a coherent whole, for reaching consensus with the committee on ranking the candidates, and for making the final decision on content of the B-3 evaluation forms.

Fellows Evaluation Process Calendar

(Figure 16.1)

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