IEEE Power Electronics Magazine - March 2022 - 74

White Hot
(continued from page 76)
the program chair of an INTELEC conference.
Locally, I served several years
as the chair of the PELS Denver chapter.
So for all that time and effort what
did I get back? First and foremost
these activities helped me build a
broad and deep professional network.
As I teach my project lab students
professional advancement, it is less
about " who you know " than " who
knows you. " When someone is starting
an exciting new project, or a new
engineering team, or even a new company,
you want to be one that people
think " I know them and they can really
help us succeed. Call them now! "
This deep and broad professional
network is also a great source of
assistance when I am facing a challenging
problem and am looking for
some advice. It also allows me to
make referrals when someone contacts
me seeking help with some project
or problem that is outside my
areas of expertise. This professional
network has been invaluable throughout
the years and has contributed to
my professional success in more
ways than I can count.
Aside from the value of this professional
network, working with colleagues
on committees with a wide
range of responsibilities has also
helped me develop professionally. I
have learned a lot about being an effective
team member and an effective
team leader. Those lessons have carried
over to the workplace and helped
me succeed in my industrial career.
If you really want to benefit from
your membership get involved and be
an active volunteer.
So how can you build your professional
network-and professional
success-through IEEE volunteer
activities?
An excellent way to get involved
and build your professional network is
to serve as a volunteer in one of the
society's technical committees. PELS
currently has twelve technical committees
covering a wide range of technologies.
Simply go to the PELS home page
and click on the Technical Activities
tab. You will see a greeting from the
society's VP of Technical Operations
and a list of the twelve committees.
Click on any of the committees and you
will be taken to a page with more information
on the committee, it's activities,
and a link to join the committee.
One way to get involved without
leaving the comfort of your office or
home is to review papers. Journals
and conferences are always looking
for reviewers. PELS recently sent out
a call for additional reviewers for its
journals. Reviewing papers is a serious
task and does take some time to
do it right. One must carefully read
the paper or digest and make sure
that as much as is possible one fully
understands what the author is trying
to say. A good review may also
require looking up some of the references
to either get background or
check that the authors truly have
something new to say. Then it takes
time to properly formulate feedback
to the editors and authors on the
improvements needed.
Reviewing papers and digests
does have two key benefits. First, if
you do a careful read and review then
almost every time you will learn
something new. Second, by reviewing
you get to see the latest research
months before it reaches the public.
Another good way to build your
professional network is to volunteer
as a session chair at one of PELS'
conferences. By serving as a session
chair you will get to know the conference
program chairs as well as the
authors in the session.
While the opportunities are bit more
limited I also recommend serving as a
volunteer on a conference committee if
you have the chance. IEEE conferences
are a crucially important service to
the members and the profession. However,
running a conference is a challenge
not unlike running a small company.
The content (papers and seminars),
exhibits, the venue, catering,
publications, publicity, and finance
require real work and careful management
to make a conference successful.
74 IEEE POWER ELECTRONICS MAGAZINE z March 2022
Being involved in a conference committee
enables you to build your teamwork
and management skills while
making a real contribution.
And finally, if you have the qualifications,
getting involved in standards
development committees is an excellent
way to build contacts with other
experts in the field. Standard work is
demanding and requires a real commitment.
What you get in return is
the opportunity to work closely with
other technology leaders to shape the
future of the industry.
Over the years membership in the
IEEE for me has been worth much
more than I have paid in dues-and
time-and effort. My participation as
an active volunteer has resulted in a
professional network that is valuable
beyond measure. If you are just downloading
papers and getting conference
discounts then I think you are
missing out on most of what the IEEE
has to offer. So get busy, check the
PELS website, reach out, and reap the
benefits of being an active volunteer.
P.S. If you are attending APEC in
Houston don't miss a great opportunity
to expand your professional network.
On Wednesday, 23 March,
2022, from 7:30 am to 8:30 am the
Power Electronics Society Women in
Engineering (WIE) and Young Professionals
(YP) affinity groups, along
with the Power Sources Manufacturers
Association (PSMA), are hosting
a breakfast chat entitled " WiE, YP,
and You: How to become involved
with IEEE PELS and PSMA too! " As
this goes to print, the breakfast is
scheduled to be held in the Brazoria
Room on the 200 Level of the Marriot
Marquis. The latest information on
this event can be found at https://
www.ieee-pels.org/membership/
women-in-engineering/wie-events.
About the Author
Robert V. White (bob.white@ieee
.org) has more than 40 years of industry
experience as a power electronics
(continued on page 75)
https://www.ieee-pels.org/membership/women-in-engineering/wie-events https://www.ieee-pels.org/membership/women-in-engineering/wie-events https://www.ieee-pels.org/membership/women-in-engineering/wie-events
IEEE Power Electronics Magazine - March 2022

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