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July 2016
"The price of greatness is responsibility." 
    
~  Winston Churchill  
Continuing to Make Quality an IEEE Conference Priority
 
IEEE is proud of the brand recognition and ongoing tradition of quality that IEEE conferences enjoy. 

To promote and support technical quality, IEEE has two dedicated groups in place.

* The Conference Quality Committee (CQC) is a standing committee of the IEEE Conferences Committee. 

CQC conducts reviews of submitted conference proceedings and acts on issues that could breach our standards for conference quality.
 
* The IEEE Meetings, Conferences & Events (MCE) Conference Quality Team provides consultation and guidance to conference committees on peer review, plagiarism screening, scope and all technical program questions.
 
This professional team also provides support to the CQC in             conducting and communicating reviews.  
 
 Paper Review Challenges and Techniques

The technical program is at the core of the scholarly conference. The technical program is reliant upon effective and high quality reviews to ensure the delivery of compelling original  research as well as to provide feedback to the community.  A rigorous review process will greatly contribute to a  conference's reputation. 

Read on to learn about some key issues to be considered.

Scope - Determining whether a submitted paper is in alignment with the conference and IEEE scope is a critical and challenging part of paper reviews. 

Typically, the first step in evaluating a paper is to ensure it falls within the stated subject matter scope of the conference. Papers not within the conference scope should be rejected. In addition, papers should fit within IEEE core engineering/technology subject areas 

One of the more challenging issues is that sometimes an IEEE conference's scope and IEEE Xplore scope are not in full alignment, as the abstracting and indexing partners utilized have differing interpretations. The scope of an IEEE conference with multiple co-sponsors may be broader than the scope of IEEE Xplore.

It is important to apply critical thinking on papers that touch on ambiguous topics, for example, interdisciplinary subjects such as disaster recovery, industrial engineering and project management, etc. 
Written Quality - Papers should be written in technical English, easily readable, and relatively free from grammatical and spelling errors.

Format - Papers should follow the basic elements commonly found in scientific research papers:
  • Introductory question or hypothesis
  • A brief summary of related previous scholarly work by others
  • Research methods
  • Results
  • Conclusions
In This Issue
Quick Tips
Did you know? 
 
IEEE routinely selects submitted conference proceedings for additional review and screening prior to processing for IEEE
Xplore
 
     Contact MCE    

MCE Conference Education Program 
IEEE MCE Conference Education provides learning opportunities for conference organizers of all experience levels, IEEE units and roles.
    
Learning options available:
     
- Educational Webinars 
    
- eLearning Courses
   
- Conference Workshops
    

 
Resources can be found in the  IEEE Center for Leadership Excellence (CLE). Use  your  IEEE Account  for access.
      
Contact  IEEE MCE  for more information on Conference Workshops.    
     
   Contact  MCE   
Peer Review Standards
IEEE observes the following "rules of thumb" for conferences seeking guidance on paper review standards.
  • A minimum of 3 reviews per paper
  • A maximum of 8 to 10 papers assigned per reviewer
  • Thorough review of an extended abstract, followed by, shorter review          of the full paper
  • Single-blind review (where the reviewers are unknown to the authors) 
Contact MCE for support and to learn more.

Selecting a Peer Review System for Your Conference
A paper management tool can ease the burden and improve the peer review process. However, what tool to use? IEEE MCE is here to help you select the appropriate tools and services to support your conference.

Below are important considerations when selecting a solution:
  • Does the system enforce milestones and deadlines for paper submissions?
  • Is downloading and viewing of collected submissions restricted to authorized people only?
  • Does the system scan all incoming submissions for viruses?
  • How robust are the built-in communication mechanisms for alerting authors on acceptance, rejection, or conditional acceptance of their papers?
  • Are tools for plagiarism checking and collection of copyright integrated within the system?
  • Are a variety of peer review structures supported (e.g., blind, double-blind, abstract followed by full paper, etc.)?
In the second half of 2016, another option is scheduled to become available, when IEEE Meetings Conferences and Events (MCE) introduces Conference Publication Hub, a new end-to-end conference publication services suite. This tool will integrate peer review, proceedings publication production, and delivery of proceedings to IEEE Xplore, all in one place.

Contact MCE for more information on Conference Publication Hub.

    Contact MCE  
Learn More About Developing the Technical Program
The MCE Conference Education Program offers a multi-course learning track to assist new Technical Program Chairs or others interested in learning more about this critical role. Take one or all to build your knowledge or stay current with recent developments.
All courses are available free of charge in the IEEE Center for Leadership Excellence (CLE). Register using your  IEEE Account.


IEEE POCO is Almost Here
2016 POCO Banner
 
Convene with the Conference Community!

The IEEE Panel of Conference Organizers (POCO) is just around the corner.

Check out updates to the agenda and our speaker lineup by visiting the IEEE POCO website . The focus for each day of programming will be as follows:
  • Day 1 - Attracting New Audiences
  • Day 2 - Innovation Infusion
  • Day 3 - IEEE Conference Education
Learn more at IEEE POCO

Two online communities have been created for you to engage with your peers year-round. Join IEEE Conference Organizers on Facebook and LinkedIn to discover, discuss, and design new innovations for your conference. 

Community members will have the opportunity to network, share ideas, and simply have fun! Click below to sign up.
   
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      Contact MCE     
 
Upcoming Maintenance and Service Disruptions
 
Alert! 4-5  August 2016 Maintenance for Frequently Used Conference Organizer Applications

Starting 7:00 AM ET US on Thursday 4 August 2016, the following applications will be unavailable to users:
Applications are expected to be available by 5:00 PM ET US on Friday 5 August 2016.

Please keep this timing in mind if you plan any new conference submissions or edits, financial form submissions or publication program applications.

      Contact MCE     
 
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Managing Editor: Kevin Hanft, [email protected]  

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