MTT-S and Strategic Planning [President's Column]

In my first column, which appeared in the February 2010 issue of this magazine, I mentioned establishing strategic goals for 2010. I was under the impression that the deadline for writing the April column would be after the Administrative Committee (AdCom) meeting in January. I was planning on using that meeting for establishing the AdCom priorities, assigning tasks, setting goals, and possibly even deadlines for 2010 milestones. Well, little did I know that the deadline for writing the April column was actually mid-December 2009, which was about three weeks before the AdCom meeting. Therefore, I elected to use this June column to share my strategic planning thoughts and process with you. As it is always the case when we plan for the future, one quickly discovers the struggle between ambition and realism. In this column, I will share with you the IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society (MTT-S) experience in developing its strategic plan and provide some insight into long-term priorities. The AdCom and I hope to work with MTT-S volunteers at all levels on accomplishing them. To provide the right perspective for the process, I will begin by reviewing the state of our Society.