SPE Strong: Strengthening Our Core: SPE Strong: Getting Stronger

Abstract

I am both sad and joyous that this will be my last JPT column as your SPE President. I am sad because this signals that my journey as president is concluding, and I am joyous because the time it took to write these columns can be put toward other ambitions such as improving my golf game or my skeet skills. Trust me, those items are in dire need of improvement! Members often ask me if I am disappointed with how the latter portion of my presidency was affected by the pandemic and the crash of oil prices. To be honest, I am not disappointed. I was able to visit many sections as President-Elect and speak at many events; however, the role of SPE President is much greater than that. This time was critical to serve as chair of the SPE Board and guide our society through an inflection point, requiring us to anticipate how to deliver on our mission to our members in a post-pandemic world. Compounding the complexity is SPE’s worst financial crisis in its history due to mass event cancellations, postponements, and loss of sponsorships. If ever there was a time to lead the society through an unprecedented challenge, it is now. I am grateful to be at the helm during these times. With a resilient board of directors and dedicated SPE staff by my side, I am eager to help steer SPE out of these very rough waters. Ironically, many board and staff members became closer while working remotely. We were able to “visit” one another’s homes during our calls, see each other’s casual attire, and even “meet” a few wandering pets who occasionally appeared onscreen. When I accepted the presidential gavel at the conclusion of the 2019 ATCE, I challenged the board committees, SPE staff, and our members to strengthen five core areas of our society as part of a campaign I called “SPE Strong.” The phrase and its adaptation “SPE Stay Strong” have been used in messaging hope and guidance to our members. As I am writing this, I still have approximately 4 months left in my presidency and nearly 1.5 years on the board to accomplish all my goals. However, I will use this opportunity to share the status of each goal and the pandemic’s impact on it. Strengthen the Quality of our Technical Content While I raised the issue of technical quality in our offerings, there were some initiatives already underway. More program committee members are taking responsibility for working with authors to improve the quality of papers and presentations prior to publication. We are now able to track the number of papers flagged for recommended revision, which will serve as a benchmark for monitoring progress on quality improvement.