Assistant Meeting Officer

The Society for the Study of Evolution (SSE), on behalf of the Joint
ASN/SSB/SSE council, seeks a member of one or more of our societies to
help plan and run our annual scientific conference - the Evolution
meetings. The meetings are coordinated by one or more Chief Meeting
Officers (CMOs), academics who oversee all aspects of the meeting and
who are responsible for final decisions about schedules, activities
and venues, in consultation with a tri-society Joint Meeting Committee
(JMC) and the larger ASN/SSB/SSE Joint Council. The CMOs also act as
the principal liaisons with a Professional Conference Organizer (PCO),
whose responsibilities include executing the logistics of conference
management, interactions with vendors and service providers, and helping
identify and negotiate contracts with future meeting venues.

We are currently seeking an Assistant Meeting Officer who will help the
CMO(s) with organization, including interfacing with society councils
and other stakeholders, producing the scientific program, and providing
academic insight to help guide the work of the PCO. The Assistant
Meeting Officer's primary responsibilities will be for the in-person
meeting, although some engagement with the virtual meeting may also be
requested. Specific duties will be determined by the CMO and the JMC, in
consultation with the AMO. Assistants normally serve a 3-year term and,
if interested, may transition into the lead CMO role at some point,
with approval of the JMC. Helping run our meetings is an important
and valuable service to our societies and our field which is largely a
volunteer effort, but the AMO will be given a stipend of $5000/year in
appreciation. All meeting attendance costs will also be covered, as well
as any other costs associated with carrying out meeting responsibilities.

The time commitment is variable but is expected to average a few hours
per week, ramping up at certain times depending on particular tasks
and in the month preceding the meeting. Much of the time is spent in
electronic communication and virtual meetings, but there are also some
duties at the conference.

This position is best suited to someone who has attended several of our
recent meetings, has academic organizational and leadership experience,
enjoys teamwork, and would find it rewarding to serve the societies by
fostering dynamic and high-quality meetings. We welcome expressions
of interest; please email these to evolution.meetings@gmail.com with
'AMO position' in the subject and include any relevant experience and
a CV. These will be reviewed starting on July 1, 2024, so that the new
AMO can work on the 2025 meeting (to be held in Athens, GA from June
20-24). There are no geographic restrictions, nor citizenship or residency
requirements, but attendance at the 2025 and subsequent meetings is
expected and in-person attendance at the 2024 meeting would be an asset.

About the annual conference
The Evolution meeting is the joint conference of the American Society
of Naturalists, the Society for the Study of Evolution, and the Society
of Systematic Biologists. Since 2022, the Evolution meeting has had
options for both virtual and in-person participation, and we anticipate
this continuing in future years. The in-person conference is held in
a different location every year, primarily in the United States but
occasionally in other countries. Recent locations include Portland OR,
Providence RI, Cleveland OH, and Albuquerque NM. The in-person conference
runs for about 5 days and attracts between 1000-2000 attendees, with
oral presentations, posters, a diverse array of social events, and a
variety of workshops. The virtual conference is typically 2-3 days, and
includes presentations, special symposia, and workshops. Evolution has
an enforced meeting Code of Conduct and a strong commitment to promoting
equity and inclusion. More information is available on the conference
web site: http://www.evolutionmeetings.org, including complete programs
from recent meetings. Conferences are run on a break-even basis with
careful attention given to minimizing registration costs for attendees.

Alex Wong <AlexWong@cunet.carleton.ca>

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