This page specifies the CNOM Policies & Procedures, which were last updated on December, 2022.

1. Charter of the Technical Committee

CNOM provides the Communications Society (ComSoc) with a focus on network and service operation and management.

2. Objectives of the Technical Committee

• Help positioning ComSoc as the leading technical organization for communication professionals, as per the Bylaws
• Promote knowledge and dissemination of knowledge related to the scope of the technical committee
• Foster the development of new emerging topical areas related to the scope of the technical committee
• Provide technical support to the development of ComSoc conferences, publications, standards, and educational activities

3. Organizational Structure and Membership

• The Technical Committee (TC) reports to the Technical Committees Board.
• The Technical Committee shall have at least a Chair, Vice-Chair, and a Secretary and all shall be
elected by the TC membership. Elections for Technical Committee Chairs shall be held every two years. A Chair cannot serve more than two consecutive terms of office, and a term has a two-year duration.
• The technical Committee may form Subcommittees and Special Interest Groups (SIGs). Chairs of Subcommittees and SIGs shall be appointed by the Technical Committee Chair.
• Technical Committee membership shall be defined in the Technical Committee Policies and Procedures (P&Ps).

• Subcommittees deal with specific tasks related to TC operations, e.g., nomination and selection of awards, officer elections, etc.
• Special Interest Groups (SIGs) help the TC foster the scientific and technological development in topical emerging technologies within the scope of the TC. SIGs may also be created to promote activities in well-established technologies.

Minimum requirements for membership in the Technical Committee:

• Be a ComSoc member in good standing.
• Have been active in the Technical Committee for the past three years.
• Participate in Technical Committee meetings.
• Assist in the conduct of Technical Committee business.
• Be included in the TC mailing list.

Requirements for being an Active Member in the Technical Committee:

• Be a Technical Committee member or a Technical Committee Officer.
• Satisfy at least one of the following conditions in the last three years:
  • Attended (physically present or by teleconference) at least one of the regularly scheduled CNOM meetings. The TC Secretary shall maintain an attendance list for each such meeting.
  • Served as a TPC or OC member for CNOM sponsored conferences, such as IEEE NOMS/IM, CNSM, APNOMS, LANOMS.
  • Served as an editorial board member or editorial advisory board member for CNOM supported journals, namely JNSM, IJNM or TNSM.

• Collaborators – Individuals who are not ComSoc members. Collaborators may participate in TC activities but shall not be entitled to vote and run for election. On a case by cases basis, Collaborators may be appointed as non-voting members to TC subcommittees.

4. Elected and Appointed Officers

The Technical Committee shall have elected Officers and may have appointed officers. All elected Officers shall be elected by the Technical Committee Active Members. Appointed Officers shall be appointed by the Technical Committee Chair or other Officer, as specified in the Technical Committee P&Ps.

All Officers shall be Technical Committee Active Members and shall serve two-year terms concurrent with the nominal term of the Technical Committee Chair.

The Technical Committee shall have the following four elected Officers, each with the minimum duties and responsibilities listed below (TC Officers may also decide how to best partition the work among themselves):

• TC Chair
  • Represents the Technical Committee on the Technical Committees Board.
  • Provides guidance and direction to Technical Committee members in the conduct of their responsibilities.
  • Appoints Chairs of Subcommittees and Special Interest Groups as necessary.
  • Coordinates with ComSoc Staff in the conduct of their responsibilities.
  • May assume leadership for specific projects, as delegated by the Technical Committee.

• TC Vice Chair
  • Assists the Chair and shall act on behalf of the Chair in the event of his/her incapacity.
• Technical Chair
  • Gives advice to conference and workshop organizers with respect to technical topics addressed.
  • Works with the TC Chair, Vice Chair and Secretary to realize the TC goals.
  • Provides advice to interested volunteers with respect to conference and workshop organization.
• TC Secretary
  • Coordinates the TC meetings, arranging the meeting time schedule, reserving the meeting room and food, and informing the members via the e-mail list.
  • Prepares reports for the TC and Technical Committees Board meetings.
  • Provides an annual written report, which shall be distributed to the VP-TEA-C, the
Director-Technical Committees, and TC members prior to each meeting held at ICC.
  • Records the minutes of the TC meetings and posts them on the TC website.
  • Maintains contact with the TC members and Chair.
  • Sends announcements to the TC e-mail list.
  • Maintains and updates the TC website.
  • Maintains the list of Technical Committee members that have voting rights.

If a TC officer position becomes vacant before normal conclusion of the term, the remaining term shall be filled by special election of the TC. If such a special election is not held before or during the next regularly scheduled meeting, the VP-TEA, in consultation with the President, shall appoint someone to serve the remaining term. Positions filled shall be for completion of the interrupted term.

5. Nomination and Election Subcommittee

Elections will occur every two years and will be ratified at the IEEE/IFIP Network Operations and Management Symposium (NOMS) or IEEE/IFIP International Symposium on Integration Network Management (IM) meeting. A Nomination and Election (N&E) Subcommittee shall be formed to identify suitable candidates and oversee the election procedure.

The N&E Subcommittee shall consist of the current TC officers and three volunteers who are Active Members. The TC Chair shall also chair the N&E Subcommittee if not being considered for re-election. If the TC Chair is considered for re-election, a TC officer who is not continuing or a past TC Chair may chair the N&E Subcommittee. The N&E Subcommittee shall come into existence at the TC meeting held at IEEE Global Communications Conference (GLOBECOM) preceding the actual election and shall be dissolved thirty days after the elections have been fully completed. The purpose of the N&E Subcommittee is 1) to decide the necessary number of elected officers, 2) to offer candidate names for all elected officer positions, and 3) to conduct the election. The N&E Subcommittee shall also make biographies and position statements of candidates available to those eligible to vote. The N&E Subcommittee shall announce its slate of candidates at least four weeks before an election is to be held. Such announcement shall be via email. Members shall be able to submit nominations via email to the N&E Subcommittee until six weeks before an election is to be held. All candidates, however they are identified, must be Active Members, must consent to being nominated, and must show willingness to serve.

As approved by the TEA Council, the following requirements for elections are in force:

1. For each elected office, there must be at least two candidates on the ballot. If there are not enough nominations, the TC N&E Subcommittee shall identify additional candidates. Only Active Members are eligible to run as elected TC Officer.
2. While it is strongly recommended that an election is held for all elected positions, the TC may also specify an alternative election process if there is difficulty identifying enough candidates. In this alternate process, only the Secretary is elected by the TC membership and the Secretary, at the end of his/her two-year term, shall serve two years as Vice Chair and then two years as Chair.
3. TC elections are held by show of hands. Only Active Members can vote. The quorum for a valid election is equal to 10% of the voters.
4. In the case of two candidates for a position, election is by simple majority. For the case of more than two but fewer than five candidates, the candidate with the highest number of votes wins. For five or more candidates, selection proceeds in two stages. In the first stage, votes can be cast for all candidates. In the second stage, votes can be cast only for the up to four candidates who have garnered the most votes in the first stage. In the event of a tie, votes shall be cast one more time. If the tie is not broken, the VP-TEA shall cast a tie-breaking vote.
5. All candidates shall be informed of election results and be permitted to appeal the outcome. The TC Secretary shall keep record of votes cast for post-election audit purposes.
6. Elected Officers shall not serve for more than six consecutive years in any position within the same TC.
7. A TC Chair is ineligible to serve concurrently as Chair for more than one TC.

After each election, the Nomination and Election Subcommittee Chair shall prepare an Election Report that shall include:

• A verbatim excerpt of the election process specified in the P&Ps, including how the Nomination and Appointment Subcommittee members are selected.
• When and where the election took place.
• The roster of the Nominations and Elections Committee.
• The candidates for each office and how the candidates were selected for the ballot.
• The IEEE member number for each candidate, with a confirmation that they satisfy the criteria for being a Technical Committee member.
• The method chosen for voting (in person, electronically, by teleconference, etc.).
• The list of members who voted in the election with a confirmation that they all satisfy the criteria
for being a Technical Committee Active Member.
• Name of the person preparing the ballot.
• The actual vote tally by candidate.

The Nominations and elections Subcommittee shall always meet in Executive Session and its deliberations, as well as all documents submitted to or created by the Subcommittee, shall be strictly confidential. Only the final list of candidates on the ballot shall be openly announced.

The Technical Committee Chair shall send the election report to the Director-Technical Committees and the VP-TEA within two weeks from when the election was held. Election results shall be ratified when approved by the TEA Council, with notification to the Technical Committee Chair within four weeks after receipt of the Election Report. If the TEA Council does not approve the election results, the Director- Technical Committees shall organize a new election for the Technical Committee.

6. Awards Subcommittee

• • The CNOM Best Paper Award is given to deserving and outstanding papers that have been published during the previous two years in conferences supported by CNOM.
  • The CNOM Test of Time Paper Award recognizes papers published 10 to 12 years in the past in flagship conferences and journals supported by CNOM, which are deemed to be outstanding and whose contents are still a vibrant and useful contribution today.
  • The CNOM Young Professional Award (YPA) recognizes outstanding research contribution and leadership for young professionals in the field of network and service management. To be eligible, an individual must have earned the first professional degree (e.g. Bachelor’s degree or equivalent) within the past 15 years. The YPA shall be announced during the IM/NOMS conferences.

The voting members of the Awards Subcommittee shall be composed of a Chair and four-to-six members, chosen among the TC members. At most one Subcommittee member can be chosen among the elected Technical Committee Officers, except the TC Chair. All Subcommittee members shall be elected by the Technical Committee and are subject to approval by the TEA Council. The TEA Council has the authority to change one or more of the Subcommittee members when needed, for example to satisfy diversity criteria. Members shall not serve simultaneously on the Awards Subcommittee of more than two TCs.

The term limit of the Awards Subcommittee members shall be two years concurrent with the nominal term of the TC Chair, with reappointment to at most one additional two-year term. The roster of the Awards Subcommittee, including members’ affiliations, shall be posted on the Technical Committee web page as soon as approved by the TEA Council.

The Awards Subcommittee shall always meet in Executive Session and its deliberations, as well as all documents submitted to or created by the Subcommittee, shall be strictly confidential. Only the final award recipients shall be openly announced.

Real or perceived conflicts of interest between Awards Subcommittee members and awards candidates shall be disclosed to the other subcommittee members. Should any real or perceived Conflict of Interest between an Awards Subcommittee member and one or more award nominees be identified, the conflicted member shall declare to the Subcommittee such conflict and recuse him/her-self from any and all discussions related to the award to which such nominees were nominated. Here follows a non-exhaustive list of Conflicts of Interest:

• Affiliation with a nominee’s organization – You have a conflict if you have/hold/are:
  • Current primary employment at the same company/university/institution/etc. of the nominee.
  • Other current employment with the same company/university/institution/etc. of the nominee, e.g., consulting or an advisory arrangement.
  • Previous employment with the same company/university/institution/etc. of the nominee within the last 24 months.
  • Being considered for employment at the same company/university/institution/etc. of the nominee.
  • Received an honorarium or award from the same company/ university/institution/etc. of the 
nominee within the last 24 months.
• Relationship with a nominee – You have a conflict if you have/hold/are:
  • A family relationship with a nominee, e.g., spouse, child, sibling, or parent.
  • A romantic relationship with a nominee.
  • A business or professional partnership with a nominee.
  • Association with a nominee as thesis advisor or thesis student in the past 10 years.
  • Collaboration with a nominee on a project or on a book, article, report, or paper within the last 24 
months.
  • Co-editor of a journal, compendium, or conference proceedings with a nominee within the last 24 months.
  • Nominator for an award of the nominee within the last 24 months.
  • Having been nominated for an award by the nominee in the past 24 months.
  • Any other potential situation where you or a family member may have a connection or an obligation to the nominee that might influence your decision.

• A verbatim excerpt of the award selection process specified in the P&Ps, including how the Awards Subcommittee members are selected.
• The Awards Subcommittee roster.
• The names of all candidates for each award.
• The name of the recipient of each award and associated justification.

The Technical Committee Chair shall send the Awards Selection Report to the Technical Committees Director within two weeks from when the awardee’s selection is over. The Technical Committees Director will then submit it to the TEA Council for approval. The TEA Council shall approve the Awards Selection Report within four weeks of receipt.

Once the Awards Selection Report has been approved by the TEA Council, and only then, the final award recipients may be notified and the selection outcome publicly announced.

7. Website and Mailing List

The Technical Committee shall maintain an official web page and a mailing list hosted by the ComSoc IT Department.

The web page shall contain information about officers and their contact
information, the scope of the TC, TC P&Ps, subscription to membership, and minutes of meetings held.

The mailing list shall be used for timely dissemination of information and to welcome useful information from others.

8. Transactions of Business 

All TC business, including meetings and email voting, shall be conducted in compliance with Clause A.2 of ComSoc’s P&Ps.

The TC shall hold at least two in-person meetings per year, one at NOMS/IM and one at ICC or GLOBECOM (with the possibility of remote participation by dial-in). The TC may conduct additional meetings concurrent with flagship conferences for the TC. Meetings will be announced at least two weeks in advance on the TC mailing list.

Meetings are open to any conference attendee. The TC Chair or a designated substitute, typically another TC officer, will chair meetings. Any TC member can suggest items for the agenda. The TC Secretary will take minutes. These minutes should be made available within 30 days of the meeting.

Minutes are posted on the TC Web page and are public. Should voting (other than for officers which has been specified above) occur at the TC meetings, only Active Members physically present or attending by teleconference have voting rights. Simple majority rule applies. If voting involves changes to the Policies and Procedures (P&Ps), then a two thirds majority of Active Members physically present or attending by teleconference is required. Formal meeting procedures should follow Robert’s Rules of Order.

Conference calls, discussions via email, and voting via email shall be conducted on an as needed basis.

9. Budget & Expenses

The TC Chair shall request the VP-TEA to inform the TC of its budget, and shall provide budget requests to the VP-TEA in time for consideration by the ComSoc Board of Governors during its budget approval process.

When the TC feels that funds are needed to fulfill its mission, a proposal will be prepared by one or more TC Officers for discussion and approval at a TC meeting. (Such discussion can also be carried out via the TC’s email list). The proposal should contain sufficient detail about the activity for which funds are sought and justification for funds being requested.

If the TC agrees to the proposal, it will be submitted to the VP-TEA for his/her approval. If approved, funds will be used in accord with ComSoc procedures. The Secretary of the TC will maintain a record of expenses. Invoices are sent to the VP-TEA for approval, and then to ComSoc headquarters for payment or reimbursement.

Expenses will normally be incurred, but is not limited to, maintaining the TC’s information infrastructure (e.g., volunteer maintenance of its website) or showing appreciation for volunteer support.

10. Supporting Activities

As appropriate, the TC will be active in all of ComSoc’s activities. This will include ComSoc conferences (such as ICC, GLOBECOM, INFOCOM, CNSM, ICIN, LANOMS, DRCN, NetSoft, etc) by providing official TC representatives or unofficial participants to their respective Technical Program Committees, by conducting professional reviews of submitted papers (by soliciting such assistance from among its membership) and by organizing mini-conferences, symposia, panels, short courses, tutorials, etc., as deemed appropriate by the Society, specific conference committee and the TC. Further, the TC can individually organize workshops and conferences that may or may not be collocated with other ComSoc or non-ComSoc events. Also, because of the broad nature of committee activities, collaborative sessions with other committees will be sponsored and heartily encouraged. As new technologies and application areas emerge, the TC will seek to address aspects of these topics relative to its charter, and work with both the Strategic Planning Committee and Emerging Technologies Committee.

The TC will further support ComSoc journals, magazines, and standards activities by soliciting volunteers as authors and editors, submitting proposals, and identifying committee members from its membership. The TC will seek ways to increase active participation of its members in information exchange related to the charter of this Committee, such as: stimulating Feature Topics and Special Issues of ComSoc journals and magazines; and by sponsoring workshops, tutorials, short courses, panel sessions, etc. on special topics. The TC will take on a lead role in journals or magazines that are within its field of interest, e.g., TNSM. The TC may endorse activities both inside and outside of the Society (e.g., JNSM), but may not take on the role of sponsor.

CNOM will participate in activities aimed at engaging and offering value to technical leaders, practicing engineers and researchers at industry and government entities. This may include collaboration with ComSoc’s relevant Industry Communities (e.g., the Network Softwarization Industry Community).

The TC will also take active role in nominating names for IEEE and ComSoc Awards, and distinguished lecturers, senior members and fellows.

11. IEEE NOMS/IM Organization

The TC’s flagship conferences are NOMS, IM and CNSM. NOMS will be held in even-numbered years and IM in odd-numbered years. CNSM is held yearly.

12. Approval of TC P&Ps

1. The TC shall first approve the amendment.
2. The TC Chair shall forward the approved P&Ps to the Governance Committee for feedback, copying the Chair of the Technical Committee Board.
3. The TC P&Ps shall be revised as needed based on the feedback of the Governance Committee.