We’re back with the latest edition of our volunteer newsletter – keeping you in the loop with latest updates from BCS and the wider community.
We’d like to congratulate Alastair Revell and Kevin Chalmers on their recent appointments as BCS President 2024/25 and Vice President – Community, respectively. Both have demonstrated an outstanding dedication to BCS and we’re excited to see what we can achieve together over the next year.
We’re also thrilled to announce that we have a new Community Co-Ordinator who has joined the BCS team – Beccy Flanagan.
Beccy joins Kerry, Mandy and Marie in providing dedicated support to our Specialist Groups, Branches and Sections.
To our volunteers and contributors, we thank you for your staunch commitment. We love being able to connect with the community through these quarterly notices as we continue our mutual journey to make IT good for society.
The Community Spotlight Series highlights the extraordinary impact of our volunteers and member groups. We want this to be a platform for sharing triumphs and inspiring others. Submit. Submit your story here to join the celebration and make some noise within the community. Your testimonials are the heart of this series, showcasing the amazing contributions you've made. Shine in the spotlight.
BCS Community Volunteers LinkedIn group: The Community Support Committee (CSC) have launched a LinkedIn group exclusively for established BCS volunteers - BCS Community Volunteers.The group serves as a space dedicated to enhancing communications and fostering connections within our volunteer network. As a complement to our internal BCS Community focused on in-depth discussions, this group serves as a hub for quick updates, industry insights, and relevant opportunities.
John Ivinson Award: The John Ivinson Award recognises individual member’s exceptional voluntary service across a wide range of the institute’s activities. We’d like to extend a massive congratulations to this year’s recipients Mike Hurst and Kevin Chalmers (pictured respectively below with BCS President Alastair Revell and Immediate Past President Gillian Arnold).
Mike has been a member of the Edinburgh Branch Committee since the 1980’s. He was nominated not only for his contributions the BCS’ Edinburgh Branch, but also the Community Board Finance Committee and CITP assessment.
Kevin also has an extensive history with the Edinburgh Branch, with his nomination citing his dedicated involvement in a number of committees including the Registrations and Standards Committee and the Academic Accreditation Committee, as well as his work with the Community Board.
Want to nominate yourself or a fellow volunteer for one of our BCS awards or recognitions? Check out how to nominate here.
Calling all Early Careers Advocates! Looking to spark excitement about tech careers? Look no further than the BCS careers quiz! It's a fun and interactive way to explore potential career pathways in the tech industry.
By answering quickfire questions, BCS will match the answers with the people working in real roles in the tech industry (yes, they took the quiz too!) to see which jobs might suit them the best.
Complete with job descriptions, key skills, salary ranges, career roadmaps, and more, this quiz offers an insightful glimpse into the world of tech.
Got a presentation or event coming up? Download the ready to use PowerPoint slides to introduce the quiz. There are also a limited selection of career inspiration marketing materials, such as flyers and stickers available. Please contact brand@bcs.uk to find out more.
Do you have what it takes to join a professional register?
As volunteers, you’ve likely amassed and developed a great deal of skills. Professional registrations are a great way to demonstrate to employers, clients and colleagues that you’re a skilled, competent professional, committed to high standards in your work. It also shows that you’re committed to maintaining and developing your competence.
At BCS we’re licensed to award a number of professional registrations to our members, including RITTech and CITP. Which one you apply for depends on your level of experience and accountability.
We appreciate professional registrations can be daunting when you’re unfamiliar with the requirements, so we’ve developed a professional registrations quiz. The quiz helps you identify which one may be best suited to you based on your level of professional responsibility, collaboration and communication styles, workload complexity, and business systems and processes proficiency.
Once you’ve decided which is the most appropriate for you, we’ve curated several tips for a successful professional registration application to help you clearly articulate your competencies and craft a compelling application. There’s also a dedicated FAQ section to help you understand the application process.
In this must-listen for BCS’ Inclusion Officer network, Dr Sue Black talks about the success of TechUPWomen, retraining women from under-served backgrounds, how Durham University doubled its number of female computing undergraduates and how diversity has gone from a tick-box exercise to good business sense. She also discuses her personal journey of overcoming fear of conferences and public speaking, her social mobility experience and impostor syndrome, alongside her inspiring work in saving Bletchley Park.
Event calendar and opportunities
Event Calendar
Mark your calendars! Join your fellow community members for a plethora of events, both online and in person. Curious about what's coming up? Check out the community events calendar here!
Are you interested in becoming a BCS Honorary Officer, or know someone who would be interested?
We are currently sourcing for the following senior volunteer roles:
Watch an interview with our immediate past President, Gillian Arnold, about volunteering, its benefits and the roles available, or check out our volunteer vacancies for more information. The closing date for applications is midday on Thursday 18 April 2024.
Could you be a speaker for your area?
Whether early in your career or an experienced industry pro, you could be the next speaker we're looking for - get in touch! We’ll add you to our internal speaker list and be in contact should any appropriate opportunities arise.
SFIAplus v9 Update
As BCS gears up for the SFIAplus v9 update, we’re extending an invitation to IT professionals to review current skills and craft new ones for SFIAplus v9. We are seeking subject matter experts with a minimum of 2 years first-hand experience in a skill at level 5 or above that is closely aligned with their current work responsibilities.
To participate, simply select the skills you'd like to review using the form provided here. After completing the form, please send a copy of your CV to the SFIAplus v9 project team. The email address will be given at the end of the form. You can find out more about the project from Roy Shepherd (BCS Project Manager) here.
Lovelace Medal nominations
The BCS Lovelace Medals recognise people who have made exceptional contributions to either the understanding and advancement of computing, or to computing education. We want to celebrate and recognise the people and teams who are doing amazing things, and welcome you to submit your nominations for this years awards.
Nominations close on Monday 20 May, giving you just over a month to get yours submitted! For further information and to submit nominations, head over to the BCS website.
Exciting news! The BCS Society Medal is back for 2024!
This medal awards people who are making a real difference in the world by ensuring tech is a positive force for good. If you know someone who’s harnessing technology for the greater good, we want to hear about them. They may not be a dedicated tech specialist; they might be an influencer working in journalism, social and tech policy, or they might be a campaigner or organisational leader working to ensure that people from a range of backgrounds benefit from digital technology.
Submitting a nomination is easy, simply complete a form telling us about your nominee’s achievements and how they're making a positive impact on society.
There are no career restrictions on nominees. Whether they're experts in their field or an emerging talent, if they're making significant contributions they can be nominated. Have someone in mind? Submit your nomination
Community Support Committee (CSC) vacancy | Member Group Lifecycle Officer
The CSC is recruiting for a new role - Member Group Lifecycle Officer! The appointed officer will play a pivotal role in the review of new member group applications, as well as advise on proposed member group amendments and closures. They’ll also work with inactive member groups and provide support to help them get back up to speed.
To find out more, check out the role description here. Think you have what it takes? Put yourself forward by registering your interest today!
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