Information for Programme Chairs

We are always looking for people to be Programme Chairs for our annual Conference for Research Software Engineering. If you are interested in chairing a future conference, please read the following information and get in touch with us using the form linked below.

The Role

The Programme Chair is ultimately responsible for making decisions about the conference. They sit on the Steering Group (along with Society trustees) and coordinate between the Logistics Team (including Logistics, Volunteer and Publicity chairs) and the Programme Team (including the Talks, Workshops and Poster chairs). They also take the lead in setting the venue, themes and programme for the conference.

For more information:

Co-chairs

It is also possible to co-chair the conference and share this responsibility. It is recommended that you find someone who is willing to work with you and discuss your plans with them to make sure that you’re both on the same page about where how the conference should be run. We also prefer that the programme chair or the co-chair be based at the same institution as the venue you are proposing for the conference.

A Venue

When choosing a venue for the conference, there are a number of things the society needs to consider. Full details are included in The Venue Specification Document (PDF).

Location

Attendees will be travelling from all over the UK and around the world to the conference, so we have to consider things like:

  • Does the city/venue have good transport links?
  • Is there suitable accommodation near the venue?
  • Are there suitable venues for social activities and satellite events?

The Venue

The conference has traditionally been held in academic institutions, rather than in hotels/corporate venues. We would be willing to discuss alternatives, but the Society has a limited budget for the conference.

When choosing a venue for the conference itself, we have to consider:

  • Does it have enough capacity? (The conference is growing but usually attracts around 350 people)
  • Does it have enough rooms? (A lecture theatre, or similar, capable of seating all attendees for plenary sessions, as well as rooms for parallel talks/workshops.)
  • Accessibility – Is the venue accessible?

You will be required to provide information about all of these factors when applying, and they will be taken into account when the trustees make their decision. Please research the venue and/or get in touch with venue staff before applying, where possible.

More Information

What if I don’t have a venue?

If you don’t have access to a venue, then we would prefer that you find a co-chair who is able to provide one. At least one of the co-chairs should be based at the institution that is hosting the event. The trustees may be able to put you in touch with a co-chair, but ideally, this person should be someone you have already been in contact with and are happy to work with.

Please check with your Employer/Institute.

Please note that some organisations may not allow you to chair an event that is not at one of their own venues. Please check with the relevant people at your institution before applying.

Apply to be a future Programme Chair

You can apply to be a future Programme Chair here using this form: https://society-rse.org/links/rsecon-programme-chair-form.

This year’s call will close on Friday 31st May 2024. Follow us on Slack, social media or the mailing list to be notified when next year’s call goes out.

The information will be used by the trustees to select the programme chair for the next conference, based on the suitability of the applicant(s) and venue.

The Application Process

We are still developing the application process to make it easier for people to apply, and for the Trustees to make their decision.

The plan for future years is:

  • A call for Programme Chairs will launch in January (to host the conference the following September).
  • The Call will close in March. The top candidates will then be invited to interview.
  • The Conference and Events team will select candidates based on their application. Interviews will then take place in April.
  • The team will then recommend the top candidate to the Board of Trustees for final approval.
  • The successful candidate will be notified in May/June. The process of agreeing initial booking information with the venue and appointing key members of the steering group will begin.
  • The Programme Chair and Venue for the next conference will be officially announced on the last day of the current conference.

Questions?

If you have further questions, please contact the Trustees on the Conference and Events team: [email protected].