The Strategy Development and Implementation Committee
(SDIC) was established by the IUPAC Executive Committee (EC) on April 7,
1997 as an ad hoc committee with the charge given below and instructions
to report to the EC before its meeting in April 1998. Members of the SDIC
were appointed by the President of IUPAC, as described below. This document
constitutes the final report by the SDIC in fulfillment of its mission.
Formation of the SDIC
Charge to the SDIC
Membership
Committee Meetings
Background. During 1996 and 1997 the Officers of IUPAC undertook efforts
to solicit opinions from the worldwide chemistry community on the future
role of IUPAC. Out of the conferences held in the USA in June 1996 and
in London in February 1997 (later reinforced by the conference held in
Singapore in June 1997), there emerged many specific ideas for future developments
of the Union, but there were three overriding major points: (i) IUPAC needed
to develop an updated Mission in order to regain relevance to the international
community of chemistry and the chemical industry; (ii) the Objectives given
in IUPAC Statute 1 should be augmented by specific, achievable Goals; and
(iii) IUPAC should broaden the geographic base of the Union's activities
to achieve its full potential as a global organization. These concepts
formed part of the underpinning of the statutory Vice-President's Critical
Assessment (VPCA), and Vice-President Jortner proposed a number of specific
goals. In April 1997 the EC endorsed the general thrust of these proposed
goals but recognized that they needed to be considered carefully and fleshed
out into a Strategic Plan for the Union.
Meanwhile, the organization and management of IUPAC's scientific work
had been the subject of extensive discussion and debate within the Union
over a period of several years. There was general recognition that the
relatively static Commission structure is outdated and that it is inadvisable
to spread IUPAC's limited resources among seven Divisions and 37 Commissions,
which attempt to carry out nearly 500 projects concurrently. Various proposals
had been advanced for restructuring Divisions and Commissions, and great
efforts had gone into developing a scientific policy for the Union. Options
for restructuring and for allocating resources by project were discussed
in detail at the annual Division Presidents meeting in September 1996 and
at a special meeting of Division Presidents and Vice-Presidents in March
1997. It was clear that the Divisions wanted and needed more flexibility
in managing their programs. Against this background, the Secretary General
prepared a paper for the EC meeting in April 1997 that advocated an emphasis
on funding projects that would be carried out primarily by time-limited
Commissions. After much discussion, the EC endorsed this concept but recognized
that the proposed major changes in the organization and management of the
Union's scientific work needed considerable further study and analysis.
The EC decided, therefore, that the separate but related issues of formulating
long-range goals and strategies and of implementing the management changes
needed to achieve the goals could best be addressed by a single broad-based
ad hoc committee, the SDIC.
Charge to the SDIC
The charge to the SDIC is as follows:
1. Develop long-range goals or mission statements, based initially on
the recommendations in the 1997 Vice-President's Critical Assessment.
2. Propose strategies for achieving these goals.
3. Examine the feasibility of converting the bulk of IUPAC's scientific
work to a project-driven system, with time-limited Commissions, as expressed
in the concept endorsed by the EC.
4. Propose specific means by which this concept (if found feasible)
can and should be implemented, with desirable target dates.
The SDIC is to report to the EC in time for its meeting in April 1998.
Membership
To assure that all facets of the Union's programs would be considered
by the SDIC, its membership was drawn broadly - two IUPAC Officers, two
Elected Members of the Bureau, one Standing Committee chairman, two Presidents-elect
of Divisions, and three outstanding chemists not currently in IUPAC posts
but who are familiar with the Union's activities. President Fischli accordingly
appointed the following members:
| Prof. Joshua Jortner (chairman) |
Dr. Edwin D. Becker |
| Prof. Heindirk tom Dieck |
Prof. Mostafa El-Sayed |
| Prof. Robert Gilbert |
Prof. Upendra K. Pandit |
| Dr. Alan Hayes |
Prof. Pieter Steyn |
| Prof. Leiv K. Sydnes |
Prof. Andrea Vasella |
Dr. John W. Jost (staff support)
A secondary, but important, consideration was geographic diversity.
The SDIC members come from North America, the Asia-Pacific area, the Middle
East, Africa and Europe. Appendix 1 gives institutional affiliation and
IUPAC office (if applicable) for each member of the SDIC.
Committee Meetings
The SDIC has held three full-day meetings (June 24, 1997; November 21,
1997; and January 24, 1998) and a short meeting at the General Assembly
in Geneva (August 25, 1997). Participation was excellent. Although not
all members could attend every meeting, an average of eight of the ten
members were present at each meeting, and absentees frequently sent written
comments in advance. All members contributed actively to the discussions,
and a great many ideas were exchanged by e-mail. The findings and recommendations
given here represent the result of ideas obtained from many sources, which
were subjected to careful analysis and much friendly debate within the
Committee.
The SDIC members were quite sensitive to input from many sources outside
the Committee. Comments and ideas from the Division Presidents meetings
listed above and at the General Assembly in Geneva were important. Views
expressed by Bureau and Council members in Geneva and by Commission officers
and members during a number of informal meetings provided valuable sources
of information. The semi-final draft of the Strategic plan was circulated
to the Bureau for comments, and several suggested improvements in wording
were subsequently incorporated into the final version.
Executive Summary
Formation of the SDIC
Strategic Plan
Organization and Management of Scientific Work
Responsibilities of Division Committees
Election of Division Committees and Division Officers
Project-Driven System
Conversion to a New Project-Driven System
Operation of a Project-Driven System
Evaluation of Projects
Role of the Secretariat
Financial Considerations
Summary of Recommendations on Organization and
Management
Summary of Formal Actions Required
Concluding Statement
Appendix 1
Appendix 2
Appendix 3
Appendix 4
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