Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1098973
28 SMT007 MAGAZINE I APRIL 2019 it themselves without any IEEE support. Some of them are getting small funding, such as $100 from their local section. Others are host- ing fundraisers or getting funding from their schools and employers. If you were going to a conference, you would talk to your professor or employer, and they usually say, "That's a great professional development activity. We'll pick up the tab for it." We haven't gotten to the 100% level, but we're going to work at it over the upcoming year. During the opening welcome session, Ramesh Nair pointed out that the 2019 event was the biggest Rising Stars Conference we have ever had. We had attendees from all six U.S. Regions, Canada (Region 7), and Asia-Pacific (Region 10). One of the moderators was also from Australia. Ramesh further expressed his pride in the organization and execution of the confer - ence. He said, "I am most proud of the fact that Rising Stars is a 100% volunteer-driven confer- ence. Everything from planning the conference to executing it is entirely done by volunteers." On the PowerPoint slide, Ramesh even had the phrase "100% volunteer-driven conference" in bold. Our volunteers sandwich in what they do with their work, which goes back to being a leader in their profession and seeking ways to do things that they wouldn't normally do. Johnson: What's the committee's vision for getting sponsorship to help to grow the confer- ence? Andrews: To get corporate sponsors, we do seri- ous outreach. Getting corporate support is criti- cal, and to do so, you must understand what the company believes is important and what you believe to be important; if those two things match, you often find a supportive partner and sponsor. It doesn't make any difference if it's $1,000 or $10,000, support flows based on common values to the employer, company, and conference. There are two main benefits to becoming a sponsor of Rising Stars. First, sponsors get the opportunity to touch the top talent in the coun- try. An IEEE member is always a cut above the average professional; they've taken their career to another level that the average engineer doesn't. Second, sponsors get an opportunity to meet other decision makers. It's an opportu- nity for companies to get to know each other on a different level, and for young profession- als to find out more about your company and what you do. This year, I asked the companies and speak- ers to provide a two-minute video that high- lights what their company does, what they do for a living and if there were any special projects in the works—something to warm the audience a little bit. The idea behind that was the company had the opportunity to share their story with the audience and to have it broadcast on various channels, such as social media, into the world. We also could connect the company more deeply with the attendees and the conference.