Membership Criteria
To ensure rigor and integrity of the awards process, and to do so in a way that is open, transparent, equitable, and inclusive, we would like our subcommittees to consist of members who show evidence of the following:
Recognition within HCI/SIGCHI: Applicants could be previous SIGCHI awardees or SIGCHI Academy members, ACM Distinguished Members/Fellows/Senior Members, recipients of similar awards from other recognized bodies including universities or technology companies, prior EC members, or present other equivalent experience that would be determined on a case-by-case basis by the current EC.
Experience within the SIGCHI community: This is the number of years that an individual has been a member of SIGCHI. Certain awards subcommittees benefit more from years of experience than others. This is clarified in the subcommittees with available roles below.
Commitment to the values of the SIGCHI community: Applicants can provide examples of how they have demonstrated a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, and/or their own experiences with these, taken broadly. These examples could draw from any aspect of their lives.
Willingness to put in the required time for the role: Review of awards nominations requires time and care, and applicants are requested to seriously consider whether they will be available not only to review applications, but also to contribute to strengthening the process each year.
There are specific criteria for each of the four subcommittees:
Criteria to Serve on the Lifetime Research/Practice/Service Award Subcommittee: The Chair and Members of the Lifetime Award subcommittee should have at least 15 years experience in SIGCHI in areas related to research, practice, and/or service.
Criteria to Serve on the Societal Impact Award Subcommittee: The Chair and Members of the Societal Impact Award subcommittee should have at least 7-10 years of experience in SIGCHI, and should have demonstrated research/practice accomplishments related to HCI and societal impact.
Criteria to Serve on the SIGCHI Academy Subcommittee: The Chair and Members of the SIGCHI Academy subcommittee should have at least 7-10 years of experience in SIGCHI.
Criteria to Serve on the Outstanding Dissertation Awards Subcommittee: The Chair and Members of the Outstanding Dissertation Award subcommittee should have at least 7-10 years of experience in SIGCHI, and have advised (or co-advised) at least five Ph.D. students to a completed Ph.D.
In addition to specifying your experience serving SIGCHI, please also tell us in your application if you are a previous SIGCHI awardee or SIGCHI Academy member, ACM Distinguished Members/Fellows/Senior Member, recipients of similar awards from other recognized bodies including universities or technology companies, prior EC member, or present other equivalent experience.
Every effort will be made to ensure that our subcommittees as a whole are diverse along several dimensions, including gender, location, ethnicity, epistemic commitment, career stage, institution, etc.
Note that individuals with significant existing service commitments within SIGCHI or on one of its conferences are not eligible to serve on the award committee. This constraint is in place to minimize situations where a particular conference might have too much impact on award selection, ensuring a fair and balanced evaluation process.
Membership Process
Becoming a member of the SIGCHI award committee involves several important steps:
Candidates must receive a positive vote from the SIGCHI Executive Committee (EC). The EC carefully balances various factors, including the diversity of the committee, when making their decision. It's important to note that a negative vote doesn't necessarily reflect on a candidate's qualifications; it may simply mean that the current committee composition doesn't require their particular expertise at this time.
Following EC approval, candidates must undergo a successful check against the ACM Violations database. All potential members must consent to undergoing this check. For those who have self-nominated to serve on the award committee, this agreement is assumed as part of their nomination.
Selection to a specific subcommittee depends on the subcommittee chairs identifying a need for the candidate's particular profile or expertise.
Given this process, would-be committee members should carefully consider their current commitments and ability to dedicate the necessary time and effort to the award selection process before agreeing to serve. Furthermore, note that this service may preclude you from nominating or endorsing people for certain awards (see below).
Conflicts of Interest
Understanding and managing conflicts of interest is paramount when serving on an ACM award committee. The ACM maintains a comprehensive Conflict of Interest policy for awards. All committee members are expected to familiarize themselves with this policy.
Key points to remember:
You cannot serve as an endorser or nominator for an award in the same subcommittee on which you serve.
You are ineligible to receive an award from the subcommittee on which you serve.
You may, however, receive awards from other SIGCHI award subcommittees on which you are not a member.
Terms in the SIGCHI award committee are generally for three years (although becoming a subcommittee chair typically restarts your timer).
It is generally possible to "pause" your committee membership if you need to recuse yourself for a year.
While COIs tend to expire after four years, some conflicts of interest are permanent, such as advisor/advisee relationships. Close working relationships on committees should be carefully considered when evaluating potential conflicts.
Confidentiality
Maintaining confidentiality is critical for all award committee members. ACM awards policies explicitly require that committee members keep internal discussions confidential. This is particularly important for the Outstanding Dissertation subcommittee, as some Ph.D. dissertations may contain unpublished work.
As a general rule, we do not provide feedback to unsuccessful candidates. This policy helps maintain the integrity of the selection process and ensures equal treatment of all nominees.
Time Commitment
The busiest period for the award committee typically spans from December to February. During this time, members should expect to participate in at least 2 to 3 remote video conferencing meetings (depending on your subcommittee's workload and the needs of your chair). Additionally, committee members should plan to dedicate time to reading and reviewing materials both in advance of and between these meetings.