iise Manufacturing and Design (m&d) division Outstanding Early Career (OEC) Award

The Manufacturing & Design (M&D) Outstanding Early Career (OEC) Award recognizes outstanding M&D Division members for technical contributions to manufacturing or design after earning their highest degree at the time the award is presented. The award will be presented annually during the M&D Townhall Meeting at the IISE Annual Conference.

Eligibility requirements

Early career refers to the time since a nominee earned her/his most recent degree. All individuals who meet the eligibility criteria below may be nominated for this award regardless of their age.

At the time of submission, the nominee must be:

  • Be a member of IISE and the M&D Division.
  • Have graduated with a terminal degree (i.e., MSIE, PhD) within the last six years; or
  • Be a pre-tenure assistant professor; or
  • Have graduated with a bachelor’s degree within the last ten years (i.e., BSIE, BSISE).

The nominee must have demonstrated active participation in the M&D division. Examples include but are not limited to:

  • Presenting at an IISE Annual Conference M&D track session or during an M&D webinar
  • Session chair at an M&D track session at the IISE Annual Conference
  • Publication in a journal such as IISE Transactions
  • Member of an M&D award selection committee
  • Served on the M&D Division board
  • The nominee has made a high-impact science, technology, engineering or mathematical (STEM) contribution to manufacturing or design as evidenced by their research endeavors (i.e., intellectual property, research funding, research dissemination)
  • The nominee has not previously received the OEC award.

Application process

The candidate must be nominated by another person. Self-nominations are prohibited.

The nomination package must include in a single PDF file:

A 1-page letter of nomination written and signed by the nominator that includes:

  • The nominee’s full name as it should appear on the certificate if awarded.
  • The nominee’s email address.
  • The nominator’s full name and email address.

A statement written by the nominee about the nominee’s contributions to manufacturing or design that includes

  • How the nominee’s contributions satisfy the applicable eligibility criteria and is no more than two pages.

Two letters of recommendation (LOR) from academic or professional colleagues (distinct from the nominator)

  • Highlighting the nominee’s technical achievements and contributions.
  • Each LOR is limited to a maximum of two pages.
  • A copy of the nominee’s current curriculum vitae or resume limited to a maximum of six pages.

The nomination package shall be submitted to the OEC Selection Committee Chairperson, Dr. Alaa Elwany by February 13, 2026 at 11:59pm ET (UTC -5).

Evaluation Process

The OEC selection committee will verify compliance with the eligibility criteria.

Nominees will be evaluated by the committee based on the following criteria:

  • Demonstrated leadership in the M&D Division.
  • Impact and quality of contributions to manufacturing or design research/scholarship.
  • Potential for future impact in the field.

The selection committee will:

  • Evaluate each nominee against the evaluation criteria.
  • Assign a final score to each candidate based on the evaluation criteria. Each criteria will be assessed on a 5-point scale: 5 is the highest ranking; 0 is the lowest. Assessors will assign an integer value for each assessment category. The assessments categories are equally weighted. The final score for each assessment will be the average of integers assigned in each category.
  • The Selection Committee Chairperson will rank the nominees according to their final scores.
  • The nominee with the highest score will be declared the winner.
  • In the event of a tie, the committee will deliberate to determine the winner.
  • The Selection Committee Chairperson will notify the winner by email no later than March 13, 2026.
  • Either the selection committee chairperson or the M&D President-Elect will notify IISE regarding the winner per IISE policies.

Important Dates (Deadlines)

  • Nominations due by February 13, 2026.
  • Winner(s) Notification due by March 13, 2026.

Recognition

  • First prize winner(s) will receive a certificate with a hardback cover at the M&D townhall meeting at the IISE Annual Conference & Expo.
  • Second and Third prize winners will receive a digital certificate and be recognized at the M&D townhall meeting at the IISE Annual Conference & Expo.
  • First, second, and third prize winners will be recognized on the M&D webpage and in the M&D newsletter
  • First, second, and third prize winners will be recognized in ISE magazine.

Committee Chair

Dr. Alaa Elwany

Conflict of Interest Policy

It is imperative to maintain the integrity of the awards programs within IISE and the M&D Division. Therefore, all members of the division shall abide by the following conflict of interest policy requirements.

M&D officers and board members are ineligible for M&D awards during their period(s) of service without approval from IISE’s Senior Vice President for Technical Operations (SVP). Exceptions may only be made by the SVP when awards are time sensitive (e.g., Student board member is nominated for Best Student Paper Award, but will graduate before the Annual Conference). In the case of time sensitive awards without SVP approval, the affected officer/members must be recused from the awards processes. For non-time sensitive awards, officers and board members may be nominated for awards after their service on the M&D Division board has ended.

Award selection committees shall consist of members who have neither personal nor professional relationships with nominees. Upon knowing that such a conflict arises, the member shall immediately be recused from further participation in the selection process.

  • Example 1: A faculty member recuses himself from evaluating the work of a student attending an institution where the faculty member teaches.
  • Exmaple 2: A committee member recuses herself from evaluating the work of a family member, friend, or professional colleague.

Award committee members should change annually to ensure fairness, diversity, and equality.

For questions, please contact Amy Straub.

2025 Winner

Dr. Hannah Budinoff
University of Arizona

2024 Winner

Dr. Hantang Qin
University of Wisconsin - Madison

Past winners

Manufacturing and Design Division page

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