Committee Corner: Gregory Schaeffer, IBM

As the co-chair of the Si2 OpenAccess Change Team, Gregory Schaeffer will attest that change in the technical standards world, though critical, is anything but easy.

Schaeffer is a senior software engineer at IBM, his only employer since earning an MS in Computer Science from Case Western University.

A native of Elizabethtown, Pa., Schaeffer said his biggest challenge is addressing divergent interests of Change Team members. “We have 12 people on our team, and require a two-thirds vote to adopt changes.  Some members want to focus on improving mature standards while others see the need to move more quickly into new standards for emerging technologies.”

It’s a tenuous balancing act that he confronts with co-chair Michaela Guiney of Cadence Design Systems

Schaeffer joined the Change Team last year and sees the personal and professional benefits of participation.  “IBM sees value on external visibility at this level.  Plus, it’s fun getting to know people who share some of the same technical challenges.