BALTIMORE, MD, October 2, 2024 – INFORMS Executive Director Elena Gerstmann, Ph.D., FASAE, CAE, has been elected secretary/treasurer of CESSE, The Council of Engineering and Scientific Society Executives. CESSE is an association that convenes senior staff leaders from STEM membership organizations. Through CESSE, these leaders exchange best practices, innovative ideas and strategies for leading their respective organizations to success.
A long-standing member of CESSE, Gerstmann has been serving on its board since 2021 and previously served as director-at-large. Her current term as secretary/treasurer is for 2024-2025. In mid-2025, she will transition to her role as chair-elect, and in mid-2026, she will assume the role of chair of CESSE, leading the organization at a pivotal time for engineering and scientific societies.
“I am honored to have been elected secretary/treasurer of CESSE,” Gerstmann says. “I look forward to working with the entire CESSE board and its members to continue to advance our collective mission of fostering excellence in science and engineering societies. As much as I look forward to contributing to CESSE, I am equally excited to learn from my colleagues across the CESSE community. This experience will help bring fresh insights and strategies back to INFORMS, propelling our efforts toward smarter decisions for a better world.”
About Elena
Elena Gerstmann, Ph.D., FASAE, CAE, uses she/her/hers pronouns. She is the executive director of INFORMS, the largest association that advances and promotes the science and technology of decision-making to save lives, save money and solve problems. Before joining INFORMS, Elena served as a principal at Avenue M Group. She previously served on the executive team at the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). She earned her doctorate in social psychology from Rutgers University. She is a fellow and past board member of ASAE and is currently secretary/treasurer on the board of directors for CESSE. She and her wife, Beth Surmont, are co-founders of SocialOffset.org.
About INFORMS
INFORMS advances and promotes the science and technology of decision-making to save lives, save money and solve problems. INFORMS members support organizations and governments at all levels as they work to transform data into information, and information into insights that lead to more efficient, effective, equitable and impactful results. INFORMS’ 12,000+ members comprise a diverse and robust international community of practitioners, researchers, educators and students from a variety of fields.
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Ashley Smith
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INFORMS
Catonsville, MD
[email protected]
443-757-3578