NEWS RELEASE

S. Joe Bhatia to Keynote at 64th Annual SES Conference

August 10 – 13, 2015, Royal Sonesta Hotel, Inner Harbor, Baltimore, Maryland

SES - The Society for Standards Professionals is pleased to announce that S. Joe Bhatia, President and Chief Executive Officer of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), will be the keynote speaker at the Annual SES Conference. The 2015 Conference, to be held August 10 – 13 at the Royal Sonesta Hotel in Baltimore, Maryland, will focus on the theme, Partnering in Innovation Through Standards and Conformity Assessment.

S. Joe Bhatia began his tenure as president and chief executive officer of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) on January 1, 2006.

Prior to joining ANSI, Mr. Bhatia held the position of executive vice president and chief operating officer of the international group at Underwriters Laboratories Inc. (UL). During his 30-plus-year tenure with the organization Mr. Bhatia assumed positions of progressive leadership in global business operations. His areas of responsibility included engineering, governmental and congressional liaisons, external affairs, follow-up (certification) services and direction of UL’s $300+ million international operations.

In 2013, Mr. Bhatia was elected to serve as president for the Pan American Standards Commission (COPANT); he previously served as COPANT vice president for four years. He also serves as vice chairman of the Industry Trade Advisory Committee on Standards and Technical Trade Barriers (ITAC 16), a joint program of the U.S. Department of Commerce and U.S. Trade Representative. A member of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Council and its Standing Committee on Strategies, Mr. Bhatia also holds a seat on the Oakton Community College Education Foundation Board and recently retired as a member of the National Fire Protection Association Board of Directors. In addition to his numerous professional affiliations, Mr. Bhatia is a frequent lecturer in the U.S. and around the world on topics such as international trade, technical developments, commercial market access, and health, safety and environmental concerns.

Mr. Bhatia holds a Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering and a Master of Science in business management. He and his wife, Punita, have two sons.

In his keynote address, Mr. Bhatia will address the partnership between standardization and innovation, particularly in dynamic, growing sectors like energy, ICT and systems integration, and workforce development. Beyond innovation, he will also share some highlights of how the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and the global standards community are working together on cross-cutting issues like intellectual property rights, incorporation by reference, and reparing the next generation of standards professionals.

SES President, Sonya Bird, commented, “Mr. Bhatia has been very active in SES conferences in the past, and I’m very excited that he will provide the keynote address for our 64th annual SES conference. ANSI is a strong partner of SES, with both our organizations serving similar constituency in supporting and strengthening standardization and conformity assessment. Mr. Bhatia’s keynote, in conjunction with the remaining conference program speakers, will continue to carry out one of our Society’s key objectives – educating our membership in all aspects relative to the standards profession. Please join me in the beautiful Inner Harbor in Baltimore this August!”

About SES
SES - The Society for Standards Professionals was founded in 1947 as the Standards Engineering Society, a not-for-profit professional membership society dedicated to furthering the knowledge and use of standards and standardization. SES is unique in that it is the only organization in North America committed exclusively to this effort. SES provides a neutral networking forum where standards users and developers can come together to address mutual issues, opportunities, and interests in ways that work to the benefit of everyone involved with, or affected by, standards. The Society’s worldwide membership includes standards developers, users, managers, and information specialists from industry, government, standards developing organizations, trade associations, and academia. SES is the member body for the United States and Canada in the International Federation of Standards Users (IFAN) and accredited by the American National Standards Institute.

Contact:
Mike Morrell, AStd, FSES
Executive Director
SES - The Society for Standards Professionals
Phone: 1 603 926 0750
admin@ses-standards.org

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