ASBMB Council: Fall roundup

The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Council met Dec. 6-7 at ASBMB headquarters in Rockville, Maryland. On Dec. 6, Council held a brief business meeting chaired by President Joan Conaway to discuss key finance items and governance updates. After adjourning, the remainder of the Council’s time was dedicated to a strategic planning retreat.  

Presidential reflections on recent work 

Conaway opened the meeting by highlighting key accomplishments of the organization since Council’s last regular meeting. She noted a range of activities designed to begin charting and strengthening the society’s future, building on its historic foundation. As approved at the August 2024 Council meeting, ASBMB will be expanding its family of journals with a new open access journal scheduled to launch in 2025. Consistent with Council’s authorization, Conaway reported that the Executive Committee had recently approved its title — Insights in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, or iBMB — as well as its scope and editorial structure. She indicated that the society expects to identify and appoint an inaugural editor in chief for a first three-year period to ensure a strong early start.  

Joan Conaway

In addition, a group of volunteers and staff is working with external consultants on annual meeting innovation, centering science and introducing possible new ideas for format and attendee reach. Some initial advances will be piloted at the 2025 ASBMB annual meeting, such as new invited plenary lectures, expanded special interest meetings and a new dedicated Emerging Investigator Seminar for graduate students and postdoctoral candidates. The full scientific program is available here. 

In advocacy work, ASBMB engaged legislators to provide important input on National Institutes of Health reform and other science policies, continued to advocate for funding for major science agencies and developed a set of guiding principles and priorities for the new Congress and administration.  

In education and professional development work, the society submitted a robust and competitive renewal proposal for the society’s Maximizing Opportunities for Scientific and Academic Independent Careers, or MOSAIC, program, which ASBMB has led since 2020.  

Finally, ASBMB continued important programs supporting students and early career members, the annual grant-writing workshop, ASBMB Today content and more. Conaway expressed gratitude for the devoted volunteers and staff who carried forward these activities on behalf of ASBMB. 

Budget approved to support 2025 programming and operational enhancements 

Russell DeBose–Boyd
 

Mona Miller

During its business meeting, Council heard a report from the ASBMB Finance Committee, which Treasurer Russell DeBose–Boyd chairs. As DeBose–Boyd was absent due to a personal matter, CEO Mona Miller provided the report along with Matthew Hilliker, ASBMB’s senior director of finance and administration. 

Overall, the report relayed slightly better performance than budgeted in a transitional year for the society and recommended a flat 2025 budget to facilitate ongoing planning. The report highlighted discussions at the fall Finance Committee meeting about financial headwinds that have been developing over the last several years and the need to address them. Miller noted the society successfully weathered a challenging five-year period in which major revenue and expense drivers faced significant changes amid a global pandemic. Council wisely maintained steady programming through this period but must now address these trends to ensure a stable and bright future. In previous discussions this fall, Council reviewed how the changing environment and program pressures affects the society’s finances and acknowledged the need to map a sustainable future.  

At the December meeting, Council reviewed the 2024 forecast, which anticipated an operating deficit of $5.1 million, a small improvement upon the projected $5.2 million loss. The net results also incorporated expenses incurred for a first wave of essential internal infrastructure modernizations. To provide continuity for ASBMB through a year of strategic planning and programmatic decision-making, the Council reviewed and approved a flat 2025 operating budget that includes a net deficit of approximately $4.9 million. Council also approved a request for 2025 strategic initiative spending, sourced from a small additional draw on ASBMB’s strong reserves: $315,000 was allocated to support innovation in lines of work with significant revenue, expense or efficiency implications including strategic planning and governance, program strategy and continued vital technology infrastructure improvements.  

Looking ahead, Council discussed plans to develop multiyear budget targets in 2025 and, to facilitate that planning, Council approved a framework for future dues rates. They also considered and approved a recommended increase to article processing charges, or APCs, for ASBMB’s fully open access family of journals, which went into effect Jan. 1, 2025. The APC adjustments maintain competitiveness among peer journals, and ASBMB is committed to providing member discounts and maintaining participation in Research4Life, a framework to improve accessibility for scientists in nations with emerging economies.  

Strategic direction setting underway 

Council devoted much of its time together to setting future directions for ASBMB, a fundamental responsibility of an organization’s governing body. December’s one-and-a-half day session was informed by months of information gathering through surveys, interviews, committee reports, discussions with leadership and other community input.  

Broadly, Council’s conversation focused on how ASBMB can best empower a vibrant community of molecular life scientists through scientific excellence, an engaged and collaborative community, professional development offerings and sustainable and effective operations. In 2025, Council will release the organization’s finalized strategic plan with goals that drive the organization for the next three to five years.  

Read more about ASBMB’s work to build a sustainable future through prudent financial management and planning. 

Governance development: Bylaw improvements 

Governance is the system of processes and practices used to guide and manage an organization. Council set forth a multiyear effort to ensure ASBMB governance aligns with the practices of high-performing organizations. Reflecting that the ASBMB bylaws had not been reviewed in more than a decade, a Council Governance Task Force put forth a set of revisions to the ASBMB bylaws recommended by legal and governance counsel to align the document with both best practice and ASBMB current practices. The revisions, developed through the fall, reorganize some sections and improve flow and clarity, making the document more accessible. Council reviewed and approved the revisions, which go into effect Jan. 15, 2025.  

Read more about the bylaws updates Council approved at this meeting. 

The next ASBMB Council meeting is scheduled for Feb. 10, 2025, virtually, followed by an in-person meeting onsite during the 2025 ASBMB Annual Meeting in April.