The Australian Computer Society (ACS) is an association for

information and communications technology Information and communications technology (ICT) is an extensional term for information technology (IT) that stresses the role of unified communications and the integration of telecommunications ( telephone lines and wireless signals) and computer ...

professionals with over 48,000 members Australia-wide. According to its Constitution, its objectives are "to advance professional excellence in information technology" and "to promote the development of Australian information and communications technology resources". The ACS was formed on 1 January 1966 from five state based societies. It was formally incorporated in the

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) until 1938, is a landlocked federal territory of Australia containing the national capital Canberra and some surrounding township#Aust ...

on 3 October 1967. Since 1983 there have been chapters in every state and territory. The ACS is a member of the Australian Council of Professions ("Professions Australia"), the peak body for professional associations in Australia. Internationally, ACS is a member of the International Professional Practice Partnership (IP3), South East Asia Regional Computer Confederation,

International Federation for Information Processing The International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP) is a global organisation for researchers and professionals working in the field of computing to conduct research, develop standards and promote information sharing. Established in 196 ...

and The

Seoul Accord The Seoul Accord is an international accreditation agreement for professional computing and information technology academic degrees, between the bodies responsible for accreditation in its signatory countries. Established in 2008, the signatories ...

. The ACS is also a member organisation of the

Federation of Enterprise Architecture Professional Organizations The Federation of Enterprise Architecture Professional Organizations (FEAPO) is a worldwide association of professional organizations, aiming to standardize, professionalize, and otherwise advance the discipline of enterprise architecture."Stephe ...

(FEAPO), a worldwide association of professional organisations which have come together to provide a forum to standardise, professionalise, and otherwise advance the discipline of Enterprise Architecture.

Activities

The ACS operates various chapters, annual conferences, Special Interest Groups, and a professional development program. Members are required to comply with a Code of Ethics and a Code of Professional Conduct.

Extent of representation

The ACS describes itself as "the professional association for Australia's technology sector" and "Australia's primary representative body for the ICT workforce", but industry analysts have questioned this based on the small percentage of IT professionals who are ACS members. The issue has been discussed in the press since at least 2004, and in 2013 the

Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...

wrote that "the ACS aggressively seeks to control the important software engineering profession in Australia, but ... less than 5 per cent of the professional IT workforce belongs to the ACS." The ACS Foundation came up with a slightly higher figure: "Depending on the data used to calculate the number of ICT professionals in Australia, however, CSmembership represents approximately 6.5 per cent of the total."

Presidents

The Australian Computer Society elects its National President every two years, who serves as the leader of the Society. Some of the most recent presidents include: * Dr. Nick Tate, 2022 - 2023 * Ian Opperman, 2020 - 2021 * Yohan Ramasundarah, 2018 – 2019 * Anthony Wong, 2016 – 2017 * Brenda Aynsley, 2014 – 2016 * Nick Tate, 2012 – 2014 * Kumar Parakala, 2008 – 2010 * Philip Argy, 2006 – 2008 * Edward Mandla, 2004 – 2006

Young IT

The Young IT Professionals Board of the Australian Computer Society provides a voice for young IT professionals and students, as well as a range of services and benefits for members. Currently Young IT organises and runs a bi-annual YIT International Conference and other events such as local career days, soft skills and technical seminars, networking opportunities and social events (e.g. Young IT in the Pub) in each of the Australian States. The most recent Young IT Conference was held in Melbourne in 2014.

Publications

''Information Age'' is the official publication of the ACS. In February 2015 ''Information Age'' became an online-only publication. Peer-reviewed research publications of the ACS include: * ''Journal of Research and Practice in Information Technology'' * ''Conferences in Research and Practice in Information Technology'' * ''Australasian Journal of Information Systems'' The digital library contains free journal articles and conference papers.

Related organisations

Association for Computing Machinery The Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) is a US-based international learned society for computing. It was founded in 1947 and is the world's largest scientific and educational computing society. The ACM is a non-profit professional member ...

* ACS Foundation * Australian Information Security Association *

British Computer Society Sir Maurice Wilkes served as the first President of BCS in 1957 BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, known as the British Computer Society until 2009, is a professional body and a learned society that represents those working in inf ...

* Institution of Analysts and Programmers *

* New Zealand Computer Society * Computer Society of India *

Computer Society of Southern Africa The Computer Society of South Africa is a representative association for ICT practitioners and professionals throughout South Africa. The Computer Society of South Africa focuses its activities, events and publications in five primary areas: * I ...

Canadian Information Processing Society CIPS (Canadian Information Processing Society) is the professional association of IT professionals in Canada. Since 1958 CIPS has helped strengthen the Canadian IT industry by establishing standards and sharing best practices for the benefit of ind ...

* SEARCC *

Other Australian computer associations

* AUUG – Now deregistered * Linux Australia * LUGs in Australia * SAGE-AU * Institute of Analytics Professionals of Australia (IAPA), incorporating business data analytics, business intelligence, data mining and related industries * Australian Software Innovation Forum, encourages collaboration and co-operation in Java EE and associated technologies

Special Interest Groups

Special Interest Groups (SIGs) of the ACS are connected to each state branch with some SIGs of the same or similar name occurring in a number of states, depending on local interest, and include: Architects, Software Quality Assurance, Women in Technology, Business Requirements Analysis, Enterprise Capacity Management, Enterprise Solution Development, Free Open Source Software, Information Security, IT Management, Project Management, Service Oriented Computing, Web Services, Consultants and Contractors, IT Security, PC Recycling, Curry SIG, Information Technology in Education, Robotics, E-Commerce, IT Governance, Software Engineering and Cloud Computing. A recent addition is the Green ICT Group on computers and telecommunications for environmental sustainability. In 2007 the

Telecommunications Society of Australia The Telecommunication Society of Australia (TSA) has served the Australian telecommunications industry as its learned society since its initial formation as the Telegraph Electrical Society in 1874, in response to enthusiasm for the then new enginee ...

was absorbed into the Australian Computer Society as the Telecommunications Special Interest Group

Education and Certification

The ACS runs the online Computer Professional Education Program (CPEP) for postgraduate education in subjects including: Green ICT Strategies; New Technology Alignment; Business, Strategy & IT; Adaptive Business Intelligence; Project Management; Managing Technology and Operations. CPEP uses the Australian developed

Moodle Moodle is a free and open-source learning management system written in PHP and distributed under the GNU General Public License. Moodle is used for blended learning, distance education, flipped classroom and other online learning projects in ...

course management system and is delivered via the web. The Diploma of Information Technology (DIT) is equivalent to one academic year of a Bachelor of Information Technology at several universities. It has eight compulsory subjects: systems analysis, programming, computer organisation, data management, OO systems development, computer communications, professional practice and systems principles. The ACS also certifies IT professionals at two levels, the Certified Professional and the Certified Technologist. Each certification level has a minimum level of experience and also required ongoing CPD (Certified Professional Development) hours of learning each year. In 2017 the ACS launched a cybersecurity specialisation within the certification framework.

Digital Disruptors Awards

ACS recognizes outstanding technical talent in the Australian industry with seven "ACS Digital Disruptors awards". They are:

Individual Awards

* ICT Professional of the Year * Emerging ICT Professional of the Year (Age under 30) * CXO Disruptor of the Year

Team/Project Awards

* Service Transformation for the Digital Consumer * Skills Transformation of Work Teams * Best New Tech Platform * ICT Research Project of the Year

References

Citations

Sources

"The Australian Computer Society"
Retrieved 16 May 2006.
"ACS Historical Notes"
Retrieved 16 May 2006.
ACS Code of Professional Conduct and Professional Practice

External links

* of the ACS
ACS Foundation

Information Age
{{Authority control Professional associations based in Australia Information technology organizations based in Oceania Organizations established in 1966 1966 establishments in Australia