b'Member News March 2020 27VolunteersI feel so proud to have beenrecognised in this way.At the 2019 IET Achievement Awards, Paul Meenan CEng FIET was announced the winner of theIET Volunteer Achievement Medal, which recognises the importance of volunteers in our missionto inspire, inform and influence the global engineering community. Asset Manager Paul works for passenger rail transportation company Trenitalia c2c Limited. During the last three years he has devoted a phenomenal amount of time to supporting the professional development of his fellow electricians.Pauls route to becoming a Chartered Engineer was a difficult one: I didnt have a degree and hadnt been on an accredited scheme. But I did have more than 20 years experience behind me. Once chartered, he was determined to help make the IET journey easier for his fellow electricians. He kept his word and is now a very active IET Volunteer Professional Registration Advisor.I really enjoy helping others in my trade. Every week I get two or three phone calls from electricians who are considering joining the IET or applying for Professional Registration. I go through2019 IET Volunteer Achievement Medal Award Winner Paul Meenan CEng FIETtheir background and one and write detailed recommendationsI love it when a candidate starts to give them advice basedagainst each criterion. A bonus of doingdeliver their presentation and you can on my knowledge andthis, of course, is that it actually countstell that theyve definitely done the work towards my own CPD. theyre talking about and know their personal experience. stuff inside out. For me, its like a battery And thats not all. Paul also volunteersrecharge; I know the competencies and as an Engineering Technician AssessorI enjoy seeing the candidates tick all the Paul also runs workshops and deliversand in 2019 completed around 30 ofboxes to become chartered.college lectures to electricians across thethese assessments as a panel member. country. Most evenings, youll find himHowever, his favourite role is that of theWithout a doubt, winning the 2019 IET reviewing draft IET submissions.Professional Registration Interviewer:Volunteer Achievement Medal is Pauls Some candidates fly through, while forgreatest achievement to date. He said:One of Pauls biggest volunteerothers you need to work at drawing theI feel so proud to have been recognised commitments is his role as a Continuingbest out of them. in this way.Professional Development (CPD) Advisor. I probably do around 20 CPD returns aFind out more about Paul at: theiet.org/meet-our-volunteersyear. It takes quite a while to review each'