Joan founded her association management company in San Francisco in 1993 to support international scientific and medical societies, growing the company to 4 full-time employees by 2005 before moving to a virtual office in Germany and specializing in management of European Workshops & Symposia. Became the Managing Director of the International Cytokine & Interferon Society (ICIS) in 2017 and the International Society for Developmental Psychobiology (ISDP) in 2018, as well as managing a few related scientific meetings (Tularemia International Society, EBV Association and KSHV Workshop), with meetings planned in Boston, San Francisco, San Diego, Hawaii, Chicago, Vienna, Athens, Paris, Dublin, as well as Virtual & Hybrid Meetings.
Joan Oefner was honored with the 2020 ICIS Distinguished Service Award in recognition for her extraordinary contributions and service to the ICIS and to the cytokine research community at large. Now after eight years managing the International Cytokine & Interferon Society, it is time to pass the torch to Stephanie Flores, CAE, who also took over another former client (casss.org) as we focus on scientific associations and meetings with under 500 participants. At Cytokines 2024 in Seoul, Joan was honored with a named ICIS Student/Postdoc Member Travel Award.
Timeline:
1992: Joan started her company by taking over as the Executive Director of the SW Chapter, Society of Nuclear Medicine SWC, SNM (now the Southwestern Chapter of the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging SWC-SNMMI) from her former boss, Justine Jean Parker, who was also managing the International Society of Analytical Cytology (ISAC) (now the International Society for Advancement of Cytometry ISAC) and the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography & Interventions (SCAI) from her office in San Francisco.
1993: Six month after that she would become the first Executive Director for the North American Society for Cardiovascular Imaging (NASCI), a society in its 3rd decade that was in decline but about to experience a revitalization of the field of Cardiac Imaging by taking the initiative in cardiac MRI. She established a formal office and hired her first employee, laying the foundation for growth. NASCI remains the leading multi-disciplinary, multi-modality society for the advancement of Cardiovascular Imaging, incorporating radiologists, cardiologists, physicists and industry representatives.
1995: A few years later, Rhema assumed management of the California Separation Science Society (CaSSS) (now CASSS, an International Separate Science Society), a nearly insolvent organization of analytical biochemists based in Silicon Valley. Under Rhema’s guidance, CASSS underwent a transformation, beginning with the launch of a highly successful new meeting, Well Characterized Biotechnology Pharmaceuticals (WCBP), now in its 29th year. The continued success of WCBP, along with the development of associated interest groups, helped evolve CASSS into a global community uniting industry, academic, and regulatory professionals committed to advancing biopharmaceutical development and delivery.
2001: Restructured home based office – Joan chose to downsize after having her twins, taking NASCI with her and transitioning the other clients to her well-trained team of mentees, many of whom remain with those organizations to this day.
2002: A brief search for a new client soon led to not one, but two new partnerships: the Society for Molecular Imaging (SMI) (now the World Molecular Imaging Society WMIS) and the San Francisco Neurological Society (SFNS).
Society for Molecular Imaging (SMI) Executive Director, August 2002 – December 2006 (moved them to Germany in 2005) – Joan Oefner was appointed as the founding Executive Director of the newly established Society for Molecular Imaging (SMI) (now the World Molecular Imaging Society WMIS) a forum for the development of new molecular imaging agents and approaches for different imaging modalities and their applications to more basic, preclinical research. Although there was a complimentary Society (the Academy of Molecular Imaging AMI) formed in parallel, the AMI focused on the clinical utility of novel molecular imaging, primarily PET. The SMI quickly gained momentum, driven by significant excitement around the potential of multimodal in vivo imaging in patient care. Joan played a pivotal role in establishing the Society’s foundation and reputation, overseeing membership and meeting growth to over 1,200 researchers and some clinicians, while fostering strong partnerships with industry stakeholders eager to support this emerging interdisciplinary field. With the Society on solid footing and experiencing steady growth, Joan made a strategic decision to transition out of her role as Executive Director following the 2006 Hawaii meeting. Her assistant seamlessly stepped into the position, ensuring continuity during a pivotal period as the organization moved toward a merger with the Academy of Molecular Imaging AMI). Following several successful joint meetings starting in 2007, the two organizations officially merged in 2011 to form the World Molecular Imaging Society WMIS).
San Francisco Neurological Society (SFNS) Executive Director from 2002 – 2005 – The San Francisco Neurological Society continues to be an important part of Bay Area neurological and neurosurgical activity, both at Stanford, UCSF and UC Davis, as well as surrounding institutions and especially for those in private practice. The SFNS is accredited by the California Medical Association (CMA) to provide continuing medical education (CME) for physicians.
2005: Moving from California to Germany 20 years ago, academics can likely appreciate this: my husband Peter Oefner, was the the Associate Director of the Stanford Genome Technology Center at the time, and ultimately accepted a full professor position (C4) from the University of Regensburg to lead the newly established Institute of Functional Genomics.
Finding new management for NASCI and SFNS before relocating to Germany in 2005, Joan continued managing the Society for Molecular Imaging and expanded the operational team to meet the Society’s growing demands. She brought on Charles Metzger part-time—a former Rhema Association Management colleague who had continued managing the SW Chapter of the Society of Nuclear Medicine—working from his Texas office. The two collaborated using efficient online systems for membership, meeting registration, abstract submission and accounting through the 2006 Annual Meeting in Hawaii, ensuring the continued delivery of high-quality membership services and events amid rapid organizational growth.
2007 – 2017: Website design, planning int’L symposia & supporting journals for former clients until the International Cytokine & Interferon (ICIS) decided to leave the Society Services division of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB)
Assuming management of the International Cytokine & Interferon Society (ICIS) from the much larger FASEB in late 2016 marked a strategic reentry into association management for Rhema Association Management. With 600 members and 500 attendees at its 2016 annual meeting, the Society offered strong foundations for long-term growth. Since the ICIS has always been international, the Council had no objections to a Virtual Office with a Managing Director in Germany. Rhema moved the official office address from the FASEB Campus in Bethesda to a UPS Store® in New Jersey to continue providing a unique a US based mailing address and phone number.
After eight years managing the ICIS, during which time membership grew from 600 to over 1,100, two endowments were established, and industry sponsorship expanded significantly to support prestigious awards and new initiatives, Joan made the decision to step down at the end of 2024.
Awards: 2024 – ICIS-Joan Oefner Travel Award for Trainees: Named in honor of the International Cytokine & Interferon Society (ICIS) retiring Managing Director, whose dedication drove the society’s growth. This award will carry her legacy forward by supporting future leaders in cytokine research. Source: https://cytokinesociety.org/joan-oefner-travel-award/
2020 ICIS Distinguished Service Award in recognition for extraordinary contributions and service to the ICIS and to the cytokine research community at large. Source: https://cytokinesociety.org/2020/09/28/2020-icis-distinguished-service-award/
2018: The International Society for Developmental Psychobiology (ISDP) joined Rhema just as the ICIS transition was getting starting at the start of 2018.
Future: Expansion of the Team –Hannah Oefner is a rising professional in the field of association management, bringing a strong foundation in business and marketing to Rhema Association Management LLC, a family-owned firm she has been preparing to join since 2020. She is currently pursuing a Masters of Entrepreneurship & Tourism at MCI | The Entrepreneurial School® in Innsbruck, Austria, with graduation expected in September 2025. Hannah holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business Management from FH Kufstein Tirol – University of Applied Sciences, completed in July 2023, which included a paid internship in association management at the Vienna Medical Academy GmbH. Her academic background and hands-on experience uniquely position her to contribute to the strategic growth and operational excellence of Rhema’s client partnerships.
Hannah specializes in Social Media, Marketing & Communications, AI Tools, Graphic Design, Online Membership, Online Abstracts and Registration. We’re both excited about what lies ahead, because in this field, two really are better than one. As the African proverb wisely says: “If you want to go fast…go alone. If you want to go far…go together”
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