In this model, as described by Terry McComb, a leading technical expert to IEC from Canada, an IEEE working group chair is appointed as convenor of an IEC working group. Because the same person oversaw the standard-development process in both organizations, the finished IEC and IEEE standards were substantially the same. A current revision under way in IEEE may turn out to be the basis for the next IEC revision. These members carried forward technical assessments between IEEE and IEC working groups. Each organization has been able to leverage the standards work of the other as digital recorder standards have been drafted and revised over the last decade.
Coordination is achieved by having knowledgeable individuals participate fully in the work.
In the IEC, the document development and distribution process follows a strict timetable. Both an IEC Technical Committee Chair, the late Joe Van Name, and an IEC Technical Committee Secretary, Anne Bosma, emphasized this point. With data provided by a technical committee secretary, the IEC central office tracks milestones towards completion. A justification and new timetable must be prepared in order to continue a project that is delayed. Other procedural differences panelists noted were greater IEC latitude in consensus judgments and simpler methods for handling negative comments.