NFOEC Session Chair Duties

  • Get each speaker’s biography to prepare a short introduction. Request 1–2 questions to use to stimulate discussion during the Q&A period, and a copy of the presentation or paper to become familiar with it.
  • Meet your speakers in the session room 15–20 minutes before the session. An A-V technician will help demonstrate the equipment.
  • Go to the podium before the session starts and ask the audience to sit down. At the scheduled time, introduce yourself and your session; make any general announcements you’ve been given.
  • Introduce the first speaker and attach the lapel microphone. Start the timer.
  • Each paper is allotted 20 minutes, including a 1-minute introduction. Speakers have 15 minutes (green) plus 2 minutes (yellow) to wrap up. At 17 minutes (red), they should stop. If a speaker continues, stand up at 18 minutes, and at 19 minutes stop the presentation for Q&A. Allow up to 3 minutes for Q&A, depending on whether the speaker overran the 17 minutes.
  • Follow this timing to be fair to all speakers and allow attendees to move between sessions to hear specific papers. Two speakers may share a presentation, but the same time limits apply.
  • Ask for audience questions. If there are none, ask one that the speaker sent you or that you prepared after reading the paper. Do not dominate the discussion with your personal or corporate viewpoints.
  • Tell questioners to use the aisle microphones and to give their names and company affiliations. Repeat a question if it’s unclear or if an aisle microphone doesn’t work.
  • After the Q&A, thank the speaker and remove the microphone. Introduce and assist the next speaker.
  • If your session gets ahead of schedule, allow more Q&A or presentation time to stay on the 20-minute cycle. If you end early, you may invite all the speakers to participate in open Q&A.
  • If a speaker does not arrive, announce this to the audience. Do not introduce the next speaker until his/her listed starting time. Instead, use the time for extended discussion of the other papers in the session, or to take a short break. Report missing speakers to the conference managers.
  • After the last speaker, thank the speakers and audience, announce when the next sessions start, make any announcements, and close your session.