MPAR Symposium Information


Start Page		Last Updated: August 10, 2007

Presentation Guidelines Moderator Presenter

Thank you for agreeing to moderate a session at the MPAR Symposium, October 10-12, 2007. This document contains details regarding your role and responsibilities as a session moderator for the event. Each speaker will receive a similar document to ensure that the moderators and speakers have a mutual understanding regarding each others’ expectations at the symposium. Please review this document carefully prior to engaging your session speakers. If you have any questions regarding your role and responsibilities or you need assistance in contacting your speakers, please contact Mark Weadon, Conference Technical Coordinator, at Mark.weadon@noaa.gov, or by phone at 301-427-2056, ext 18. Registration Moderators will need to register for the MPAR Symposium. You may register on-line. Click here. Moderator Guidelines Moderator’s Role The moderator’s role is to orchestrate the speakers’ performances to produce a energetic, interesting and informative session. This involves not only playing the role of master of ceremonies during the session, but also coordinating and guiding the speakers in their preparation for the event. Most sessions feature a panel of four or five presenters in a 120-minute time period, so it is important to help each speaker to keep their presentation to 15 minutes or less to allow time at the end of the session for questions and answers. Moderator’s Responsibilities Session Moderators will be responsible for the following: Prepare a stage-setting introduction for the session. What is the session intended to accomplish? What are the background issues, needs, requirements that make this subject important to the audience? Are there ongoing activities that the speakers may not cover because they are outside there area of responsibility, but should be quickly listed as part of an overview for the benefit of the audience? Conduct a conference call with your speakers prior to the symposium Inform all speakers that they must be registered for the symposium to participate in the session Collect a short speaker biography for each speaker for your use at the symposium Verify with Mark Weadon Conference TechnicalCoordinator, the order of your speakers Verify your introductions and review presentations topics to avoid duplication Instruct the speakers on the electronic timer that will provide a clear signal to the speakers that they are within two minutes of their allotted time Request that each speaker make arrangements for his or her own replacement should they be unable to participate in the session at the last minute - be sure to collect the replacement’s name and contact information and forward the information to Mark Weadon, Conference Technical Coordinator, at mark.weadon@noaa.gov, or by phone at 301-427-2056, ext 18, as soon as you have it available. Hold all questions until after all panel members have spoken. Prepare one or two questions to ask in case the audience needs prompting Arrange to meet onsite 30 minutes prior to your session to address last minute changes, etc. Keep speaker presentations in the same order as they appear in the program At beginning of session, remind attendees to turn off cell phones Session Equipment, Room, & Materials Equipment For each session, the symposium sponsors will provide all projection and audio equipment required for the presentations. Rooms All sessions will take place in the main NWC meeting room, an amphitheater of 250 in a classroom arrangement; a table for the moderator and speakers will be placed on the amphitheater stage along with a podium. Panel table and podium will have speakers, and all proceedings will be videotaped for record. Materials Tent cards and water for the moderator and speakers will be available in the room. Contacting Speakers Your speakers’ email addresses and pertinent contact information has been provided in the email accompanying this document. It is advisable you contact the speakers at least one month prior to the symposium to: review the structure and content of the session, confirm what he or she plans to present so that you can request necessary adjustments to create a coherent session and — most importantly — avoid duplication, and reiterate all responsibilities and issue any requests. The best way in ensure a smooth session is to set up a conference call with your speakers before the meeting, and maintain regular correspondence via email up to the symposium. Mark Weadon will be happy to help maintain this communication, as well as assist in coordinating the conference call. If you need assistance, please let him know if you need help ASAP. Collecting Presentations Moderators are requested to help with collecting all session presentations prior to the symposium. Any presentations provided on site must be provided on a CD or memory stick. Meeting Onsite Speakers will be asked to meet in the main meeting room during the break prior to the start of the session. Please ensure all speakers provide their presentations to Ken Barnett, OFCM, Audio Visual Coordinator, well before the session start time. At this time, you should also review the time available for each speaker. Instruct the speakers on the electronic timer that will provide a clear signal to the speakers that they are within two minutes of their allotted time, the laser pointer, and slide advancer device. At the Session You should start the session on time and make any “announcements”. Introduce each speaker with his or her brief biographical note. Make sure you can properly pronounce the speaker’s name and any affiliations that you read out. Bring each talk to a firm ending if it begins to go overtime. Audience members appreciate being rewarded for their attention by being afforded an opportunity for questions and answers during the last 20–30 minutes of the session. Prepare one or two questions in case the audience needs prompting. End of Session Please thank the speakers and the audience for their participation. Attention: Adjourn the session no later than the time shown in the program. If there is a very spirited discussion, you may officially close the session but invite interested parties to continue the discussion until the room is no longer available.

Presentation Guidelines Presentation Coordination This document contains details regarding your role and responsibilities as a session speaker for the MPAR Symposium October 10-12, 2007. Each moderator will receive a similar document to ensure that the moderators and speakers have a mutual understanding regarding each others’ expectations at the symposium. In addition to these guidelines, your moderator will be working with Mark Weadon, Conference Technical Coordinator, who has been assigned to assist you with planning and finalizing the details of your session. Please review this document carefully. If you have any questions regarding your role and responsibilities or you need assistance in contacting your session moderator, please contact Mark Weadon at Mark.Weadon@noaa.gov, or by phone at 301-427-2056, ext 18. Registration Speakers will need to register for the MPAR Symposium. You may register on-line. Click Here. Speaker’s Role As a session speaker, your presentation should be well-organized, and in keeping within the time allotted, 15 minutes, to afford equal time to all speakers and permit questions and answers. Your session moderator has been selected to ensure the success of our session. Your cooperation with and accessibility to him/her is greatly appreciated. Speaker’s Responsibilities Session speakers will be responsible for the following: Participating on a conference call with your moderator and other speakers at least one month prior to the symposium Registering for the symposium Providing a short speaker biography to your Moderator Coordinating with your Moderator to review your introductions and presentation topics to avoid duplication Coordinating with your Moderator to understand the electronic timer that will provide a clear signal that you are within two minutes of your allotted time Making arrangements for your own replacement speaker should you be unable to participate in the session at the last minute and provide your replacement’s name and contact information to your Moderator as soon as practicable Coordinating with your Moderator, arrange to meet onsite 30 minutes prior to address last minute changes, etc. Provide a copy of your presentation to Ken Barnett, OFCM, Audio Visual Coordinator, via portable USB device or CD-ROM. Session Equipment, Room, & Materials Equipment For each session, the symposium sponsors will provide all projection and audio equipment required for the presentations. Rooms All sessions will take place in the main NWC meeting room, an amphitheater of 250 in a classroom arrangement; a table for the moderator and speakers will be placed on the amphitheater stage along with a podium. Panel table and podium will have speakers, and all proceedings will be videotaped for record. Materials Tent cards and water for the moderator and speakers will be available in the room. Turn in Your Presentation Please provide a finished version of your presentation electronically at least one hour prior to presentation time at the latest, to allow our AV technicians to check for compatibility issues, virus scan, and deal with any other issues that could arise. Copies of all presentations will be assembled, along with a video of the proceedings, on a Symposium CD to be mailed to all attendees after the conference. Structure and Content PowerPoint Presentation is highly encouraged for all speakers. We will have a computerized LCD screen projection, a computer, a remote mouse, and a laser pointer. Individual’s laptop computers will not be used to avoid unnecessary delays between speakers. The speaker will use the remote mouse to advance the slides. The computers will run from an AV station off to the side, where the AV technician will have your presentation ready and projected on the screen. There will also be a large monitor on the floor in front of the speaker, to assist and help prevent the speaker from having to look back at the projection screen. Version The computers will be running the Windows XP operating system with Office 2003 installed, so it is preferred that you save your presentation in this format. PDF as a last resort. Adobe’s Portable Document Format (PDF) is a last resort for making presentations because the speaker will not be able to advance the slides with the remote mouse. (The speaker will have to say “next slide” to advance through the presentation.) Internet Access There is Wireless Internet in the room. Web site reference If you have a web site relative to your topic or organization, please include the link in your presentation. Questions? All questions regarding presentations should be sent to Kenneth.Barnett@noaa.gov.

Presentation Guidelines