Tuesday, June 28, 2016

How moderators can make the panelists' job easier

You may not think it's your job to make the panelists' job easier when you're the moderator, but if you do just that during the planning for the panel, you too will reap the benefits.

In fact, the moderator is in a unique position to help the speakers, even if they don't seem to think of it as help. Here are some ways you can aid the panelists when you're working with them ahead of the panel:

  • Be a good go-between: You can save the speakers time and keep the panel policies consistent if you carry speaker issues and requests to the organizers, and vice versa.
  • Flag format issues in advance: Both you and the organizer may have format ideas and limits that will affect the time and effort speakers spend in preparing. Tell them early about limits like no slides or a specific number of slides, time for their presentations, whether they can or should promote their services, what audio or video options are available, and so on. 
  • Themes and lines of questioning: If you or the organizer have themes or a specific line of questioning in mind, clue in the speakers before they prepare their contributions. And if you anticipate some controversy, take the time to talk through how you expect to handle it. 
(Creative Commons licensed photo by AIGA/NY)

Need more coaching on how to be a better panel moderator? Order the new ebook The Eloquent Woman's Guide to Moderating Panels. At just $3.99 and available in many formats, it's a great back-pocket coach to take on stage with you in your smartphone or tablet. Find more tips on public speaking on The Eloquent Woman blog.

Tuesday, June 21, 2016

The one muscle you need to exercise to be a better panel moderator

Once the preparation is over and the panel has begun, the moderator has one strong muscle she can use again and again. It works nearly every time, no matter what is happening.

Here it is: Skip the subtle signals to direct the action. Announce, out loud, what is happening or what you want to happen.

Too often, I see moderators who think they must be subtle. They glare at the overtime speaker, willing him to be silent, or just to pause. They put notes in front of speakers. They make hand signals below the table top. They stand off to the side. They fret and sweat. But they don't use the one real tool they have, which is to speak out loud--even if it means an interruption.

Most audiences and organizers want the moderator to be competent and likable, on time and non-anxious about it. Your moderation is a time to embrace both the firm and kind approaches.

What does that look and sound like? Let’s say your first speaker on the panel goes overtime and can’t be stopped. You can open the questions by acknowledging the time problem and offering a compromise that lets the audience and the next speakers know what to expect, as in, "One thing to know about me as a moderator is that I like to run an on-time panel, and right now I am failing because we're overtime by 3 minutes. To make up the time, I'm going to take just two questions now for Jim, and then move on to our other panelists, hoping they can help me make up the time and ensure that we can have plenty of audience interaction. Two questions, please..."

Moderators who speak up make the situation transparent to the speakers and to the audience. You're enlisting them in your task, in a subtle but clear way.  If you do it without anxiety, firmly but kindly, you will keep control of the room and the proceedings. If you hesitate, even a little, you might get run over by an out-of-control speaker. It's the primary way to keep speakers on time, to gracefully handle an over-long questioner or a persistent one, and it's the only way to make the session end on time. Announce, rather than signal, what you see happening or want to happen next. Practice using this muscle, and you'll be a better moderator for it.

(Creative Commons licensed photo by Chris Geatch)

Need more coaching on how to be a better panel moderator? Order the new ebook The Eloquent Woman's Guide to Moderating Panels. At just $3.99 and available in many formats, it's a great back-pocket coach to take on stage with you in your smartphone or tablet. Find more tips on public speaking on The Eloquent Woman blog.

Tuesday, June 14, 2016

Now *this* is how panel moderators should be treated

New Yorker magazine cartoonist Liza Donnelly was live-sketching the Social Media Weekend New York at the Columbia School of Journalism a couple of days ago. She captured this image of Carla Zanoni moderating one of the panels. Zanoni is the executive emerging media editor and head of audience development at the Wall Street Journal.

Zanoni posted it to Facebook, writing:
The lovely talented Illustrator, Liza Donnelly from The New Yorker, just live drew me moderating a panel at ‪#‎SMWKND‬. 
Life now complete. Thank you!
Let it be a reminder to scribes, artists, and organizers to show some love and attention to your moderators for their hard work!

Need more coaching on how to be a better panel moderator? Order the new ebook The Eloquent Woman's Guide to Moderating Panels. At just $3.99 and available in many formats, it's a great back-pocket coach to take on stage with you in your smartphone or tablet. Find more tips on public speaking on The Eloquent Woman blog.

Tuesday, June 7, 2016

The panel moderator's treasure trove: 8 tips on managing Q&A

Managing questions and answers is a big part of the moderator's role, and it doesn't just involve calling on audience members. A good moderator will discuss question time in advance with the panelists, laying out how she intends to handle the session and what speakers should do in a variety of situations. Use this collection of posts to prep yourself and your panel for the questions to come:

  1. Don't approach the speaker-audience exchange as "breaking up a fight." Keep your cool, acknowledge difficult issues, and don't forget to thank those contributing, whether they're on the floor or the panel. You don't need to feel as if the discussion is getting away from you if you prepare for controversial questions.
  2. Want the audience to sense there's plenty of time for questions? Opt for a moderator-led panel...that is, one with no presentations.
  3. Practice how to handle the long-winded, off-topic question, the kind every moderator dreads. A few tools in your toolkit will help you, the panel, and the rest of the audience survive it.
  4. Want better gender balance from your panel's presentation? Apply balance to the way you call on men and women in the audience.
  5. Work with speakers in advance to avoid "what she said" answers to audience questions. Your audience will reward you with enthusiasm! One moderator even shared my ebook with her panel to ensure that everyone on stage would approach questions in the same way.
  6. Have some questions of your own for the panel, either to get things rolling or to fill a pause in the audience questions. One of my favorite creative lines of questioning is Redeem This.
  7. Need to speed up the questioned panelist or the questioner? Be ready with tactics to reframe the question and set verbal time limits, on the fly.
  8. You may need to interrupt a panelist to make sure the question stays on time or on topic. Here are 6 smart ways to interrupt panelists when you need to do so.

You'll find even more tips--the real treasure trove on Q&A--in my ebook, at the link below.

(Creative Commons licensed photo by David Calhoun)

Need more coaching on how to be a better panel moderator? Order the new ebook The Eloquent Woman's Guide to Moderating Panels. At just $3.99 and available in many formats, it's a great back-pocket coach to take on stage with you in your smartphone or tablet. Find more tips on public speaking on The Eloquent Woman blog.