Panel discussion moderator experience?

Parent Cafe
1

<p>In over my head; a ceo was asked to moderate a panel that he has done a few times before; he was invited again this year but had to decline as he’ll be in Europe. They asked him for recommendations and he referred me, and I said yes without really thinking.</p>

<p>Anyway, the panel members have like 20+ years experience in their fields. I have about one year of practical knowledge. </p>

<p>I think what’s supposed to happen is that I’m supposed to develop questions to ask them, and I’m supposed to keep the discussion interesting, right?</p>

<p>I asked them to send me example questions via email, and, they sent a few things but more like presentations that seem to emphasize their individual accomplishments in their fields, and that seem to have nothing to do with the subject matter. </p>

<p>Has anyone ever done this before, and if so, can you tell me how to get this done? The discussion lasts an hour, so, that’s a lot of time to try to fill and keep things interesting.</p>

2

<p>I think it depends on the context in which the panel is held.</p>

<p>The moderator is supposed to introduce the theme of the panel, so you may want to read up a little bit on the subject if it’s outside your area of expertise. The moderator is also expected to introduce each panelist, so you will have to ask for the cvs and distill the information (they can run for pages and pages). You will need to ask questions, so develop a few; then you need to keep time and make sure that some of the panelists don’t run on for ever while not seeming too discourteous when cutting them off. Then you can turn to the next panelist and ask whether s/he agrees, would care to comment, etc…
Presumably, the theme has been set, the panelists chosen because of their expertise and perspectives which may be somewhat different; so go with their strengths. And don’t worry, you’ll be fine.</p>

3

<p>Oh, the joys of being a moderator. It helps if the participants understand their purpose is to “give good panel” as opposed to being provided a platform for self-aggrandizing. </p>

<p>To determine what “good panel” might be, you need to consider the likely audience and what various members would presumably wish to get from the experience: are they peers of the panelists? Folks outside the field? Junior people in the field? People from “adjoining” fields who have some knowledge but aren’t specialists? (Reminds me of the time that two scientists were talking about one of the Russian frauds–blanking on the name right now, don’t think it was Lysenko–and one said something akin to, “His physics is crackpot but his anthropology is fascinating” and the other scientist said, “No, it’s the other way around.”) Well their be media people in the audience who don’t have a good understanding themselves but nonetheless will be “translating” what they hear for <em>their</em> audiences?</p>

<p>Iow, many panelists will bring their own accustomed axes to grind but that isn’t necessarily what the audience is coming for. </p>

<p>However, since you’re extracting from the panelists some ideas of what questions they would like to discuss, you can compare them to what you think the audience’s interests would be and find the overlays. </p>

<p>The initial question or two are probably be the most important, as they will most likely set the tone for the session. Know not only what 2-3 questions you want to start with, but <em>who</em> you want to be the first one to respond, letting the others add their own responses afterwards…don’t feel trapped by mere seating arrangements into going up the line one way or the other, as long as you start every question for a different participant. (Unless you’ve stage managed it so that you have name cards set out for the participants to sit in a particular order. Name cards–with print big enough to be read from the audience to read on the audience side, and printed on the other side as well as an indicator for where the participants should sit–aren’t a bad idea.) </p>

<p>I think it’s very important for the moderator to be flexible. Some times a question may spark and extended exchange of back and forth’s that’s useful…let it run. At other times, things may bog down into a non-productive swamp or one member may attempt to monopolize the mike–which can happen regardless of rank or expertise–and you’ll need to be able to smoothly interrupt and move things along.</p>

<p>That’s off top of my head on a tired Sunday afternoon.</p>

4

<p>Thanks Marite and TheDad, this helps a lot. </p>

<p>Based on what I have so far, the egos and personal agendas may be a significant factor, although I could be just making unfair assumptions. </p>

<p>Any suggestions for one-liners that can be used to interrupt or redirect the flow of discussion, without appearing rude, or insulting anyone? Since I’m filling in for someone else, I don’t want anything I do to reflect poorly on that ceo or his organization.</p>

5

<p>Hmm. One liners only work if they seem to arise spontaneously. I’m sorry I don’t have any experience as a script writer for the Late Night Show or similar :(</p>

<p>You can try to smile sweetly and say something along the lines, </p>

6

<p>I agree with Marite…one-liners have to be inspired in the moment and there are lots of instances of staircase wit (when you think of later what you should have said). I believe that low-key earnestness works best but still being very assertive if need be. (You can be low-key AND assertive, iow.) It sounds like you won’t have an axe of your own to grind, which is helpful.</p>

<p>“We have a limited time and I want to make sure we (apply as appropriate) get Mr. B’s and Ms. C’s thoughts in on this question [or] have time to consider other questions.” And then <em>immediately</em> ask another person for either their thoughts or the next questions…don’t get into an argument with whomever is speaking. This requires a bit of sense of timing on your part, forcing a closure at a reasonable point.</p>

<p>In most cases, the flag should probably drop after about two minutes, often possibly less.</p>

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<p>Thanks, that helps. Hopefully the hour will go by fairly fast!</p>

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<p>Being an expert in the field isn’t that important. Knowing enough about the field to ask questions that get them talking about the issues in a way that the audience can understand is what’s important.</p>

<p>Knowing too much about the field actually can hurt you because unless the audience is filled with top experts, you could end up encouraging the panel to talk over the audience’s heads.</p>

<p>It’s important, too, to be able to assertively and politely keep control of the panel so that everyone gets the opportunity to contribute, the audience gets to ask questions, and the audience leaves having learned something.</p>

<p>For tips about moderation, listen to a show like NPR’s “Talk of the Nation.” Clearly the journalist isn’t expert on all of the issues, but the journalist knows enough about the issue to ask good questions.</p>

<p>Also, don’t assume that the CEO would have done a better job than you. Being a good moderator depends on having good listening skills and a good ability to keep things moving in a helpful way. Just because a person is CEO des not mean s/he would have been a good moderator. Indeed, the CEO may have been a worse moderator than you because the CEO may have wanted the spotlight and the main job of the moderator is to spotlight others and to make sure the audience learns.</p>

<p>One important tip: Call the panelists beforehand and get to know them. Review the info that is the subject of the panel beforehand and come up yourself with what you think would be a good focus for the panel to address. Then, tell the panelists this and ask what kinds of things they have to contribute to it.</p>

<p>This will help you get to know them, including knowing who’ll need to be drawn out by you and who’ll need to be politely cut off.</p>

<p>Let the panelists, too, know how long you’ll give them for introductory comments, and make sure they understand that if they run over, you’ll have to cut them off so that everyone gets a turn. That will help them be prepared.</p>

<p>Remember that you, not the panelists, are the one in charge. This is true even if they are Nobel laureates. You also should know enough about the audience to know what info would be most important for the panel to address. If you don’t know this info, then ask people who plan to come what they hope to get out of the panel.</p>

<p>Ask the panelists, too, how they’d like you to introduce them. Often intros go better if the panelists have written the intros themselves. That way what they think is important can be highlighted.This is better than your having to figure that out from a long vita.</p>

<p>The more things you do like this in advance, the better the panel will be. If things work well, you’ll be sorry when it ends. :)</p>

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<p>And more great advice from NSM. I’d flag specific paragraphs except that I’d be higlighting most of the post. </p>

<p>Btw, a concrete specific: in the panel format, a response of about 30 seconds or so is typical…when it starts getting to one minute, it’s playing “long.” If necessary, take off your watch and put it unobtrusively on the table in front of you so that you can see where you are overall and track how long a given individual has been speaking. </p>

<p>TheMom and I were discussing this thread over dinner last night. One point to consider: will Q&A from the audience be allowed? If so, plan for about 20 minutes of panel presentation, then about 30 minutes of Q&A from the audience. (If not, never mind.) Do plan on a “50-minute hour.” You’ll likely have the break so that the audience can get to their next panel/appointment, meetings, etc.</p>

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<p>Northstarmom, thank you very much for your post, that is excellent and helps me a lot. I will call the participants this week and next and see if I can get a sense of them, and let them get to know me. Seems that it will be sort of weird if we’re in discussion for the first time ever in front of a large audience. I really, really like the idea of them writing their own intros too - it will be a LOT better, plus it saves me time considering it would take me three times as long as the participants to write them. But no matter what, I cannot possibly imagine a scenario where I’ll be sorry when it ends lol!!!</p>

<p>TheDad, I never even considered if Q & A would be permitted from the audience - I will ask. Thanks for pointing this out.</p>

<p>Thanks again to both of you, I appreciate it.</p>

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<p>Even if Q&A has never been done before, it should be something that should be considered. You can often get interesting dialogues going. Of course, it requires defter management as a moderator, for you will find that some people either wish to make speeches instead of asking questions or will disguise a question as same. A certain elan as moderator is helpful.</p>

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<p>If you do a Q&A, you can do it by having the audience write questions on notecards and pass them to the front or you can have a mike in the aisles and you can have them approach the mike. These methods work for very large rooms, and the first method also helps greatly with controlling the windbags and showoffs.</p>

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<p>Good points, NSM. My experience has been more free form, with audiences in the 50-400 range, generally so that audience members standing could make themselves heard with little problem. </p>

<p>But, speaking of mikes, I <em>strongly</em> recommend that the panel’s table be miked. I find the “passing the mike up and down the table” format to be awkward…in the best of all possible worlds, I like to see at least three mikes: one for the moderator and one for each half of the table on either side. Of course, if it’s a really fancy rig, each panelist will have a mike but that’s both pretty rare and pretty formal.</p>

<p>Note that if having questions passed up, the moderator must have a pretty good grasp of the material to spot the best questions.</p>

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<p>Thanks for this. I never even thought to consider issues like microphones. I did however send email inviting them all to a pre-panel conference call to sort of sketch things out, and four of the five have responded and two of them send their presentations and bios, so, at least it seems they’ll be easy to work with. </p>

<p>As to the material, I don’t think I know it well enough to recognize decent questions, ugh.</p>

15

<p>Well, one hopes the place running the conference, etc., addresses the issues of microphones, etc., but probably someone in charge of logistics should be checked with to make sure. It’s not clear from what you say whether this panel is a one-off in a larger event or whether panels are one of several staples in a conference.</p>

<p>Also, one of the words you just used set of an alarm bell: a “panel” is not an appropriate venue for a “presentation.” A panel implies multiple points of view in a sort of colloquy. A presentation is a one-person event, however short. E.g., I know someone doing a 20-minute presentation on different mast types used on Egyptian boats as depicted in artwork at various points in such-and-such a dynasty…that’s a presentation, following which there could be a brief Q&A.</p>

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<p>I would like to second the idea of audience questions via notecards. I’ve moderated a panel and also served as a panel member. I found that allowing the audience to participate in this manner got them more involved and also allowed our discussion to go in positive directions that we might not have anticipated. Check with the organizers to see if there is a common format for taking audience questions (notecards or a mike in the audience). We had some one who collected and screened the questions and then passed along those that would likely add interest to the discussion.</p>

<p>Another thing I recommend is to have a few lines or questions jotted down in case your panelists get stuck on something or stuck in general. If one person or topic begins to dominate the discussion in a “beating a dead horse” type of way, then you as the moderator can steer them back on course with a simple comment or question.</p>

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<p>I have twice moderated panels that ran for three(!) hours. One thing I found helpful was to listen intently to each panelist as they gave their long spiels or opening statements and write down at least one follow-up question to ask to start the ball rolling. But you have to pay close attention to be sure that the panelist didn’t later answer the question before you asked it. When that happens you need to come up with a different question, so collect back-ups along the way.</p>

<p>Go into the session with a list of general questions about the relevant hot topics of the field. You don’t have to be the expert. You just have to keep the discussion flowing and make sure you wrap it up in time for lunch.</p>

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<p>Coureur, I cannot even imagine three hours!!! Right now just the thought of one hour is scary. But thank you for the advice - it never occured to me that they’d answer the questions in advance and to have backups. It’s kind of disorienting when they’re bringing 20 years of experience apeice to the table.</p>

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<p>TheDad, three have sent to me what look like about five minute presentations - I’ve sent them back a conference call meeting notice to talk this through. I think their thinking is each will have a short presentation at the beginning, then move into panel discussion. Or something like that. Which is fine with me, if it productively eats up the time, and if that’s what the conference organizer wants the audience to have.</p>

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<p>Well, I guess issues involved with immune monitoring of the response to new experimental vaccines is a long-winded topic. ;-)</p>

<p>Actually, each of the panelists was scheduled to make a fairly lengthy presentation with lots of data on their latest research. That took up a lot of the time.</p>