Further abbreviate that by soliciting a 1 sentence description from panelists that the moderator can read. Don’t let panelists introduce themselves.Attendees get more panel time and still have access to info about the speakers. It also allows you to link to panelists’ social media so attendees can connect with them. Use a shortened vanity url (like bit.ly or ) to make it easily accessible and in a format where verbosity won’t take away from the panel. Provide digital access to panelists’ bios.We were done in 2 minutes and the audience actually paid attention and felt connections to speakers. I recently moderated a panel and had panelists state their name and their favorite GIF of the moment. Wasting up to a third of the precious time to do introductions is avoidable and it’s entirely on the moderator to control for this. It’s frustrating to sit through a panel that takes 20 minutes to get to the topic. While moderators can’t control all of the factors that can send a panel downhill (like flight cancellations and power outages), there are high impact moves that moderators can control that will lead to better panel experiences for themselves, the panelists and, most importantly, the attendees. And because most of us are worried about being rude by walking out, a bad panel robs us of a bunch of valuable time. It’s a huge disappointment when those high expectations aren’t met.
You’re usually there by choice and probably showed up excited about the topic or the people involved. Photo credit: Tara GilboaĪttending a bad panel discussion is a terrible experience.
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