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Powerful Panels

This podcast is full of tips and techniques to help meeting organizers, panel moderators and panelists be absolutely brilliant during panel discussions at meetings, conferences and conventions.
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Powerful Panels
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Now displaying: 2015
Aug 19, 2015
Popular television shows are great venues to look for ways to spice up your next panel program. It can be something as simple as riffing an idea from a game show (see my post on The Newlywed Game), mimicking a well known talk show or doing a takeoff on a news commentary. So how do you take a lesson from TV and add a little pizzazz into your panel program? Step One. Identify a program that you think your audience will identify with AND has the right blend of interaction. Step 2. Brainstorm all the different elements of the program: the format, the staging, the guests, the conversational style, the interactions with the guests and audience. Step 3. Brainstorm all the potential ways you could infuse that same kind of look and feel into the program. Step 4. Now go through your list from Step 3 and see if any might have some real-world potential. Step 5. Think of a clever title that includes part of the show’s name, but also the title of the organization, the topic, the meeting theme or other significant words. Step 6. Have fun putting this together! Not only will you have fun, but the audience will too!
Jul 10, 2015
Professional Panel Moderator Kristin Arnold shares her ideas on how to move beyond "the usual suspects" and attract high quality panelists for your next panel discussion.
Jun 24, 2015
In this podcast, Professional Panel Moderator Kristin Arnold shares the three ways you can elicit questions from the audience as well as three distinct strategies to use: Live, Screened or Crowdsourced questions.
Mar 12, 2015
Welcome to the seventh and final video in the 7-part video e-course on Powerful Panels: How to Moderate a Lively and Informative Panel Discussion with professional panel moderator Kristin Arnold. This seventh video focuses on the fifth step of the five-step process: Following Up after the Panel has Ended. Congratulations! You have successfully moderated an amazingly successful panel discussion. You met the panel objectives, delivered on the promise, made the panelists look like heroes and the audience received tremendous value. But it's not over....yet. There are still a few things you can do to wrap things up nicely: Seek out others Collect and respond to questions Critique yourself Debrief with the meeting organizer, chair and/or planner Send thank yous Create a summary report Repurpose the summary and other content Keep learning! For more information on how to moderate a lively and informative panel discussion, go to www.PowerfulPanels.com
Mar 12, 2015
Welcome to the sixth video in the 7-part video e-course on Powerful Panels: How to Moderate a Lively and Informative Panel Discussion with professional panel moderator Kristin Arnold. It's show time! The big day is finally here and it's time to get to put all that planning in to action. Arrive early Check in and meet up Walk through the room Open the session Start the conversation Keep the conversation moving at a brisk pace Intervene firmly and respectfully Facilitate the audience Q&A Conclude the session For more information about how to moderate a lively and informative panel discussion, go to www.PowerfulPanels.com
Mar 12, 2015
Welcome to the fifth video in the 7-part video e-course on Powerful Panels: How to Moderate a Lively and Informative Panel Discussion with professional panel moderator Kristin Arnold. This fifth video focuses on the third step of the five-step process: Prepare to Moderate the Panel. The difference between a mediocre panel and an amazing panel discussion is in the preparation. The adage, "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" is distinctly true when it comes to panel discussions. You will need to: Research your topic, panelists & audience Create the panel format, agenda and ground rules Write the welcome and introductions Curate the questions Decide the Q&A format Determine the logistics Confirm details with the panelists Assemble the slideshow Spread the word For more information on how to moderate a lively and informative panel discussion, go to www.PowerfulPanels.com
Mar 12, 2015
This fourth video focuses on the second step of the five-step process: Select, Invite and Confirm the Panelists. The conference organizers may have already invited the panelists. If so, you'll have to work with what you have. Otherwise, you'll need to round up a handful of interesting people with different experiences and perspectives. What's a "handful"? It depends on the situation, but for most panels, 3-4 experts is perfect. Any fewer, it becomes difficult to flesh out all the points of view or simply becomes an interview. Five or more becomes unwieldy where panelists compete for airtime. The ideal panelist should have most, if not all of these traits: Expertise Practitioner Stakeholders Dynamic Opinionated Visually Diverse For more information on how to moderate a lively and informative panel discussion, go to www.PowerfulPanels.com
Mar 12, 2015
Welcome to the third video in the 7-part video e-course on Powerful Panels: How to Moderate a Lively and Informative Panel Discussion with professional panel moderator Kristin Arnold. This third video focuses on the first step of the five-step process: Clarify the Starting Conditions. Just as an excellent party requires an overall theme, marvelous guests and careful planning, before the party can start, so does an excellent panel discussion. Follow this 5-step process to make sure your panel discussion is the highlight of the entire event! Even at this point early in the planning phase, several decisions have already been made by the meeting chair and/or planner, so you need to come up to speed on what has already been decided and what assumptions have been made for you. When you clarify the starting conditions, you will find that you have much more freedom than you initially thought! Have a chat with the meeting chair and/or planner to discuss: The event The panel title, objectives and format The audience Invited and confirmed panelists Criteria for success Room set Audio/visual availability Dress code/attire For more information about how to moderate a lively and informative panel discussion, go to www.PowerfulPanels.com
Mar 11, 2015
Welcome to the second video in the 7-part video e-course on Powerful Panels: How to Moderate a Lively and Informative Panel Discussion with professional panel moderator Kristin Arnold. This second video focuses on describing the role of the moderator. As the moderator, your job is to help the audience get their needs met through a panel format. You set the tone, the pace and control the content, staying ever-vigilant in keeping it relevant for the audience. It is your responsibility to make sure the panel is lively, engaging and worthwhile. The success (or failure) of the program rests largely in your hands. Depending on the panel objectives, the panel moderator, has several roles and responsibilities: Champion for the audience Facilitator Timekeeper Logistician Instigator Content Coordinator Energizer Neutral & Objective Voice You can find out more information on how to moderate a lively and informative panel discussion at www.PowerfulPanels.com
Mar 11, 2015
Welcome to the first video in the 7-part video e-course on Powerful Panels: How to Moderate a Lively and Informative Panel Discussion with professional panel moderator Kristin Arnold. This first video focuses on what a panel is...and is not. A panel discussion is a specific format used in a meeting, conference or convention. It is a live or virtual discussion about a specific topic amongst a selected group of panelists who share differing perspectives in front of a larger audience. The panel is typically facilitated by a "moderator" who guides the panel and the audience through the event. The panel, typically 3-4 experts or practitioners in the field, shares facts, offers opinions and responds to audience questions either through questions curated by the moderator or taken from the audience directly. The panel session typically lasts for 60-90 minutes. A panel discussion is NOT: A set of presentations, one after another. A one-on-one interview with each panelist. Just Q&A from the audience. A roundtable discussion. Not that any of these formats are bad; they are different than and an alternative to a panel discussion. Just call it like you see it, be it a panel, presentation, interview or forum. Use a panel when you believe the group of panelists will generate something more interesting than any one individual panel member could generate on his/her own. You can find out more about how to moderate a lively and informative panel discussion at www.PowerfulPanels.com
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