SpeakerOps Training - Revision history

Liedra at 15:49, 1 September 2018

2018-09-01T15:49:00Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:49, 1 September 2018
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	* Do you have all the cables you need for laptops, etc.?		* Do you have all the cables you need for laptops, etc.?
	* Do you need any help setting up?		* Do you need any help setting up?
	* Would you like some water?
	* '''Do you have any objections to your talk being recorded or streamed?''' (it is perfectly fine if they do not want it recorded or streamed; see below for details on what to do with this information)		* '''Do you have any objections to your talk being recorded or streamed?''' (it is perfectly fine if they do not want it recorded or streamed; see below for details on what to do with this information)

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	The stage team may want to do a sound and visual check. Let them know if the talk is not to be recorded.		The stage team may want to do a sound and visual check. Let them know if the talk is not to be recorded.

	Ask the speaker if they would like a warning when they are running out of time. ~~Three~~ minutes before question time is usually a good amount of time to warn. Let them know where you will be sitting and how you will warn them (~~three~~ fingers held up and waved, or a piece of paper with ~~THREE~~ MINUTES written on it generally work).		Ask the speaker if they would like a warning when they are running out of time. Five minutes before question time is usually a good amount of time to warn. Let them know where you will be sitting and how you will warn them (fingers held up and waved, or a piece of paper with FIVE MINUTES written on it generally work).

	Please try your best to start and end the talks on time.		Please try your best to start and end the talks on time.
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	== Introductions ==		== Introductions ==

	~~If there are announcements passed to you from~~ the ~~team leader, you can make them part~~ of ~~your introduction of the speaker.~~		'''Announcements will be updated at [[Herald Messages]]''' Please read these out at the beginning of each talk!

	Introductions should at minimum include a welcome statement, the name of the speaker, and the title of the talk. Feel free to embellish a little and provide context, a bad pun, or other appropriate short statement. Some suggestions:		Introductions should at minimum include a welcome statement, the name of the speaker, and the title of the talk. Feel free to embellish a little and provide context, a bad pun, or other appropriate short statement. Some suggestions:

Ben.fitzgerald: correcting wiki syntax on stub

2018-08-10T10:36:01Z

correcting wiki syntax on stub

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:36, 10 August 2018
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	This page gives more detail in terms of what to expect when doing [[SpeakerOps]] and some suggestions from experienced SpeakerOps people for approaching the role. There is a corresponding guide for speakers at [EMFSpeakerGuide].		This page gives more detail in terms of what to expect when doing [[SpeakerOps]] and some suggestions from experienced SpeakerOps people for approaching the role. There is a corresponding guide for speakers at [[EMFSpeakerGuide]].

	A typical shift covers 3-4 talks and cycles as follows. Remember you will be up on stage and being recorded.		A typical shift covers 3-4 talks and cycles as follows. Remember you will be up on stage and being recorded.

Ben.fitzgerald: Added a link for a speaker guide page as a stub in the Wiki.

2018-08-10T10:35:21Z

Added a link for a speaker guide page as a stub in the Wiki.

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:35, 10 August 2018
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	This page gives more detail in terms of what to expect when doing [[SpeakerOps]] and some suggestions from experienced SpeakerOps people for approaching the role.		This page gives more detail in terms of what to expect when doing [[SpeakerOps]] and some suggestions from experienced SpeakerOps people for approaching the role. There is a corresponding guide for speakers at [EMFSpeakerGuide].

	A typical shift covers 3-4 talks and cycles as follows. Remember you will be up on stage and being recorded.		A typical shift covers 3-4 talks and cycles as follows. Remember you will be up on stage and being recorded.

Liedra at 16:04, 23 July 2018

2018-07-23T16:04:06Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:04, 23 July 2018
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	This page gives more detail in terms of what to expect when doing [[SpeakerOps]] and some suggestions from experienced SpeakerOps people for approaching ~~SpeakerOps~~.		This page gives more detail in terms of what to expect when doing [[SpeakerOps]] and some suggestions from experienced SpeakerOps people for approaching the role.

	A typical shift covers 3-4 talks and cycles as follows. Remember you will be up on stage and being recorded.		A typical shift covers 3-4 talks and cycles as follows. Remember you will be up on stage and being recorded.

Liedra at 16:02, 23 July 2018

2018-07-23T16:02:17Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:02, 23 July 2018
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	This page gives more detail in terms of what to expect when doing [[SpeakerOps]] and some suggestions from experienced SpeakerOps people for approaching SpeakerOps.		This page gives more detail in terms of what to expect when doing [[SpeakerOps]] and some suggestions from experienced SpeakerOps people for approaching SpeakerOps.

	A typical shift covers 3-4 talks and cycles as follows.		A typical shift covers 3-4 talks and cycles as follows. Remember you will be up on stage and being recorded.

	At start of shift (or ideally a little before) report to the Green Room (which is typically a white tent despite the name), and make contact with the SpeakerOps team leader to report for duty.		At start of shift (or ideally a little before) report to the Green Room (which is typically a white tent despite the name), and make contact with the SpeakerOps team leader to report for duty.
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	If there are announcements passed to you from the team leader, you can make them part of your introduction of the speaker.		If there are announcements passed to you from the team leader, you can make them part of your introduction of the speaker.

	Introductions should at minimum include a welcome statement, the name of the speaker, and the title of the talk. Feel free to embellish a little and provide context, a ~~joke~~, or other appropriate short statement. Some suggestions:		Introductions should at minimum include a welcome statement, the name of the speaker, and the title of the talk. Feel free to embellish a little and provide context, a bad pun, or other appropriate short statement. Some suggestions:
	* "Welcome to EMFCamp day 3! It's 11am and you're at Stage A. Our next speaker is Professor Jane Jones, and she will be giving a very timely talk on How to Give Talks at EMFCamp! Please join me in welcoming Professor Jones."		* "Welcome to EMFCamp day 3! It's 11am and you're at Stage A. Our next speaker is Professor Jane Jones, and she will be giving a very timely talk on How to Give Talks at EMFCamp! Please join me in welcoming Professor Jones."
	* "Hello all, it's great to have you all back here at Stage A for our next speaker, Professor Jane Jones. Before we begin, I have a very important announcement from the organisers - please don't set fire to things! We appreciate your co-operation. I've also been informed that Professor Jones would very much appreciate it if you did not record this talk. So please put away your mobile phones and cameras, and enjoy this talk on How to Give Talks at EMFCamp!"		* "Hello all, it's great to have you all back here at Stage A for our next speaker, Professor Jane Jones. Before we begin, I have a very important announcement from the organisers - please don't set fire to things! We appreciate your co-operation. I've also been informed that Professor Jones would very much appreciate it if you did not record this talk. So please put away your mobile phones and cameras, and enjoy this talk on How to Give Talks at EMFCamp!"
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	== At the end of the talk ==		== At the end of the talk ==

			After the applause subsides (you may need to assist with starting applause if it doesn't begin naturally), you should thank the speaker and then ask for questions (if appropriate). Some suggestions:
			* Thank you, Professor Jones, for that fascinating talk. We have time for a couple of questions - does anyone have any questions for Professor Jones?
			* Thank you, Professor Jones, for that amazing talk. I feel like I learned a lot about Giving Talks at EMFCamp. Sadly, we don't have any time for questions, so if you have questions for Professor Jones, can I please suggest you move to the bar, which is in that direction?

	Once the main talk is finished, there wil normally be time for questions. When a talk finishes, there will often be some applause, and then it is your turn to stand up at the front with your mic (or from stage if appropriate) to state that we have some time for questions (this also allows a speaker to draw breath and have a swig of water or other beverage). Some talks will naturally prompt a sea of hands, others may not immediately. If ~~you don't see any hands rising straight away, then now is~~ a ~~good time to use that question that you thought of during the talk. No one likes to ask the first~~ question, ~~so if~~ you ~~go ahead with something like 'I~~'~~d like~~ to ~~start with~~ a question ~~that occurred to me about the subject - which is that in the light of current human behaviour towards~~ and ~~consumption of~~ the limited resources of our planet, how relevant do you think it actually is that there are likely to be 36 million years to the end of the world?' etc. .. then others will typically think of their own questions and be more forthcoming with interesting questions while this one is being answered, and often lead to some lively and interesting debate.		If nobody asks a question, you can use your chair's privilege to ask a question and break the ice.

	During questions, where you have raised hands, we generally try to go to people in order of hands raised for fairness. If you have a Fitbit (other smart watches and fitness trackers are available) then you may well get quite a few steps dashing around the tent. It is important to pass (or hold in front of) the microphone to the person asking the question so that the question can be 1) recorded (where permitted) and 2) heard by the speaker and everyone else in the room. The speaker will then answer this question and normally others in turn. You also have a duty to keep an eye on time, and to prevent one person hogging the questions with either multiple questions or more a discourse of their own. This comes down to common sense so that things don't overrun, and a good strategy if there look to be more questions than time allows (or a few people with these) is to ask for the microphone back and say something like (and remembering one of the questions that you asked the speaker earlier in the Green Room): 'I can see that we've got quite a few more questions here and it is a very interesting topic that we could talk for hours on and sadly our schedule in the tent does not allow for that but happily Professor Hawking's schedule allows him to stay on for a while and he will be happy for you to buy him a pint in the Robot Arms bar and discuss this further with any and all interested.		During questions, where you have raised hands, we generally try to go to people in order of hands raised for fairness.

	~~At the close~~ of ~~questions, we normally thank~~ the ~~speaker for their talk and there may be a final round of applause, you may or may not wish~~ to ~~say~~ that ~~'our next talk here on Stage X will~~ be ~~Y at Z O'Clock' so that~~ everyone ~~knows where they stand~~.		It is important to pass (or hold in front of) the microphone to the person asking the question so that the question can be recorded (where permitted) and also heard by the speaker and everyone else in the room.

	~~We then help~~ the speaker to ~~disconnect their laptop etc, make sure that any equipment borrowed is returned (VGA adapters~~, ~~Microphones etc~~.), and ~~any props are taken off stage & thank the speaker etc.~~		At the close of questions, thank the speaker for their talk and there may be a final round of applause. Some suggestions:
			* Thanks once again to Professor Jones for this talk. Our next talk will start in approximately 10 minutes - John Doe on Beekeeping and Acrostics.
			* Thanks again, Professor Jones for your talk. If I can ask our enthusiastic question askers to move to the bar so we can prepare for the next talk - John Doe on Beekeeping and Acrostics!

	~~You then typically have enough time to dash to~~ the ~~loo if you need to, and then back to the Green Room to meet your next speaker if you are not at the end of your shift.~~		== After the talk ==

	~~All of~~ the ~~above happens in quite a short space of time and so if~~ any ~~of this sounds a bit intimidating then don't worry as it soon becomes quite a natural process~~. ~~As part of training~~, ~~we'll run through the process~~ and ~~you can try some intros in front of us if you like and can buddy you with someone experienced in the process. Eveyone has their own style and these~~ are ~~just some notes from experience~~.		Help the speaker to disconnect their laptop etc, make sure that any equipment borrowed is returned (VGA adapters, Microphones etc.), and any props are taken off stage.

	~~This is a wiki so if you've anything to add, delete, elaborate on etc. then please feel free to contribute / correct / tidy / restructure etc.~~		Thank the speaker again!

	~~'''Some general notes:'''~~		Hopefully you have time to go back to the Green Room to find your next speaker, or they may have found you in your tent.

	- Make sure you are familiar with the layout of the individual stages - if you've had experience of doing speakerops from one stage then you go to another that you're less familiar with there is more risk of (for example from the author's own experience) falling off the back of the stage as you traverse it in a somewhat unceremonious, slightly embarrasing, mildly comic at the time and ~~bit painful for the next few days manner.~~		Rinse and repeat!
	~~- Please be (at least mostly) sober for the time of you SpeakerOps duty.~~

	~~NB:~~

	Please note that references to banging in tent pegs with a microphone are intended for purposes of humor and may invalidate the warranty of Tech team members not to wrestle SpeakerOps team members to the ground and sit on you for the duration of a talk. Unless they give you a Shure SM58 which are fine to us for banging drums, tent peggs or anything else. If you are given A Shure LC microphone then note Hackspace rule 0 applies to people, not these microphones and it is your duty to introduce said microphone and a laser cutter to each other with expedience.

	We don't have any insight as to what alcoholic or non alcoholic beverages Professor Hawking prefers so if you are on speakerOps shift if / when he speaks please do be sure to check and we can't assume that anyone will be available to take discussions to the bar / outside after their talks; though we could be sure that Professor Hawking would probably not be short of hands raised after his talk.
	* At this point in time no speakers are invited or confirmed and this is purely an illustrative example though I'm sure he would be welcomed to speak at the event).

Liedra at 15:48, 23 July 2018

2018-07-23T15:48:57Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:48, 23 July 2018
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	Please try your best to start and end the talks on time.		Please try your best to start and end the talks on time.

			== Introductions ==

	If there are announcements passed to you from the team leader, you can make them part of your introduction of the speaker.		If there are announcements passed to you from the team leader, you can make them part of your introduction of the speaker.

	Introductions should at minimum include a welcome statement, the name of the speaker, and the title of the talk. Feel free to embellish a little and provide context, a joke, or other appropriate short statement. Some suggestions:		Introductions should at minimum include a welcome statement, the name of the speaker, and the title of the talk. Feel free to embellish a little and provide context, a joke, or other appropriate short statement. Some suggestions:
	* Welcome to EMFCamp day 3! It's 11am and you're ~~in the Purple Tent~~. Our next speaker is Professor Jane Jones, and she will be giving a very timely talk on How to Give Talks at EMFCamp! Please join me in welcoming Professor Jones.		* "Welcome to EMFCamp day 3! It's 11am and you're at Stage A. Our next speaker is Professor Jane Jones, and she will be giving a very timely talk on How to Give Talks at EMFCamp! Please join me in welcoming Professor Jones."
	* Hello all, it's great to have you all back here ~~in the Purple Tent~~ for our next speaker, Professor Jane Jones. Before we begin, I have a very important announcement from the organisers - please don't set fire to things! We appreciate your co-operation. I've also been informed that Professor Jones would very much appreciate it if you did not record this talk. So please put away your mobile phones and cameras, and enjoy this talk on How to Give Talks at EMFCamp!		* "Hello all, it's great to have you all back here at Stage A for our next speaker, Professor Jane Jones. Before we begin, I have a very important announcement from the organisers - please don't set fire to things! We appreciate your co-operation. I've also been informed that Professor Jones would very much appreciate it if you did not record this talk. So please put away your mobile phones and cameras, and enjoy this talk on How to Give Talks at EMFCamp!"

			== During the talk ==
			Please pay attention. If something happens, you may need to assist - if the mic stops working, speaker needs assistance with a prop, or they need more water, for example.

			Take note of a question or two that may help to break the ice at question time.

			When the time comes to alert the speaker to the time warning, warn them in the pre-arranged way. If they keep going into question time, take that into consideration - keep alerting them every couple of minutes until they wrap it up. If they finish their talk without any time left for questions, explain that to the audience post-applause.

	~~When it comes time for~~ the ~~talk to start, we make sure the audience is seated and if you can see people stil coming into the tent we can often wait a couple~~ of minutes to peoeple to get in and to their seats (sometimes other talks run over - yours will not of course!). Sometimes there may be announcements that SpeakerOps staff are asked to deliver for the EMF Event as a whole wihch will have been co-ordinated and passed on through the Green Room and this is a good time to make those announcements (these are typically requests for volunteers for X, reminders that setting fire to Y is not good behaviour etc.) We don't want to hold on too long but a couple of minutes will not hurt. We then quiet the audience by welcoming them to the talk and introducing the speaker and their talk. There may be notes that a speaker has asked us to announce in the introduction (such as no filming), and we deliver these as part of our introductions. These might be quite simple, but you might also like to add context of event and location. For example 'Welcome to EMF 2018 and Stage A where I am happy to introduce our next speaker who is professor Stephen Hawking who will be answering the question of 'will the world end in 30 minutes? and when will those 30 minutes be? - so in case they are in 29 minutes time, without further ado please welcome professor Hawking'.. etc. Some animation is good but remember the speaker is the main event so short and sweet is the ticket. The 'Welcome to EMF.. part (or whatever you'd like to say there) tends to be useful as it takes about 2-3 seconds for people to realise that someone is speaking and to start paying attention so that when you say 'our next speaker'.. by that time they are actually engaged listening.		== At the end of the talk ==

	During a talk it is good to pay attention, and be on hand if anything happens or is needed (ie this is a live event so if the speaker's mic goes off you'd offer your own, or if you forgot the water earlier you can grab one for the speaker now - there is plenty next to stage also etc.). Mainly during the talk you should be attentive to the talk (as all the audience will be in any case). It is a good idea also to think ahead during the talk as to questions that might be asked after the talk. Think about one or two questions yourself now and make note of them - related to the talk, or the speakers wider experience.. you may need these shortly.

	Once the main talk is finished, there wil normally be time for questions. When a talk finishes, there will often be some applause, and then it is your turn to stand up at the front with your mic (or from stage if appropriate) to state that we have some time for questions (this also allows a speaker to draw breath and have a swig of water or other beverage). Some talks will naturally prompt a sea of hands, others may not immediately. If you don't see any hands rising straight away, then now is a good time to use that question that you thought of during the talk. No one likes to ask the first question, so if you go ahead with something like 'I'd like to start with a question that occurred to me about the subject - which is that in the light of current human behaviour towards and consumption of the limited resources of our planet, how relevant do you think it actually is that there are likely to be 36 million years to the end of the world?' etc. .. then others will typically think of their own questions and be more forthcoming with interesting questions while this one is being answered, and often lead to some lively and interesting debate.		Once the main talk is finished, there wil normally be time for questions. When a talk finishes, there will often be some applause, and then it is your turn to stand up at the front with your mic (or from stage if appropriate) to state that we have some time for questions (this also allows a speaker to draw breath and have a swig of water or other beverage). Some talks will naturally prompt a sea of hands, others may not immediately. If you don't see any hands rising straight away, then now is a good time to use that question that you thought of during the talk. No one likes to ask the first question, so if you go ahead with something like 'I'd like to start with a question that occurred to me about the subject - which is that in the light of current human behaviour towards and consumption of the limited resources of our planet, how relevant do you think it actually is that there are likely to be 36 million years to the end of the world?' etc. .. then others will typically think of their own questions and be more forthcoming with interesting questions while this one is being answered, and often lead to some lively and interesting debate.

Liedra at 15:44, 23 July 2018

2018-07-23T15:44:31Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:44, 23 July 2018
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	At start of shift (or ideally a little before) report to the Green Room (which is typically a white tent despite the name), and make contact with the SpeakerOps team leader to report for duty.		At start of shift (or ideally a little before) report to the Green Room (which is typically a white tent despite the name), and make contact with the SpeakerOps team leader to report for duty.


	== Meeting speakers prior to talks ==		== Meeting speakers prior to talks ==
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	* Would you like some water?		* Would you like some water?
	* '''Do you have any objections to your talk being recorded or streamed?''' (it is perfectly fine if they do not want it recorded or streamed; see below for details on what to do with this information)		* '''Do you have any objections to your talk being recorded or streamed?''' (it is perfectly fine if they do not want it recorded or streamed; see below for details on what to do with this information)


	== In the tent, at the beginning of your shift ==		== In the tent, at the beginning of your shift ==
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	== For each speaker ==		== For each speaker ==

	If you haven't shown the speaker to the tent, locate the speaker. Help them set up any equipment they need.		If you haven't shown the speaker to the tent, locate the speaker. Help them set up any equipment they need.

	The stage team may want to do a sound and visual check. Let them know if the talk is not to be recorded.		The stage team may want to do a sound and visual check. Let them know if the talk is not to be recorded.

			Ask the speaker if they would like a warning when they are running out of time. Three minutes before question time is usually a good amount of time to warn. Let them know where you will be sitting and how you will warn them (three fingers held up and waved, or a piece of paper with THREE MINUTES written on it generally work).

			Please try your best to start and end the talks on time.

			If there are announcements passed to you from the team leader, you can make them part of your introduction of the speaker.

			Introductions should at minimum include a welcome statement, the name of the speaker, and the title of the talk. Feel free to embellish a little and provide context, a joke, or other appropriate short statement. Some suggestions:
			* Welcome to EMFCamp day 3! It's 11am and you're in the Purple Tent. Our next speaker is Professor Jane Jones, and she will be giving a very timely talk on How to Give Talks at EMFCamp! Please join me in welcoming Professor Jones.
			* Hello all, it's great to have you all back here in the Purple Tent for our next speaker, Professor Jane Jones. Before we begin, I have a very important announcement from the organisers - please don't set fire to things! We appreciate your co-operation. I've also been informed that Professor Jones would very much appreciate it if you did not record this talk. So please put away your mobile phones and cameras, and enjoy this talk on How to Give Talks at EMFCamp!

Liedra at 15:32, 23 July 2018

2018-07-23T15:32:43Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:32, 23 July 2018
Line 1:		Line 1:
	This page gives more detail in terms of what to expect when doing [[SpeakerOps]] and some suggestions from experienced SpeakerOps people for approaching SpeakerOps.		This page gives more detail in terms of what to expect when doing [[SpeakerOps]] and some suggestions from experienced SpeakerOps people for approaching SpeakerOps.



	~~==A typical SpeakerOps shift==~~

	A typical shift covers 3-4 talks and cycles as follows.		A typical shift covers 3-4 talks and cycles as follows.
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	=== Meeting speakers prior to talks ===		== Meeting speakers prior to talks ==
			Ideally this happens in the Green Room prior to the talks, but may happen in the tent at talk time.

	Introduce yourself to the speaker and ask the following things:		Introduce yourself to the speaker and ask the following things:
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	* Do you need any help setting up?		* Do you need any help setting up?
	* Would you like some water?		* Would you like some water?
	* '''Do you have any objections to your talk being recorded or streamed?''' (it is perfectly fine if they do not want it recorded or streamed; if ~~not,~~ you~~'ll~~ need to ~~ensure~~ the ~~tech~~ team ~~knows this prior~~ to the ~~talk start~~, ~~make an announcement asking audience members to not record with their phones~~, ~~and also keep an eye~~ out for ~~anyone who might~~ be ~~disrespecting this request~~ to be ~~gently reminded)~~		* '''Do you have any objections to your talk being recorded or streamed?''' (it is perfectly fine if they do not want it recorded or streamed; see below for details on what to do with this information)


			== In the tent, at the beginning of your shift ==
			Check with the person running the shift prior to you if there is anything you need to know about AV/staging/etc.

			Introduce yourself to the stage team. They are your friends. They will give you a microphone and show you how to use it.

			Acquaint yourself with the layout of the stage, noting trip hazards, etc. that might be worthwhile pointing out to the speakers.

			Identify the mechanism by which you can call for help from the SpeakerOps team lead if necessary (this may be a radio or telephone).

			== For each speaker ==

			If you haven't shown the speaker to the tent, locate the speaker. Help them set up any equipment they need.

			The stage team may want to do a sound and visual check. Let them know if the talk is not to be recorded.



	We then show the speaker to the tent where they will be giving their talk, and help them connect their laptop etc. on stage, and bring in any props / items to demo (which have ranged from de-activated miltech to sex robots in the past). We normally do a brief sound check to make sure everything is working. The stage tech teams will have a mic for the speaker (which migth be hand held radio mic for you or on a stand per their preferences) and will have a radio mic for you also (allowing you to introduce the talk from stage and then later take questions, or to bang in the odd loose tent peg).

	When it comes time for the talk to start, we make sure the audience is seated and if you can see people stil coming into the tent we can often wait a couple of minutes to peoeple to get in and to their seats (sometimes other talks run over - yours will not of course!). Sometimes there may be announcements that SpeakerOps staff are asked to deliver for the EMF Event as a whole wihch will have been co-ordinated and passed on through the Green Room and this is a good time to make those announcements (these are typically requests for volunteers for X, reminders that setting fire to Y is not good behaviour etc.) We don't want to hold on too long but a couple of minutes will not hurt. We then quiet the audience by welcoming them to the talk and introducing the speaker and their talk. There may be notes that a speaker has asked us to announce in the introduction (such as no filming), and we deliver these as part of our introductions. These might be quite simple, but you might also like to add context of event and location. For example 'Welcome to EMF 2018 and Stage A where I am happy to introduce our next speaker who is professor Stephen Hawking who will be answering the question of 'will the world end in 30 minutes? and when will those 30 minutes be? - so in case they are in 29 minutes time, without further ado please welcome professor Hawking'.. etc. Some animation is good but remember the speaker is the main event so short and sweet is the ticket. The 'Welcome to EMF.. part (or whatever you'd like to say there) tends to be useful as it takes about 2-3 seconds for people to realise that someone is speaking and to start paying attention so that when you say 'our next speaker'.. by that time they are actually engaged listening.		When it comes time for the talk to start, we make sure the audience is seated and if you can see people stil coming into the tent we can often wait a couple of minutes to peoeple to get in and to their seats (sometimes other talks run over - yours will not of course!). Sometimes there may be announcements that SpeakerOps staff are asked to deliver for the EMF Event as a whole wihch will have been co-ordinated and passed on through the Green Room and this is a good time to make those announcements (these are typically requests for volunteers for X, reminders that setting fire to Y is not good behaviour etc.) We don't want to hold on too long but a couple of minutes will not hurt. We then quiet the audience by welcoming them to the talk and introducing the speaker and their talk. There may be notes that a speaker has asked us to announce in the introduction (such as no filming), and we deliver these as part of our introductions. These might be quite simple, but you might also like to add context of event and location. For example 'Welcome to EMF 2018 and Stage A where I am happy to introduce our next speaker who is professor Stephen Hawking who will be answering the question of 'will the world end in 30 minutes? and when will those 30 minutes be? - so in case they are in 29 minutes time, without further ado please welcome professor Hawking'.. etc. Some animation is good but remember the speaker is the main event so short and sweet is the ticket. The 'Welcome to EMF.. part (or whatever you'd like to say there) tends to be useful as it takes about 2-3 seconds for people to realise that someone is speaking and to start paying attention so that when you say 'our next speaker'.. by that time they are actually engaged listening.

Liedra: Created page with "This page gives more detail in terms of what to expect when doing SpeakerOps and some suggestions from experienced SpeakerOps people for approaching SpeakerOps. ==A typ..."

2018-07-23T15:20:36Z

Created page with "This page gives more detail in terms of what to expect when doing SpeakerOps and some suggestions from experienced SpeakerOps people for approaching SpeakerOps. ==A typ..."

New page

This page gives more detail in terms of what to expect when doing [[SpeakerOps]] and some suggestions from experienced SpeakerOps people for approaching SpeakerOps.

==A typical SpeakerOps shift==

A typical shift covers 3-4 talks and cycles as follows.

At start of shift (or ideally a little before) report to the Green Room (which is typically a white tent despite the name), and make contact with the SpeakerOps team leader to report for duty.

=== Meeting speakers prior to talks ===

Introduce yourself to the speaker and ask the following things:

* How long does your talk run? (double check with the session list)
* Are you happy to receive questions after the talk?
* Do you have all the cables you need for laptops, etc.?
* Do you need any help setting up?
* Would you like some water?
* '''Do you have any objections to your talk being recorded or streamed?''' (it is perfectly fine if they do not want it recorded or streamed; if not, you'll need to ensure the tech team knows this prior to the talk start, make an announcement asking audience members to not record with their phones, and also keep an eye out for anyone who might be disrespecting this request to be gently reminded)

We then show the speaker to the tent where they will be giving their talk, and help them connect their laptop etc. on stage, and bring in any props / items to demo (which have ranged from de-activated miltech to sex robots in the past). We normally do a brief sound check to make sure everything is working. The stage tech teams will have a mic for the speaker (which migth be hand held radio mic for you or on a stand per their preferences) and will have a radio mic for you also (allowing you to introduce the talk from stage and then later take questions, or to bang in the odd loose tent peg).

When it comes time for the talk to start, we make sure the audience is seated and if you can see people stil coming into the tent we can often wait a couple of minutes to peoeple to get in and to their seats (sometimes other talks run over - yours will not of course!). Sometimes there may be announcements that SpeakerOps staff are asked to deliver for the EMF Event as a whole wihch will have been co-ordinated and passed on through the Green Room and this is a good time to make those announcements (these are typically requests for volunteers for X, reminders that setting fire to Y is not good behaviour etc.) We don't want to hold on too long but a couple of minutes will not hurt. We then quiet the audience by welcoming them to the talk and introducing the speaker and their talk. There may be notes that a speaker has asked us to announce in the introduction (such as no filming), and we deliver these as part of our introductions. These might be quite simple, but you might also like to add context of event and location. For example 'Welcome to EMF 2018 and Stage A where I am happy to introduce our next speaker who is professor Stephen Hawking who will be answering the question of 'will the world end in 30 minutes? and when will those 30 minutes be? - so in case they are in 29 minutes time, without further ado please welcome professor Hawking'.. etc. Some animation is good but remember the speaker is the main event so short and sweet is the ticket. The 'Welcome to EMF.. part (or whatever you'd like to say there) tends to be useful as it takes about 2-3 seconds for people to realise that someone is speaking and to start paying attention so that when you say 'our next speaker'.. by that time they are actually engaged listening.

During a talk it is good to pay attention, and be on hand if anything happens or is needed (ie this is a live event so if the speaker's mic goes off you'd offer your own, or if you forgot the water earlier you can grab one for the speaker now - there is plenty next to stage also etc.). Mainly during the talk you should be attentive to the talk (as all the audience will be in any case). It is a good idea also to think ahead during the talk as to questions that might be asked after the talk. Think about one or two questions yourself now and make note of them - related to the talk, or the speakers wider experience.. you may need these shortly.

Once the main talk is finished, there wil normally be time for questions. When a talk finishes, there will often be some applause, and then it is your turn to stand up at the front with your mic (or from stage if appropriate) to state that we have some time for questions (this also allows a speaker to draw breath and have a swig of water or other beverage). Some talks will naturally prompt a sea of hands, others may not immediately. If you don't see any hands rising straight away, then now is a good time to use that question that you thought of during the talk. No one likes to ask the first question, so if you go ahead with something like 'I'd like to start with a question that occurred to me about the subject - which is that in the light of current human behaviour towards and consumption of the limited resources of our planet, how relevant do you think it actually is that there are likely to be 36 million years to the end of the world?' etc. .. then others will typically think of their own questions and be more forthcoming with interesting questions while this one is being answered, and often lead to some lively and interesting debate.

During questions, where you have raised hands, we generally try to go to people in order of hands raised for fairness. If you have a Fitbit (other smart watches and fitness trackers are available) then you may well get quite a few steps dashing around the tent. It is important to pass (or hold in front of) the microphone to the person asking the question so that the question can be 1) recorded (where permitted) and 2) heard by the speaker and everyone else in the room. The speaker will then answer this question and normally others in turn. You also have a duty to keep an eye on time, and to prevent one person hogging the questions with either multiple questions or more a discourse of their own. This comes down to common sense so that things don't overrun, and a good strategy if there look to be more questions than time allows (or a few people with these) is to ask for the microphone back and say something like (and remembering one of the questions that you asked the speaker earlier in the Green Room): 'I can see that we've got quite a few more questions here and it is a very interesting topic that we could talk for hours on and sadly our schedule in the tent does not allow for that but happily Professor Hawking's schedule allows him to stay on for a while and he will be happy for you to buy him a pint in the Robot Arms bar and discuss this further with any and all interested.

At the close of questions, we normally thank the speaker for their talk and there may be a final round of applause, you may or may not wish to say that 'our next talk here on Stage X will be Y at Z O'Clock' so that everyone knows where they stand.

We then help the speaker to disconnect their laptop etc, make sure that any equipment borrowed is returned (VGA adapters, Microphones etc.), and any props are taken off stage & thank the speaker etc.

You then typically have enough time to dash to the loo if you need to, and then back to the Green Room to meet your next speaker if you are not at the end of your shift.

All of the above happens in quite a short space of time and so if any of this sounds a bit intimidating then don't worry as it soon becomes quite a natural process. As part of training, we'll run through the process and you can try some intros in front of us if you like and can buddy you with someone experienced in the process. Eveyone has their own style and these are just some notes from experience.

This is a wiki so if you've anything to add, delete, elaborate on etc. then please feel free to contribute / correct / tidy / restructure etc.

'''Some general notes:'''

- Make sure you are familiar with the layout of the individual stages - if you've had experience of doing speakerops from one stage then you go to another that you're less familiar with there is more risk of (for example from the author's own experience) falling off the back of the stage as you traverse it in a somewhat unceremonious, slightly embarrasing, mildly comic at the time and bit painful for the next few days manner.
- Please be (at least mostly) sober for the time of you SpeakerOps duty.

NB:

Please note that references to banging in tent pegs with a microphone are intended for purposes of humor and may invalidate the warranty of Tech team members not to wrestle SpeakerOps team members to the ground and sit on you for the duration of a talk. Unless they give you a Shure SM58 which are fine to us for banging drums, tent peggs or anything else. If you are given A Shure LC microphone then note Hackspace rule 0 applies to people, not these microphones and it is your duty to introduce said microphone and a laser cutter to each other with expedience.

We don't have any insight as to what alcoholic or non alcoholic beverages Professor Hawking prefers so if you are on speakerOps shift if / when he speaks please do be sure to check and we can't assume that anyone will be available to take discussions to the bar / outside after their talks; though we could be sure that Professor Hawking would probably not be short of hands raised after his talk.
* At this point in time no speakers are invited or confirmed and this is purely an illustrative example though I'm sure he would be welcomed to speak at the event).