Speaker 1: Hi, I'm Jill Clark, an assistant professor here at the John Glenn School of Public Affairs. When it comes to moderating, you don't often notice good moderation. Why? Because a good moderator makes sure that you're really focused on the panel and the content. A successful panel is a managed panel and that manager is the moderator. And the number one rule is keeping time. By keeping time, you're demonstrating to the audience that their time matters. You're also demonstrating that you care about their input. Because a managed panel with managed time means that you get really good audience interaction and you represent the audience's time. So I let speakers know right up front that I'm going to be paying particular attention to time. I make sure that I bring really big cards that have, you know, a five and a one and then a stop. And I let the panelists know that I'm not shy about getting up and maybe nudging them off the podium. The other thing I do is introduce some time savers. So I will introduce, typically, all the panelists at once. Because a lot of getting up and sitting down between me and the panelists takes up time of the panel. Typically, you're working with an hour to an hour and a half and you're already pressed for time as it is. But you're more than just a timekeeper. A moderator is the guide to a very good experience for both the panelists and the audience. And as that guide, you set the tone of the panel. So take a second or two when you start and give an overview. Do your homework. Give an overview of what the panel is going to be about. Make it short because as a moderator, again, if you're good at it, people don't notice the moderator. They notice the panel. So it's not about you. It's about the panelists and the audience. The other thing I would suggest is getting a feel for who's in the audience. This helps all the panelists know who's in the room. And it also, again, lets the audience know that you care about who they are in addition to their input later on during question and answer. Prepare your panel and prepare your audience. Before getting into the session, make sure that you and all the panelists know what the parameters are for the session. Is this going to be, you know, 15 minutes each? Are they going to respond to specific questions? Make sure that up front everyone is aware of the parameters for the session. Then once the session starts, make sure the audience knows what to expect. Let them know what the parameters are and then give them some directions on question and answer. So typically with a panel, I'll suggest that we have clarifying questions during presentations, but hold any questions of more substance towards the end. While the session, while the panelists are speaking and the session's taking place, take notes. Pay attention because what you'll want to do at the end before the question and answer is give a quick summary. You know, what did you hear? Again, in a couple of sentences to help set the tone for the question and answer. And sometimes audiences can be shy, so make sure that you have a question at the ready for each of the panelists. Not necessarily to ask them all right at the beginning of the Q&A, but so that if one panelist is getting kind of too many questions and the other ones are being ignored, you've always got a question at the ready. Plus sometimes if you get started, it eases the audience and they'll feel more comfortable asking questions. And speaking of questions, once a question is asked of an audience member, not every panelist has to give their response. So what I would encourage you to do is ask that audience members ask a question either to a specific person. If they don't, you can pick the person or have them self-select. But again, no need to go, you know, panelist one, panelist two, panelist three for each question. You won't get to very many questions that way. You as the moderator can help to clarify questions. If an audience member says, you can also help to clarify answers. So if an answer a panelist is giving is vague, your role can be to get them to be more specific and clarify their responses. Also when it comes to question and answer, be prepared with a quick statement. If a panelist gets off topic or if an audience member is asking something off topic, you know, something like, you've got an interesting point there, but maybe we need to know more about such and such. And it's really just to keep us on track topically. Finally, your role is to wrap the session up. So, you know, you've been taking your notes during this whole time, during both when the panelists have been speaking and during the Q&A. You want to give a sentence or two at the end to wrap things up, like a closing statement. You definitely want to thank the panelists and the audience. And then finally, something I always like to know is whether or not the panelists are willing to stay around for additional questions afterwards. And so if you know the availability of your panelists, you can make that announcement and give the opportunity for more interaction at the end. So thank you for your attention and have a great time and be the guide to a good experience for everyone during your session.