Session Chair Responsibilities

Before the Conference:

• Please view the Technical Program for information about the session you are chairing.
• A copy of the author biographies will be sent to you. Contacting the presenters in your session(s) is a way of ensuring their attendance and commitment to the meeting.
• If biographies for authors in the session you are chairing are missing, please email the authors and request brief biographies so that you can properly introduce them before their presentation.
• Preregister for the meeting and save. Prices increase by $100 if you register onsite. As a Session Chair you are entitled to the reduced Author/Session Chair/Committee registration rate.

Print Onsite Instructions for Session Chairs.

At the Conference:

• Check for any late program updates on the room sign outside of the meeting room.
• You will receive a Session Report Form from the Conference Chair to use in tracking changes in your session.
• Return the forms to the Registration Desk, the AV Desk, or the AV room monitor. It is very important that these forms are returned to SPIE for paper and publication records.

Chairing the Session:

• Introduce the session topic
• Introduce the speakers
• Maintain the program schedule
• Be prepared for the unexpected!
• If you find a presenter has failed to attend:
  
  • Note the no show on the Session Report form
  • DO NOT move to the next paper. Attendees plan for the talks they want to hear based on the published schedule.
  • Choose one of these options:
    
    
    • Fill in the *hole* with a standby paper (if there are no official standby authors for your session, make arrangements in advance to have one or two *no strings* [no manuscript] presenters on hand)
    • Open the floor to an extended Q&A session for speakers who have already presented
    • Have one or two controversial topics ready for discussion
    • Bring a topic on your laptop for presentation and/or discussion
    • Open the floor for discussion on any topic of interest to the audience
      
  • Start the next talk at its published, scheduled time.

If you have any questions or need more information, please contact your Conference Program Coordinator.