Comments on: Why panel sessions suck (and how to fix them)

By: Bob Sutor

Bob Sutor — Tue, 18 May 2010 18:20:27 +0000

In terms of controversy on the panel, I believe you want people who really do have very different opinions, rather than bringing in professional curmudgeons. That is, skip a person whose main goal seems to be the one to get the one sound bite mentioned by the press.

If you are organizing a panel, make sure you offer enough activity for those on panel to make it worth their while to travel to the event. Can you do an extra press-only session? A meet-the-panelists reception?

By: How To Kick Ass On A Panel | REBlogWorld

How To Kick Ass On A Panel | REBlogWorld — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 01:43:43 +0000

[...] Why panel sessions suck (and how to fix them) by Scott Berkun – This post is from a work in progress, a book by Scott Berkun titled “Confessions of A Public Speaker” (definitely looking forward to reading the finished product). It offers an excellent look at the kinds of things that go wrong with panels and then offers some very constructive advice for avoiding the bad and delivering a good session. [...]

By: How to Own a Panel | Lawyerist

How to Own a Panel | Lawyerist — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 18:13:36 +0000

[...] Why panel sessions suck (and how to fix them) | Speaker Confessions How to Kick Butt On a Panel | How to Change the World (via Small Firm Success) [...]

By: Improving Panel Sessions « Steps & Leaps

Improving Panel Sessions « Steps & Leaps — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 09:07:33 +0000

[...] post by Scott Berkun on common problems with panel sessions as well as suggestions for improvement, extracted [...]

By: Strange speaking venues part 2 | Speaker Confessions

Strange speaking venues part 2 | Speaker Confessions — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 17:00:43 +0000

[...] Some of the talk was lively, but the did break a few of the rules listed in why panel sessions suck. [...]

By: Nancy Frishberg

Nancy Frishberg — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 08:07:03 +0000

Concurring here with many of the comments already mentioned, and adding one more aspect of why panels suck.

The panelists have talked out the controversial bits among themselves in preparing and by the time they reach the event, they’ve lost their edge with one another. Perhaps overprepared, but certainly the novelty of the differences among them is gone, and at the actual event they’re ready to acknowledge the others’ positions without voicing the objections they started out so firmly attached to.

By: Robby Slaughter

Robby Slaughter — Sat, 16 May 2009 06:56:18 +0000

I’m a bit late to this discussion, but I thought I would suggest an idea to fix panels. Called it a “Narrated Panel”:

In this setup, there are two moderators and say, 4-6 panelists.
- The moderators share one mike and one laptop
- The panelists do not have microphones, but all have their own laptops
- Every panelist is connected to a collaborative, real-time text editing tool (EtherPad or SubEthaEdit or whatnot)

One moderator begins by introducing the panel aloud and giving bios on each of the people; the other distributes some pre-prepared questions via the editor to all of the panelists. They can then start typing answers to whatever questions they want.

Moderators take turns asking the audience for questions and typing them in, and selecting and reading the responses aloud. It’s essential that there are two moderators so that each one can have a chance to read a passage silently a few times so they don’t stumble over the words.

This idea would address the most of the problems you mention, and make for a really interesting experience. Feel free to try it!

@robbyslaughter

By: Speaking linkfest | Speaker Confessions

Speaking linkfest | Speaker Confessions — Thu, 14 May 2009 15:12:07 +0000

[...] More on Why Panels Suck. A good response to my post on the evil of panels. [...]

By: Christian Hagel

Christian Hagel — Fri, 01 May 2009 23:51:14 +0000

We just did a panel on emotional desing last week and used your suggestions here. The main problem was actually in the topic. We had hoped that at least someone in the audience would disagree with us on the basic promise, but no one did.

We did introduce polarity into the panel discussion stating clear questions and taken different stands and we did get audience participation, but I don’t think we provoked the audience quite enough.

By: Recruiting Animal

Recruiting Animal — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 17:16:13 +0000

Jeremiah Owyang had an article about this a couple of years ago. He said he asks each panelist to bring 3 ideas that she wants the audience to take away with them.

This guarantees some value. In my experience, however, not everyone can assess what an audience needs to know so it doesn’t always work out.