Think back to your most memorable experience at a conference or event. What stands out? You may distinctly remember a few key factors such as people you connected with, the content delivered, or perhaps the speakers. 

Associations want to deliver an attendee experience that creates some serious FOMO (fear of missing out), and speaker selection can be one of the ways to do so. Ultimately, you’d like to create a speaker lineup that helps to drive participants to the event and results in a positive exchange with your attendees.

With this in mind, let’s explore four practices for speaker selection shared from the Association for Talent Development (ATD).

1. Event goal. As you begin your speaker selection process, think about the outcome you would like to achieve. ATD, like many organizations, uses a request for proposal process to select its speakers. As a result, you can outline event goals to allow presenters to craft submissions that align with your initiatives. This helps to create a consistent message about what attendees will get from attending. It also serves as an evaluation tool once you begin the submission review process to assess the speaker’s quality.


2. Audience needs. Knowing your audience is key. ATD’s audience is consistently seeking information that is on trend with future topics, such as microlearning or creating exceptional learning experiences with artificial intelligence. At its core, ATD seeks information and tools to hone foundational skills that help to develop organizational talent. It’s essential to stay focused on future trends rather than past forces. Your audience will be expecting to hear about what’s coming next, and your speakers should be able to answer that question.


3. Social proof. Much like references used to secure a job, social proof of speaking ability helps organizers to make an informed decision about the speaker. Each year, ATD creates a mix of new and returning presenters by utilizing two strategies. The first is a request for video submissions by new speakers that are no more than five minutes in length. This helps to ensure alignment with audience expectations, value, and fit. Are they engaging? Will they connect with your audience? Are they able to clearly convey their message? Next is a review of past performance from returning speakers. While this isn’t the only deciding factor for selection, reviewing the audience’s reaction to previous presentations can provide context.

It’s essential to stay focused on future trends rather than past forces. Your audience will be expecting to hear about what’s coming next, and your speakers should be able to answer that question.

4. Align early. One of the major concerns in selecting a speaker, says ATD Event Manager Monique Montoya, CMP, is alignment. Will the speaker deliver the value they’ve outlined in their submission? Many submission windows open nine months to a year prior to the event. Given this gap, what steps can you take to ensure continuity? ATD implemented a process of requiring program materials to be submitted before the event to provide more lead time for review and edits. You have enough to do onsite during an event, so the last thing you want is to have to address attendee complaints about their experience being different than what they were promised

As you can see, the process for selecting speakers isn’t simply choosing the big name or the trendiest topic. Depending on your goals, it may be more art than science. However, it’s critical to have a process in place that helps to evaluate talent and make the best selection for your needs. After all, the speakers you select can have the greatest impact on attendee satisfaction—right behind food and room temperature.