Ringmaster photo by the_steve_cox via Flickr
Moderating a panel discussion – particularly in the arts sector, where the panellists will doubtless be erudite, engaging and well informed – might seem like an easy task on paper. But preventing one person from dominating the discussion, drawing diverse speakers together to shape a coherent conversation, engaging the audience and running to time isn’t as easy as it sounds.
A good facilitator needs many skills. Here we offer some tips to assist you in keeping your next panel discussion memorable for all the right reasons.
Keep your intro short
The audience has come to listen to what the speakers have to say, and both their and the panel’s time is limited. Nine times out of ten the audience has probably already read the bios for each panellist, so you don’t need to read out detailed notes on each speaker’s background. Repeating information that’s already published in the program or on the relevant website is a waste of time. Better to quickly summarise each speaker’s position or field of expertise and jump straight into the conversation.
Direct your questions
Instead of posing a general question to the entire panel at the start of the event and hoping that someone answers it, take control of the discussion from the outset by directing your question to a particular speaker – perhaps the one who your research has suggested will have the most dramatic or vivid response.
Be ready to interrupt and encourage
One of your most important roles is to be aware of who is dominating the conversation and who has had less of a chance to contribute, and ensuring that everyone contributes equally to the discussion. If necessary, cut someone off mid-flow. ‘That’s a valuable point to make, but can I ask you to pause there for a moment so we can hear what XXXX has to say on this topic?’ Return to the more voluble speaker later and ask them to pick up where they left off, if appropriate. Think of the conversation as a juggling act: you’re keeping multiple balls in the air and moving them fluidly from hand to hand, maintaining constant movement and momentum.
Active listening
The best facilitators pay close attention to what each speaker is saying so that they can ask follow-up questions where necessary, in order to further unpack the conversation. And don’t sit there waiting for a speaker to finish what they’re saying so that you can ask your next carefully researched and beautifully phrased question; listen carefully to their answer, so that you can, if necessary, repeat a key phrase or comment back to them and ask them to explain what they meant in more detail. Often such questions in response to a seemingly throw-away comment can open up a whole new line of conversation, resulting in a more engaging experience for all.
Pay attention to non-verbal cues
Sometimes you’ll notice a panellist nodding quietly or shaking their head in response to what another panel member is saying. Pick up on such cues – they can indicate vehement disagreement or fervent support, which can help keep the discussion lively.
Chair, don’t participate
Unless you have specifically been engaged as a participatory chair, your job is to keep the discussion lively, balanced and engaging – you’re not there to speak at length on the subject at hand. A short anecdote might steer the topic in a new direction, but make sure you don’t dominate and derail the conversation.
Prepare but not too much
Do your homework. Even if it’s a subject you’re intimately familiar with, it never hurts to prepare for the discussion by having notes, references and insightful quotes on the subject at hand.
Research your panellists’ backgrounds too – their actions in a previous role might cast an interesting light on a current issue or preoccupation.
But beware of being too prepared. If the topic is one you’re unfamiliar with, for instance, it can occasionally be helpful to meet with the panellists well in advance to thrash out topics and areas of focus. The risk with being too well-prepared is that the resulting discussion can lack spontaneity – if everyone knows what one another will be saying well in advance, panellists can sound like they’re parroting talking points rather than sharing them for the first time.
Keep changing angles
Don’t be afraid to keep the conversation fresh by changing topics regularly. Which isn’t to say you’re abandoning a particular line of interrogation – you’re just circling around to get a fresh perspective before returning to the subject at hand. And while it’s good to explore a question in depth, be aware of your limited time and try not to completely exhaust that line of questioning along with the audience’s attention span.
Pay attention to time and focus
If the audience begin shifting restlessly partway through a panel, shake things up a little: take questions from the floor for a few minutes before returning to your own questions. A good facilitator can read the room and gain a sense of how far you can push things before changing tack.
Avoid Power Point presentations
Even if someone has timed their presentation, once they start showing slides via Power Point they’ll start extemporising and running over time, in addition to which you’ll lose the energy that comes with a lively conversation between panellists. If someone really wants to show and speak to images, allow them –and perhaps all the other panellists – five minutes at the start of the discussion to do so, but enforce the time, and bring the session back to a shared and stimulating conversation as quickly as you can. Save the Power Point presentations for a lecture or a keynote address.
Encourage conversations, not lectures
Encourage your panellists in advance to ask questions of one another. Such responses will often save an audience member asking the same question half an hour later, and further contribute to real discussion rather than an increasingly dull series of responses to the same question.
Keep to time
Be aware of how much time you have, how long people are talking for, and how much time you have for questions – if people are streaming for the door while the panel is still running, you’ve either gone overtime or the session is boring. Don’t be afraid to wrap things up a little early if the conversation from everyone is flagging. Conversely, if things are going well, it’s ok to extend the conversation by an extra five minutes – unless the floor manager or conference organisers is urgently giving you the wrap-up.
Was that a question?
Sooner or later, someone in the audience will want to share a bewildering, long-winded anecdote that has nothing to do with the conversation at hand. Pre-empt such a scenario when you throw to questions from the floor. When in doubt, quote Neil Gaiman’s definition: ‘A question is a relatively short set of words ending in a question mark, capable of being answered from the stage. If you feel the urge to tell us what you think about something, it’s not a question.”
Happy panelling!
