Juggling several speaking engagements coming up, I’m reminded of how hard the job of conference organizers is.  Having helped to run ApacheCon as part of a volunteer team for years, I know how difficult it is to select talks, wrangle speaker acceptances (and rejections), and ensure your final conference schedule is appealing.  Updating the clunky CFP system and keeping the finicky schedule website updated are two problems that software hasn’t solved yet.
Equally important is how the conference acceptance & organization process works from the speaker’s side. Â Remember? Â Those people who make all the content your conference relies on? Â All those people who you love and appreciate – not that you pay them anything – and who you’ll do anything to fix last-minute problems for? Â While we can’t prevent all the last minute problems, there are a few simple steps to improve the speaker communication process to help prevent problems.
Continue reading Dear Conference Organizers: Improving The Speaker Experience