Speaker Information
VIRTUAL SPEAKER GUIDE
Welcome!
This page is intended for folks who have had their abstract accepted for a lightning talk or regular talk at R/Medicine 2025. Congratulations! We are excited to welcome you as a presenter. As a reminder, the event will take place virtually on Thursday and Friday, June 13-14, on Eastern Daylight Time. Please click through the tabs on this page to access information.
Deadlines
Pre-Recording Video Submission Due Date (mandatory for lightning talks, recommended for regular talks with only one speaker): Monday, June 2
Speaker Training (for all who will present live): TBD
Event Dates: Monday, June 9 – Friday, June 13
Timezone: Eastern Daylight Time
Schedule and Timing
The schedule has been posted on the R/Medicine web site.
All lightning talks are ten (10) minutes in total (including Q&A).
All regular talks are twenty (20) minutes in total (including Q&A).
Platform & Specifications
We will be using the virtual platform Zoom that will allow speakers to deliver content live or by pre-recorded talk, and join the chat live (and drop links into the chat) for Q&A during the session.
Workshops and demos are best delivered live, though it can help to have a co-presenter monitoring the chat for questions.
For the main meeting on Thursday and Friday, it is best to have a presenter or co-presenter available for the live chat. This is one of the best features of R/Medicine, as the whole community gets to discuss the topic with the speaker during the talk without being rude. It really helps to have a co-presenter running the live chat, or to pre-record your talk so that you can participate in the live chat.
It is often helpful to prepare for the live chat by assembling a document with any links, references, etc. that you can copy and paste into the chat when appropriate.
Pre-recording Information & Tools
All regular talk and lightning talk speakers may pre-record their talk, which will be played through the event platform. Speakers who will give a lightning talk must submit a pre-recorded talk.
Some suggested tools to use for recording are Quicktime, Zoom, a screen recorder, or something similar. The recording should show your slides or screen and optionally yourself, using a picture in picture style format. Please share the actual video file, in MP4 format, not a link to a streaming service such as YouTube or Vimeo. Email this recording to us at info@r-consortium.org by midnight EDT on June 2.
Please feel free to reach out with any questions.
Live Q&A
As with physical events, live interaction is essential to the success of virtual events and we are asking every presenter, whether presenting live or via pre-recorded session, to join for live chat with attendees during their session, within the platform. This will provide added value to the audience and create more of an ‘event’ experience.
If you are concerned about your timezone and how that could impact the live Q&A portion of your session, we will do our best to reschedule your session slot to a time that is convenient for you. Reach out to us if needed at r-medicine-conf@r-consortium.org
Technical Tips for Virtual Presentations
Audio – as counterintuitive as it may sound, the single most important factor in a good video, is the audio quality.
Eliminate ambient noise – close the doors and windows. You’d be surprised how much environmental noise gets picked up.
Lighting – Do not put lights overhead and don’t put any lights or windows behind you as they will alter the light levels in your videos and create shadows.
Background – don’t be afraid to show your natural environment – bookcases, plants, paintings – as long as they are not too distracting.
Framing – place yourself slightly off-center to the left or right rather than directly in the middle of the frame.
Camera Height – the lens should either be directly level or pointing ever so slightly downwards towards your face.
Stand – we recommend you stand during your presentation to help project your voice and improve your posture. However, if you’re more comfortable sitting, then please do.
Timer – Have a clock to keep track of the time you have remaining.
Lighting, Webcam and Microphone Best Practices
Best Practices for Lighting
For best results, use natural light and supplement with additional light as needed.
Keep natural light in front of you to avoid shadows. A bright window behind you can make you appear as a dark silhouette.
Interior rooms with no natural light source may require additional targeted lighting, such as a ring light, to brighten the speaker’s face.
Best Practices for Webcams
To ensure the speaker is looking directly at the audience, place the webcam at eye level.
Avoid distracting backgrounds by checking the surroundings behind you to make sure there are no distracting colors or movement.
Presenters should use chairs that are adjustable for height but do not swivel. Swiveling on camera creates a poor attendee experience and can be distracting.
Best Practices for Microphones
Use external microphones whenever available, as microphones built into computers and cameras often have lower quality.
An external microphone allows the speaker to place it in the optimal location for sound.
Place the microphone close to the speaker’s mouth, but not in the camera view.
Test audio levels in advance.
Manage noise by turning off fans, phones, or speakers and keep ambient noise to a minimum.
Do not touch the microphone while unmuted
Dress Code
There is no dress code for presentations, and we encourage you to be comfortable. That said, you must be aware that the Code of Conduct applies to this space, both in terms of what you show on camera and what you say. We ask that you be tasteful and considerate in choosing your clothing and surroundings. Keep in mind that we are a global community. Please refrain from wearing shirts with global brand logos that are not your own. Solid colors (not white) also work best instead of prints.
Live Q&A
Learn the Content: Familiarity with the content allows a speaker to focus on presenting, rather than trying to remember the points to make. To minimize worry about forgetting elements of the presentation, include notes in your presentation file and have a prepared e-document of your links, script, or talking points that you can paste into the chat.
Practice Makes Perfect: Speakers should practice their content delivery in the environment in which they will deliver it, such as in front of a computer. Presenting alone to a computer can be awkward at first. To make speakers more comfortable, ask colleagues, roommates, or family to sit in front so they can present to familiar faces.
Understand the Tools: Speakers should understand and utilize the content options available to them, to maximize the effectiveness of the presentation technology. It’s important to know the basic functions of the software, e.g. how to advance slides, manage Zoom Q&A or chats, before the presentation.
Speak Up: Check audio levels before presenting, but also make sure to breathe at regular intervals to speak audibly and clearly. Maintaining a clear, even tone throughout the presentation will allow the audience to hear it without adjusting their volume settings.
Look at Your Camera: If presenting via video, remember, the webcam is your link to your audience. Make eye contact with the camera so it appears to the audience that you are speaking directly to them.
Don’t Fear Mistakes: Humans make mistakes, even during presentations. Realize that flubs happen and they won’t derail your presentation – unless you let them. Just keep going in your planned presentation and remember, the audience is forgiving.
Be Prepared: During the presentation, have a glass of water nearby to sip as needed. Also, keep handy a printout of your slides or notes in case you need to refer to them.
From: https://www.inxpo.com/assets/pdfs/litepapers/How-To-Be-An-Engaging-Speaker.pdf
Inclusive Speaker Orientation Online Course
The Linux Foundation, in collaboration with the National Center for Women in Technology (NCWIT), has created an online course designed to teach the viewer about inclusion, diversity, and unconscious bias. We highly recommend all of our speakers, watch the course to learn tips/tools to use when speaking to encourage inclusivity in presentations and messaging.
Code of Conduct
Please read and abide by our code of conduct, which can be found here. We ask that speakers especially review this code of conduct and are inclusive in the words and images used during their presentation.
Additional Resources
Best Gear for Online Meetings – Webcams, lights, mics, tripods and more
19 Video Presentation Tips to help you give a great presentation (even if you hate the way you look on camera)
9 Tips for Giving Engaging Virtual Presentations – This article gives 9 tips and within each tip has folks from the tech world giving their advice in a fun/relatable way.
PACE Acronym for Virtual Presentations
Checklist for Speakers – this article provides checklists applicable for speakers that are live streaming.
Contact Us
If you have any other platform, speaker, or schedule-related questions, please contact us at r-medicine-conf@r-consortium.org.