8 TIPS ON HOW TO SUCCESSFULLY CHAIR A CONFERENCE

1. It is the conference chairperson's responsibility to see that the atmosphere during the discussion is always friendly, communicative and fair.
2. The conference chairperson introduces the topic in an objective and informative way. He/She formulates the discussion goals for each item on the agenda. During a discussion, he/she must not initially express his/her own opinion or assessment as this would bias the discussion.
3. The chairperson speaks as little as possible in order to give maximum time to the conference participants. Conference chairmanship principally entails raising questions and giving the word to different speakers.
4. Questions from the chairperson should always be designed to stimulate dialogue and consequently should never be answered by the chairperson himself/herself.
5. Preference should be given to open questions (W-questions;who, why, where, when, e.t.c.) and information questions. Closed questions (which can only be answered with a "yes" or "no") can be fatal to a discussion.
6. Should a discussion peter out it is up to the chairperson to get it moving again by means of (open) questions, thought-provoking remarks and a summary of the proceeding so far.
7. The chairperson should make interim summaries to emphasize the thread of the discussion. At the close, the chairperson gives a general summary and his/her evaluation as to which of the goals formulated at the outset have or have not been achieved.
8. At the end of a conference,it is also up to the chairperson to formulate and delegate tasks to individual participants. No body ought to leave the conference without precisely knowing:  (a) what has been achieved in today's discussion, (b) what is my specific assignment until the next conference/meeting. (c) where and when is the next conference/meeting?