This document is a guide to setting up Speaker and Session Management in Certain. That product is enabled for all Certain accounts by default – as a planner, you decide whether to enable it for individual events.
Introduction
Certain’s Speaker and Session Management module enables you to manage the speakers, sessions, abstracts, and presentations for events of any size. These can range from small meetings with standard sessions to large user conferences with hundreds of speakers and thousands of sessions.
See the separate Speaker and Session Management Introduction document for a brief overview of the features available in this product.
The Conference Sessions product is an advanced feature of Speaker and Session Management. It is included in this guide but is not automatically enabled for all accounts. If interested in what it offers, including a Speaker Portal, a Reviewer Portal, and far more custom fields per session, please email help@certain.com, including your account name.
Contents
- Introduction
- Enabling the Products
- Essential Initial Setup
- Optional Initial Setup
- Core Setup/Management
- Assigning Sessions to Attendees
- Speaker Portal
- Reviewing Sessions
- Reviewer Portal
- Reports
Enabling the Products
Speaker and Session Management
-
- In the event, go to Plan > Configure > Options.
- Select the Speaker and Session Management Module under Functional Areas Needed by This Event.
- Save
Important Note: Once you have added any data to the Speaker and Session Management module, such as event tracks or sessions, then you cannot change your mind and deselect the module for the event unless all the sessions have a status of “cancelled”.
The Manage menu on the Top Navigation Menu Links now includes “Speakers and Sessions”. That takes you to the Sessions page described on page 5. The Left Navigation Panel there includes links to Sessions, Speakers, Locations, Tracks, Bulk Assignment, and Setup: these are all described here and in the Page Help.
Note that when this module is enabled, sessions in the event are added on the Sessions page (see "Sessions"), instead of as agenda items, although you still use agenda items for things such as merchandise.
Conference Sessions
The Conference Sessions sub-module offers additional features, especially for larger and more complex events. These include an online Speaker Portal, Reviewer Portal, review- and task-based workflow, and more custom fields per session (200 instead of 15).
If this product is enabled for your account, here’s how you enable it for an event:
-
- Select the Speaker and Session Management Module
- Save
- Select the Conference Sessions sub-module below it
- Save
The Left Navigation panel now includes extra links: Speaker Portal, Session Reviews, and Reviewer Portal.
Essential Initial Setup
Custom Fields
To configure Custom Fields that you can apply to Sessions, Speakers, or Session Reviews, go to Manage > Speaker and Session Management > Setup > Custom Fields.
You can use these custom fields on the Session Layout described in the next section, on the Speaker page, on the Speaker Portal (see "Speaker Portal"), on the Reviewer Portal (see "Reviewer Portal"), and in forms, mails, and reports.
To add a new custom field, click Add Custom Field. To edit an existing one, click .
The types available are Text, Ratings/Score, File, Text Area, Radio, Checkbox, Select, and Select Multiple. Ratings/Score fields are only for use on session reviews.
The last four types of those eight are lists of options that you configure, including their possible values, the order in which they're displayed, and which is the default value.
Session Layout
Before you can add any sessions to your event, you configure the layout of the Sessions page on which you do so.
That page is seen only by planners – not by attendees, speakers, or reviewers. However, its layout is used as the basis for the Speaker Portal (see "Speaker Portal") and Reviewer Portal (see "Reviewer Portal").
Go to Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Setup > Session Layout
Choosing a Session layout
If Conference Sessions is enabled for the event (see "Conference Sessions") you first choose one of the two starter options: Standard Sessions or Conference Sessions. If it’s not, the Standard Sessions layout is automatically in effect and is not referred to as such.
Whichever you choose has a default layout, which you can customize (see below) or use as it comes "out of the box".
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- Standard Sessions layout
Automatically enabled, and the only choice, if Conference Sessions is not enabled for the event.
Includes:-
- Easy session entry
- Up to 15 custom fields
- Auto-publish options
- One scheduled instance of each session
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- Conference Sessions layout
Includes:-
- Up to 200 custom fields
- Multiple scheduled instances of a session: different dates/times/locations and even speakers
- Review- and task-based workflow
- Online Speaker Portal
- Online Reviewer Portal
-
- Standard Sessions layout
Configuring your Session Layout
Whichever of the two layout options you select, you can define and arrange fields on your layout, choosing from the pre-defined standard fields and the custom fields you have added (see "Custom Fields").
A default layout is provided. You can use that as it is, or configure it as required. – To add standard or custom fields, or section dividers, hover just above a section to display the Add button. Click that to choose what you want to add there.
– To move an element (a field or section divider), hover over it for the pointer to change to a hand (and the element to change color), and drag the element to its new position.
– To delete an element, hover over it until it changes color, and click the red cross that appears.
– To resize fields, hover over the right edge and then drag it.
Locations
To add or edit the locations (rooms and halls) used for sessions, go to Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Locations. Each location has a Name, a unique Code, a Type (Meeting Room, Meeting Hall, or Conference Hall), a maximum Capacity, and a Venue.
To add your own custom Location Type, enter its name in the text box, and click Save.
Once you have added locations, you can allocate sessions to them by date: see “Scheduling” on page 8.
To import locations from an Excel file, click Import. That gives you the option of downloading a template file to use. To update existing locations, you can choose to download a list of all locations for you to edit, save, and upload back.
Optional Initial Setup
Tracks
Tracks are a way of grouping sessions together by theme. If you’re using the Standard Sessions layout (see "Standard Sessions") then Tracks are optional, but if you’re using the Conference Sessions layout (see "Conference Sessions") with a Reviewer Portal (see "Reviewer Portal"), then tracks are required rather than optional because reviewers are assigned to tracks to review the sessions in those tracks.
Similarly, if you’re using Conference Sessions, and therefore have a Speaker Portal, you need to add Tracks before speakers can select them for their sessions.
To add tracks, go to Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Tracks, and click New Track.
Each track has a unique Name, a Description, and a Color. The track color can be used on the SCHEDULER grid view of sessions to group sessions visually; see “Scheduling”.
If you’re using the Conference Sessions layout then there’s another field: Reviewers. Select the Reviewer(s) who are to review the sessions in this track.
You can choose to add one or more Sub-tracks to a track. When you assign a session to a track (see "Sessions below"), you can assign it to one or more of that track’s sub-tracks. And if you’re using the Conference Sessions layout, you can set up Reviewers to review sessions based on sub-track or remain a level up and review all sessions at the top-level track.
Industries
You can select the industries to be available for use as the "target" industries for sessions in the event. For example, “Financial Services”, “Pharmaceutical”, etc.
Go to Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Setup > Industries and select the relevant industries.
If there are no Industries to choose from, speak to your Administrator, who has to first create them in the account (on Account Settings > Management > Job Functions).
Job Functions
Similar to Industries, you can select the job functions to be available for use as the "target" job functions for sessions in the event. For example, “CEO”, “CMO”, “Marketing”, etc.
Go to Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Setup > Job Functions.
If there are no Job Functions to choose from, speak to your Administrator, who has to first create them in the account (on Account Settings > Management > Industries).
Core Setup/Management
Sessions
Add/Edit Sessions
To add sessions, go to Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Sessions. Click Add New to enter the details manually, or Import to import them from an Excel or .csv file. (As part of the import process you can download a template file to populate.)
Note that if you’re using the Conference Sessions product, prospective speakers can add their sessions when they submit them online in the Speaker Portal; see "Speaker Portal".
To edit an existing session, click on the list of sessions.
The fields available on the add/edit page, and how the page is laid out, are as configured for the event on Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Setup > Session Layout. The defaults, and the options available, are all described in the online Page Help topic. But let’s discuss a few of them here.
Instances – When the Simple Sessions layout is in use, each session may only have one instance; that is, it can only be scheduled once. If the Conference Sessions layout is in use, each session may have multiple instances, each with its own date, time, location, and even speaker(s).
Abstract File: To add an abstract (such as a PDF file), click Upload File and drop a file into the box, or click Choose File to browse for one on your computer. (Only one abstract document can be uploaded for a session. If you upload a new one, it will replace the original.)
Abstract Description is an optional description or summary of the abstract. It’s for internal use, not for attendees to read.
Session Presentations: To add a presentation file (such as a PowerPoint deck), click Upload File and drop a file into the box, or click Choose File to browse for one on your computer. (You can upload more than one.)
Session Fees: To add fees for the session, click Add Session Fees to enter details, much as you would enter for agenda items. (Note: Fees are not included in either of the default session layouts. So if you are charging fees for your sessions, you need to add a Fee when customizing the layout on Setup > Session Layout – see "Session Layout")
Speakers: To add a speaker to the session, click Add Speaker, and select a speaker you’ve added on the Speakers page (see "Speakers"). You can add more than one speaker, one of which is the primary speaker (green star), and the other additional speakers (gray stars). Click the star to change a secondary speaker to the primary, or vice versa.
Waitlist Limit – Enter the maximum number of attendees that can be waitlisted for the session. This applies once the instance is fully subscribed; that is, once the number of attendees registered for it has reached Capacity. Up to this number of attendees can then be added to a waiting list, pending cancellations.
Qualify Sessions
If you are using the Conference Sessions product, and reviewers are reviewing speakers’ abstracts using the Reviewer Portal (see "Reviewer Portal"), then on the same Sessions page you can click Reviewer Stats to see a dropdown list of the statistics for the current session: Average Score, Reviewers' Progress, Requested Modifications, and Remaining Reviewers.
When you are satisfied that you have enough information about a session, you can set its Status by selecting one from the drop-down list. For example, you could set it to Qualified if you were satisfied with the reviewers’ scores and progress.
You can also qualify sessions (individually or in bulk) on Session Reviews > Manage Reviews — see "Managing Reviews".
Note that when a planner adds a session, rather than a speaker submitting it through the speaker portal, then the status defaults to Qualified. This of course applies to all sessions added for a Standard Sessions layout, since a speaker portal is only available for a Conference Sessions layout.
Schedule Sessions
When a session has a status of Qualified (see “Qualify Sessions” immediately above), you can schedule each instance for a date/time and location. You can do this under the Schedules section while adding or editing a session, or on the SCHEDULER view on the Sessions list page: see “Scheduling”.
Publish Sessions
Once a session has a status of Scheduled, meaning at least one of its instances has been scheduled, you can publish the session, making it available for selection and assignment. If you selected the Auto-Publish option when configuring the session layout, and set it ‘On’ for the session, publishing is automatic when the session is scheduled.
If Auto Publish is not on, first click (Publish) and select the attendee type(s) for whom the session must be published: that is, displayed as an option on a form (see "Sessions on Forms") and in Certain Mobile, and to whom they may be assigned on Bulk Assignment (see "Bulk Assignment"). Then click Publish for Attendee Type(s).
Note: A session is not shown in Certain Mobile or on forms until it has been published.
You can also publish a scheduled session from the Session List shown on Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Sessions. Click for that session, select attendee type(s), and click Publish for Attendee Type(s).
Speakers
When Speaker and Session Management is enabled for the event, you add speakers in Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Speakers instead of in Event Setup > Speakers, which is not available when Speaker and Session Management is enabled. (The same speaker records are used in Certain Mobile.)
If the Conference Sessions layout is in use (see "Conference Sessions"), Speakers can register themselves using the Speaker Portal – see "Speaker Portal".
Assign Speakers to Sessions
For sessions you add on the Sessions page, click Add Speaker on that page to add speakers to a session instance.
If you are using the Conference Sessions layout (see "Conference Sessions"), you can assign different speakers to different instances of a session.
You can upload a Speaker’s Agreement document for a speaker; and you can access a speaker’s sessions when viewing their speaker record, in addition to seeing them on the Sessions page.
Speaker Email Templates
To send emails to speakers, first set up at least one template on Promote > Communication > Speaker Email Templates.
The dynamic data fields you can append to those emails include speaker fields and session fields, plus any custom fields you’ve set up on Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Setup > Custom Fields (see "Custom Fields").
Sessions on Forms
To enable attendees to select sessions as part of the registration process, go to Plan > Forms, edit the form, and add a Sessions section to the form on its Setup page.
On the Sessions section configuration page, click Session Display Options to customize the display of the contents of Session Sections. You only need to edit these customization fields where you don't want to use the default values. Note that these settings apply to all session sections in the form. These include the labels on buttons, such as “Add to My Schedule”, and the text of messages such as “Waitlist Full”.
If you select Enable Search, a Session Search area will be shown at the top of any form page that includes a Sessions Section.
There the registrant can click to search in or
to filter the sessions that have been published for their attendee type. If the event has a long list of sessions, this makes it easier for the registrant to find the ones they want to attend.
When searching, the registrant can enter any part of a Session Name, Session Description, Speaker's First Name, or Speaker's Last Name. Searches are not case-sensitive. The list of sessions displayed is limited to those returned by the search or filter.
A filter only shows information included in the unfiltered records. For example, if the registrant chooses to filter on Tags, they see only those tags in use in records on the sessions being listed.
In the form, the attendee can add to their schedule any of the scheduled session instances that have been published for their attendee type. (See “Publish Sessions”)
Caution: The Sessions section must therefore always come after the Attendee Type section in the form, so that the form can list the correct sessions.
Assigning sessions using Form Logic
You can also choose to assign sessions via logic rules. When adding a rule on Forms > Logic, use the 'Assign Sessions' action.
Warning: Sessions are always published for specific attendee types. So if a logic rule tries to assign a session to an attendee of any other attendee type, it will fail.
Best Practice Note: Don’t use logic to assign sessions limited by capacity. If the session were full, it wouldn't be assigned, but the registrant wouldn't see a warning.
Scheduling
Select the SCHEDULER view under Session List on the Sessions page to display a grid view showing when and where session instances are scheduled.
This is also where you can schedule sessions by date/time and location. Essentially, click a date/time slot on the grid and select the session to schedule. This is an alternative to scheduling each session individually while editing it.
You schedule each session occurrence by date/time and location, so you need to have added the locations on Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Locations (see "Locations").
If the Standard Sessions layout is in use, each session has only one instance. If the Conferences Sessions layout is selected (see "Conference Sessions"), each session in Sessions has an Instances field: the number of times that session takes place. You schedule each of those instances, either here on the SCHEDULER or when editing the session itself.
You choose how to see the schedule: in a Day, 3 Day, Week or Month calendar view. (The last two are only for “helicopter’ perspective. You can only schedule sessions in the Day or 3 Day views.)
To add a session to the schedule:
1. Ensure the current calendar view is Day or 3 Days.
2. If required, click Color to select what color to show sessions in: Track, Type, or Level.
3. Navigate to the required date in the schedule.
4. Click that date to display the list of available sessions.
5. Select a session. That's it – the session is now scheduled!
To change the scheduled date, time, or location of a session instance, drag it from its current time slot to its new one. To remove a session occurrence from the schedule, select it in the schedule and then click Unschedule.
Assigning Sessions to Attendees
When you assign a session to an attendee, you are actually assigning an instance of that session: an instance scheduled for a particular date and time, in a particular location.
There are two ways to do this:
1. For one attendee at a time, on Manage > Registration > Sessions
2. For multiple attendees at the same time, on Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Bulk Assignment
Before you can assign attendees to a session, you will first need to have scheduled at least one of that
session’s instances (see “Scheduling”), and to have published the session for at least one attendee type. That makes the session instances available for assignment to attendees.
Assignments to One Attendee
To assign sessions to one attendee, first go to the attendee’s registration, under Manage > Registrations. For example, click Find on the Event Dashboard (Manage > Registrations), or Search in the Global Navigation Buttons (top right of any page).
Then click Sessions in the Left Navigation Panel.
The attendee's session instances are listed by date and time. Click Add Session(s) to open a pop-up modal Add Sessions window.
The Add Sessions window lists the sessions that can be assigned to the attendee: those with space available (that is, that haven't reached their capacity), and which have been published for the attendee's attendee type.
To filter the sessions displayed, you can enter or select details in one or more of the filter fields at the top of the window: Search (enter any part of a Session Name), Event Track(s), Session Type(s), Tag(s), Date.
If you select the Show only Waitlisted Sessions check box, the list will include only sessions that are full but have space on a waiting list. (That's determined by the Capacity and Waitlist Limit on the session record, and the number of attendees already waitlisted.)
Select the check box(es) for the session(s) to assign, then click Assign Session(s) in this pop-up window.
Note: You can only assign up to 10 sessions at a time. To assign more, do so in batches of 10.
Details shown for each session include Session Name, Track, Type, Location, and Availability (the number of slots available – session Capacity minus the number of assigned attendees).
Note: The number of slots available only decreases when the event status is ”Live” and the attendee being assigned the session is not a "Test" registration.
Click a session to show its Speaker(s); click it again to hide that information.
The details shown may include one or both of these icons:
– Overlap. The session overlaps with another – one that's either selected in the list or already assigned to the attendee.
This is only possible if Allow Overlapping Sessions for Registrations is selected for the event (under "Speaker and Session Management" on Plan > Configure > Options).
– Waitlist. The session instance is fully subscribed, but there is space on its waitlist.
Session List
When you’ve clicked Assign Session(s) in the pop-up window, to save the new assignment(s), the list of the attendee’s sessions includes the addition(s).
The details shown for each assignment are like those in the pop-up window, and may include either or both of the two icons:
– Overlap. The session overlaps with another one that's assigned to the attendee.
– Waitlist. The attendee is waitlisted for the session.
Note: To assign a waitlisted attendee to the session, change the status to Registered; this is possible only if someone else has canceled, making space now available.
Changing Status
You can change the Status of a session assignment, as follows:
| From | To | When |
| Waitlisted | Cancelled | Always |
| Waitlisted | Registered | Capacity is Available |
| Registered | Cancelled | Always |
| Registered | No Show | Always |
| Registered | Attended | Always |
| Cancelled | Registered | Capacity is Available |
Note: You cannot change the status to 'Waitlisted'. You can only do that by assigning a session that is full but has space on its waiting list.
Bulk Assignment
To assign sessions to several attendees at the same time, go to Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Bulk Assignment. By default, you will be on the Assign Sessions tab.
1. Select the session instance to be assigned. Registrations are then listed: all those of an attendee
type for which the session has been published, and who are not already registered for the same
session instance.
2. You can filter the sessions further by selecting an attendee type, and/or selecting a question and
then an answer to that question, and/or by typing any part of an attendee name. (The list is updated dynamically.)
3. Select the attendees to whom you want to assign the session occurrence, and click Save.
Note: A registrant cannot be assigned to sessions whose times overlap, unless the event has the option to "Allow Overlapping Sessions for Registrations" set under “Speaker and Session Management” on Plan > Configure > Options.
Unassigning Sessions
To cancel the assignment of sessions to attendees, go to Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Bulk
Assignment > and click the Unassign Sessions tab.
1. Select the session instances to be unassigned. The attendees with that instance assigned to them are listed.
2. You can filter the registrations listed in the same way as you can for assigning sessions.
3. Select the attendees for whom you want to cancel their assignment of the session occurrence, and click Save.
Assignments via Import
You can assign sessions to attendees, or even change the status of existing assignments by importing a file.
Go to Manage > Registrations > Import, and select “Registration Session Instances” as the data to import.
Prepare an Excel or .CSV file with these four columns:
-
-
-
- Registration Code
- Session Code
- Instance Code
- Registration Session Status ("Registered", "Cancelled", "No Show, "Attended", or "Waitlisted")
-
-
Step through the wizard to upload your data file and map the columns in the file to fields in the database.
Speaker Portal
Introduction
The Speaker Portal Section of this guide is only applicable if the Conference Sessions layout is in use for the event. (see "Conference Sessions")
If that’s not the case for your event(s), please jump ahead to Reports. See "Reports Page"
When the Conference Sessions layout is selected an event, you can configure a speaker portal for that event. It’s a way for speakers to register and submit their papers, or for someone to do so on their behalf.
While the speaker’s abstract is being reviewed (see “Reviewing Session”), they log in to the speaker portal to see any tasks assigned (especially a reviewer requesting changes), upload a revised abstract, mark tasks “done”, or even upload additional abstracts.
Once their submission has been qualified (see “Qualify Sessions”), they can upload their
presentation.
Note: If you’re setting up a Reviewer Portal (see "Reviewer Portal"), you must set up the Speaker Portal first.
Adding and Editing a Speaker Portal
To configure a Speaker Portal for your event, go to Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Speaker Portal.
There are four configuration pages for a Speaker Portal, accessed via the left navigation panel. First edit and save the details on the Settings page – that creates the portal and enables access to the other three pages.
• Settings
• Layout & Color
• Branding
• Pages
Settings
The Settings page enables you to edit some general settings for the Speaker Portal, including its name and date and time display formats. When saved, it shows you the URL for the portal, and enables access to the other configuration pages.
That also creates default emails to be sent to speakers on successful submission and approval. You can modify these or create different ones in Promote > Communication> Speaker Email Templates.
Site Layout
On the Site Layout page (reached by clicking Layout & Color in the Left Navigation Panel), you choose and configure the color palette and navigation bar.
Choose Palette
Choose a color palette from the list: “Default Palette”. “Autumn Palette”, “Cool Palette”, etc. Your choice is applied immediately to the layout on the right.
Hover your mouse over a palette to display an icon you can click to list the colors in that palette, and where they are used. You can then customize any of those colors.
Choose a NavBar Position
Choose whether the navigation bar should be Horizontal or Vertical, and whether the menu options should be shown as Icons &Titles or Titles Only.
Branding
On the Branding page, you define the branding for the Speaker Portal: the logo and how it's displayed.
Use the Standard Logo Bar – If selected, the logo bar is of standard size, in the color determined by the selected Color Palette. Click Browse to upload a logo; recommended size 100px wide x 40px high.
Use a Custom Header Graphic – If this is selected instead, the header will consist of this graphic only. Click Browse to upload an image; recommended size 1500px wide x 100px high.
You can click Add a Link to the Above Graphic to add the URL of a website or webpage to be opened if the speaker clicks the graphic. This is optional, but particularly appropriate if the image is for an event sponsor.
Pages
The pages available in a speaker portal are preconfigured, but you can click the Pages link in the Left Navigation panel to open the Pages configuration page, where you can:
• Choose which pages are included on the Speaker Portal for an event, and in what order
• Customize the titles and icons to be used for those pages on the navigation bar
• Edit some of those pages (not “My Tasks” or “Add Abstract”)
• Add new pages
• Preview the site
To add new pages, to which you then add rich content, click Add New. (See overleaf.)
To edit a page, click in the Actions column for that page. The editing facilities are much the same as for editing the session layout.
To preview the speaker portal, click Preview Site.
Page List
When you click the Pages link in the left navigation panel, the portal’s pages are listed on the right with these details:
• Icon – The icon shown on the navigation bar (when “Icons & Titles” is selected for display on the Layout & Color configuration page). To use a different icon, click the adjacent down-arrow to select a new one from the built-in library.
• Title – The name shown below the icon on the navigation bar in the speaker speaker portal; for example, "My Information" for the My Information page, etc.
• Click a title to edit it.
• Best practice: Keep titles as short as possible, to maximize legibility on the navigation bar
when used on a mobile device.
• Show – For the My Tasks page, set to Yes to include the page in the speaker portal. For the Register Speaker and Add Abstract pages, set to Open, or Closed. The latter makes the page
available only after logging in.(that is, after the Login page).
• Actions – Click to edit the page content (not available for all pages), or to delete it (available only for pages you’ve added).
Note that once you have deleted a page, it cannot be recovered.
• Grab to Reorder - Drag and drop rows to change the order of pages.
Note that the Login page has a padlock instead of a hand icon, because it cannot be moved.
Login
The page on which a speaker can submit a proposal, or can sign in to their personalized Speaker Portal. (Editable.)
My Information
The speaker's information, as entered on the Register Speaker page (see below), and as can be edited on Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Speakers. (Editable.)
My Tasks
A list of the tasks assigned to the speaker by reviewers. They can click Done on each one. (Not editable.)
My Sessions
The session(s) at which the speaker is speaking. (Editable. May be marked Read Only.)
Register Speaker
Submit the details of a new speaker. *(Editable. May be marked Open or Closed.)
Add Abstract
Upload a new abstract. (Fixed content. May be marked Open or Closed.)
New Basic Pages
Click Add New (in the upper right corner of the Pages configuration page) to add a new page to the speaker portal, to which you add your own rich content.
For example, you might have an “FAQ” page, and a “Submission Guidelines” page.
You see the page added to the end of the list of pages in the left navigation panel. Click in the Actions column to edit it.
That opens the Basic Page Details panel, where you configure the page as follows
Edit the Page Title (the name shown on the navigation bar) from the default: "New Basic Page".
Click Layout to expand the Layout area and edit the page layout in the following areas:
• Accessible to Speaker Type:
Select the speaker type(s) who can see the page.
Note that each speaker type may only have one added page available to them, although one page may be available to multiple speaker types.
For the first added page, you select from a list of all the speaker types set up on Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Speakers, plus "All".
For subsequent added pages, the list is of those speaker types that do not already have a page
available to them.
Note that if you select "All" speaker types for a page, that must be the only added page. If you've already added any others, they are deleted when you save the one available to "All". (You have the opportunity to confirm or cancel.)
• Layout Editor: Use this area in the middle of the page to add and format your text.
• Insert Graphic:
To add a graphic to the layout, click the spot where you want to place the graphic, click Insert
Graphic, and Browse for the file on your computer. The image is displayed immediately in the
layout. (There isn't a separate "upload" step.)
• Choose a Form Field:
To add personalized fields to the layout from the Speaker's profile record, click the spot in the
layout, where you want to place the field and click Choose a Form Field.
In the list of the fields available (Profile First Name, Profile Last Name, etc.), click the field to add.
The Login Page
The Login page on the Speaker Portal has two functions:
1. A prospective speaker can click SUBMIT A PROPOSAL to go to the Register Speaker page on which they enter their details and upload their abstract
2. A registered speaker can log in by entering their Username and Password.
When you edit the Login page, apart from the usual editing facilities described above, you can also change the labels used for the proposal prompt (“If you are a speaker …”), buttons (“Submit a Proposal” and “Sign In”), and fields (“Username” and “Password”).
And at any time you can choose to Close Proposal Period, after which potential speakers can no longer submit proposals.
Reviewing Sessions
Note: Relevant only if the Conference Sessions product is in use.
If that’s not the case for your event(s), please jump ahead to Reports page. See "Reports"
Go to Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Review Sessions to see an overview of the current status of reviews in your event. A funnel chart shows the number of sessions with each status: Submitted, Under Review, and Approved. A second chart illustrates the data per tier.
The links in the left navigation panel are as follows, with further details below:
• Tiers: Create tiers to assign to your reviewers. See Tiers – the next section below.
• Manage Reviews: Accept or reject sessions, or move them on to the next tier for review.
• Reviewers: Add and edit the reviewers who will review sessions. See page 18 below.
Tiers
You can create up to five tiers to which you can assign reviewers. Reviewers will review the sessions that you pass to their tier for review.
One “Default Tier” is created automatically. You can rename it and add others.
To add or edit tiers go to Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Session Reviews> Tiers.
For each tier, set up the following information:
• Tier Name –For example, "Initial Review" or "Senior Team".
• Due Date – The date by which reviews are due. (Optional, unless you will be sending Review
Reminder emails – see under Email Templates immediately below.)
• Can see the reviews in the Tier(s) – Applicable only if you have more than one tier.
Select the other tiers (if any) from which users in this tier can see the reviews.
For example, if you have four tiers you might allow reviewers in the first tier to see no other
reviews, but reviewers in the fourth tier to see reviews from the third tier or even all earlier tiers.
• Privileges – If your workflow requires either of these options, you can choose to allow reviewers to edit the sessions they’re reviewing and/or to approve them.
Email Templates
For each tier, you also select the Email Templates to be used for notifications that will be generated
automatically and sent to reviewers.
Default email templates are created automatically when you create the Reviewer Portal. You can edit those or add new ones on Promote > Communication > Reviewer Email Templates.
• When Assigned – The email to be sent to a reviewer when a session is assigned to them.
• Upon Review Completion – The email to be sent to a reviewer when they have completed a review.
• Review Reminder – (Available for completion only when you set a Due Date.) The email is to be sent automatically (at the frequency you select) to a reviewer until they have completed a review. Select the frequency: Once a day, Once every 2 days, or Once every 3 days.
Recommendations
Configure when Certain will provide an Approval Recommendation for a Session in this Tier.
• Add Recommendation – Click this to add the following fields for you to complete:
• For Column – Select a column: either Score or a numeric Custom Field of class "Session Review".
• Average Score is above: Select a score between 1 and 10.
• OR the Percentage of Reviews completed is: Select a percentage between 1 and 100.
Choose what the recommendation will be for: either a Target Tier (the tier to which the session should be passed for its next review), or Approval (meaning the session would become “Qualified”).
By default, you see and process these recommendations in Manage Reviews, described next.
If instead you select Process Recommendations Automatically, recommendations will be processed every few minutes. If a session meets its tier’s criterion it automatically moves to the selected tier or is approved.
Managing Reviews
To accept or reject sessions, or move them to review, go to Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Session Reviews > Manage Reviews.
You can process reviews in bulk or individually.
Click the relevant button to determine the list of sessions displayed: those that are Submitted, Under Review, or Approved. You can filter the list by Track, by Type (e.g. Keynotes, Hands on Labs, etc.), or by a field in which you can type any part of a Session Name, Code, or Description.
To manage an individual session, click the relevant icon:
Accept: Move the session status to "Qualified"
Reject: Move the session status to "Rejected"
Send to Review:
If your event has multiple tiers, select the tier to send the session to for review.
If your event has only one tier, it is selected automatically.
The reviewer(s) assigned to the selected tier will then be able to review the session
using the Reviewer Portal.
To drill down to a session’s reviews, click the Score for that session on the list of Sessions Under Review.
To process recommendations for reviewed sessions, click Recommendations on the list of Sessions Under Review. You can then process them all automatically or individually. (You configure recommendations per tier on Session Reviews > Tiers – see "Tiers") Recommendations are to move the session to a particular tier for review, or to approve it.
Note: Recommendations are not shown for sessions on tiers with recommendations set to “Process
Recommendations Automatically”, as described under Tiers, above
Reviewers
Note: Essential if a Reviewer Portal is to be used in the event.
Reviewers are the people who will be reviewing sessions submitted for the event. They do this on the Reviewer Portal described next.
To add, edit or import reviewers, go to Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Session Reviews > Reviewers.
Reviewer records are automatically added to the account’s Profile database, with additional information on the Reviewers page. Much of the information is therefore self-explanatory contact information.
Note that the Username must be unique in the account. The reviewer will use this with their Password to access the Reviewer Portal.
If permitted to do so, Reviewers may edit their own records when logged in to the Reviewer Portal, the same place they review the papers assigned to them.
The two event-specific fields for a reviewer are:
• Tier: (Required) The tier in which the reviewer will be reviewing sessions. The default is the first tier. Tiers are set up on Session Reviews > Tracks, as described above.
• Track(s): The track(s) whose papers the reviewer is assigned to review.
Tracks are set up on Speakers and Sessions > Tracks. See "Tracks".
Reviewer Portal
Introduction
The Reviewer Portal Section of this guide is only applicable if the Conference Sessions layout is in use for the event.
If that’s not the case for your event(s), please jump ahead to Reports. See "Reports"
Before you can configure the reviewer portal, you need to complete your configuration of two other areas, since they are used as the basis of certain areas of the reviewer portal:
1. The session layout – see "Sessions Layout"
2. The Speaker Portal – see "Speaker Portal".
When the Conference Sessions layout is selected an event, you can configure a reviewer portal for that event. This is where reviewers can review the sessions in the tracks to which they are assigned.
Adding and Editing a Reviewer Portal
To configure a Reviewer Portal for your event, go to Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Reviewer Portal.
Much like the Speaker Portal, there are four configuration pages for a Reviewer Portal, accessed via the left navigation panel. First edit and save the details on the Settings page – that creates the portal and enables access to the other three pages.
• Settings
• Layout & Color
• Branding
• Pages
Settings
On the Reviewer Portal Settings page you can edit some general settings for the portal, including its name and date and time display formats. Clicking Save it shows you the URL for the portal, and enables access to the other configuration pages.
That also creates default emails to be sent to reviewers advising them of assignment or deadlines. You can modify these in Promote > Communication> Reviewer Email Templates, and assign them to Tiers on Manage > Speakers and Sessions > Session Reviews > Setup (see "Reviewing Sessions").
Site Layout
On the Site Layout page (reached by clicking Layout & Color in the Left Navigation Panel), you choose and configure the color palette and navigation bar. The defaults come from the Site Layout of the Speaker Portal.
Branding
On the Branding page, you define the branding for the Reviewer Portal: the logo and how it's displayed.
The default is what you configured for the Speaker Portal—see "Speaker Portal"—but you can choose to configure the Reviewer portal differently.
The options are the same: whether to use the Standard Logo Bar or a Custom Header Graphic, and (for the latter) a link to a website or webpage to be opened if the reviewer clicks the graphic.
Pages
The pages available in a reviewer portal are preconfigured, but you can click the Pages link in the Left Navigation panel to open the Pages configuration page, where you can:
• Choose which pages are included in the Reviewer Portal for an event, and in what order
• Customize the titles and icons to be used for those pages on the navigation bar
• Edit certain pages
• Add new pages
• Preview the site
To add new pages, to which you then add rich content, click Add New.
To edit a page, click in the Actions column for that page. The editing facilities are the same as for the Speaker Portal; that is, much the same as for editing the session layout.
To preview the reviewer portal, click Preview Site.
When you click the Pages link in the left navigation panel, the portal’s pages are listed on the right with these details:
• Icon – The icon shown on the navigation bar (when “Icons & Titles” is selected for display on the Layout & Color configuration page). To use a different icon, click the adjacent down-arrow to select a new one from the built-in library.
• Title – The name shown below the icon on the navigation bar in the reviewer portal; for example, “Login” or "My Information".
• Click a title to edit it.
• Best practice: Keep titles as short as possible, to maximize legibility on the navigation bar
when used on a mobile device.
• Show – Only available for new pages you have added. Set to Yes to include the page in the reviewer portal, or No to hide it.
• Read Only – Only available for the My Information page. Set to No by default, meaning reviewers can edit their own details. Set to Yes to make the information read-only.
• Actions – Click to edit the page content (not available for all pages), or
to delete it (available only for pages you’ve added).
Note: once you’ve deleted a page, it cannot be recovered.
• Reorder - Drag and drop rows to change the order of pages.
Note that the Login page has a padlock instead of a hand icon, because it must always be first.
Login
The page on which a reviewer can log in to the portal.
Review Sessions
The reviewer sees the session(s) assigned to them, and reviews them.
My Information
The reviewer’s information, as entered by the planner– see "Reviewers".
Reports
To report on Speaker and Session Management information go to Reports/Analyze > Summary Reports.
Standard reports are available under Event Session Summary Reports, or you can click Add Report to add a new custom report.
Event Session Summary Reports
• Event Session Summary Report – A summary of the total quantity selected by complete
registrations for each of the event's sessions.
• Event Session Status Summary Report – A summary of the registrations for each session, grouped by session status.
• Event Session and Speaker Summary Report – A summary list of all qualified sessions and their
speakers. (A useful “to do” list: what sessions haven’t been published, or scheduled.)
• Sessions Report – A detailed list of all the sessions in an event, showing the information set up on the Sessions page.
• Speakers Report – A detailed list of all speakers at the event, as can be seen (and edited) on the
Speakers page.
Custom Reports
The following custom report types are available when you click Add Report:
• Session Data Reports
• Registration Sessions –Returns one row per session, per active registration.
• Conflict Report – Returns one row per session per registration, where the session conflicts with an appointment for that registration. (Requires the Appointment Module.)
• Registrations with Sessions – Returns one row per registration, including session instances as
columns.
• Session Ratings – Returns one row per session, per registration, where the session has been rated (in Certain Mobile or an Event View).
• Registration Sessions Status – Returns one row per session, per registration, including cancelled registrations.
• Speaker Session Data Reports
• Sessions with Instances – Returns one row per speaker, per instance, per session. For example, a session with 3 scheduled instances and 2 speakers will return 6 rows: 1 session x 3 instances x 2 speakers.
• Sessions with Speakers – Returns one row per speaker per session, including any sessions without speakers.
• Speakers – Returns one row per speaker, listing speaker information. All Speaker fields are available in Columns, Groups, Filters and Custom.
• Sessions – Returns one row per session. The "Speakers" column includes a list of the session's master speakers (those assigned at the session level, not at the instance level).
Note: the “Speakers” column returns data only if the Conferences sub-module is enabled.
• Speakers Session Instances with Registrations – Same as "Sessions with Instances" report, plus registrations for each scheduled instance. That is: Returns one row per registration, per speaker, per scheduled instance, per session.
• Session Consolidated Report – Returns one row per speaker, per scheduled instance, per session. Includes any sessions without any scheduled instances.
• Reviewer Data Reports
• Reviewer – Returns one row per reviewer.
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