Practical tips for emcee openings & moderator for panel discussion

By Jasmine Liew, Co -Chair of Singapore Talent & Recruit Show, HRM Asia 2017

I was invited by HRM Asia to be the Co-Chair, Emcee & Panel discussion moderator during the "Talent & Recruitment Show" held on 1- 2 Mar 2017. This year's theme was "Attracting, Recruiting & Developing the Workforce for the New Economy". I was extremely exhilarated as it was a chance for me to listen and learn from my HR fraternity about the latest trends and best HR practices and to contribute to this profession. However, I was a bit hesitant and feeling gingerly as it was a 2 weeks notice before the congress but I decided to gamely take up this new challenge to be the co-chair. I always believe in stretching myself out of my comfort zone to learn and have a growth mindset rather than having a fixed mindset. Sometimes, time pressure will make a person discover one's strengths and expand one's capabilities.

I was ambivalent as I have not moderated a panel discussion although I was an emcee for organization functions and for my volunteer groups. Moreover, the speakers were notable HR leaders and of C-suite calibre. Emcee and Panel Moderator are totally different roles which require different preparation and skill set although there could be similar skills . The role of an emcee & panel discussion moderator have similar "job description"-connecting with the speakers & audience, keeping energy alive, igniting powerful questions and having effective time management.

To help readers who have not moderate a panel discussion, are new to moderate a panel discussion or want to enhance their emcee opening and moderation of panel discussion, let me share some tips to excel as a moderator with ease and confidence. I will also be sharing on how I craft strong openings for each topic before I introduced the speaker on stage for their presentations . Besides my personal tips, some of these tips that I applied were generously shared by a great friend Benjamin Loh.

CONNECT before the actual day -I had contacted my panelists and linked everyone via WhatsApp for self introduction. This had established connection virtually as the HR leaders had tight working schedule to meet face to face before the congress. In most cases, the panelists are unlikely to meet before hand or they could only meet each other on the actual day of the conference. Hence, a lot of pre-work is needed to build connection with the panelists and for the panelists to know one another in an informal way. It will prevent the awkwardness of knowing one another only on the day of the congress or worse just before their panel discussion.

I had shared my modus operandi of the panel discussion to the panelists before actual conference via watsapp.

• 1) Remind them on the list of questions
• 2) Duration allowed for each panelist to share their insights per question, 5-10 mins Q & A allocated for the audience at the end.
• 3) Sequence of panelists answering each question. I will rotate each panelist to take turns to answer the question first. Each round of sharing for each question will start from different panelist so as to provide fair distribution for each panelist.
• 4) How to go on stage? I will introduce each panelist and once I finished introducing them, I would invite all of them on stage.

5) Length of the panelist's profile to be read: To be fair to each panelist, the length of  each panelist's profile should be about the same; not too lengthy or too short so that similar "air-time" for each panelist is given when reading out their profiles.

6) Eye contact between me as the moderator and the panelists and the panelists with the audience. When I asked the questions to each panelist, they need to have eye contact with me and thereafter, when they shared their thoughts, they will look at the audience rather than me as the panel moderator. Imagine the panelists have eye contact with the moderator when sharing their views but not facing the audience will lead to a disconnect with the audience.

7) Seating etiquette: I have noticed situations where female panelists wore short skirts on stage which may be unsightly and also, the female panelist herself and the audience felt uncomfortable. Thus, I reminded my female panelist to avoid wearing short skirt even for myself as a moderator.

8) Seating arrangement: I also found out from the organizer what kind of chairs will the hotel provide for the panelists ; the chair were stable, not too comfortable like sofa seats nor chairs that are too tall.

Next is to Prepare. "No one plans to fail but fail to plan". Being a strong planner who prefers to state my thoughts and process flow on paper, I had prepared a script on what to say as it became my prep work, mental model and process flow. For every opening of each speaker's presentation and panel discussion, I had done my "homework" through research and crafting purposeful , relevant and impactful statements that resonate with the HR topic and or, HR audience. 

The intent of the panel discussion is to focus on the panelists' sharing of their experiences, hence the moderator should not dominate most of the sharing and take the "limelight". Likewise, the moderator must be tactful and skillful to prevent a panelist from dominating the sharing by asking other panelists to share their views. For example "Panelist xxxx, what are your thoughts?". The moderator can ask further questions to clarify and probe for more responses from the panelists. If all the replies are shared and there is remaining time, the moderator needs to ask more questions or could also share one's personal experience and ask the panelists to add on their views to "buy time".

Be curious & be interested in your panelists & speakers : Find out about your panelists' and speakers' organizations profile on the web to gives you a better understanding of their organizations' vision, mission, industry, products and services. Discover about the panelists' background and work profile through Linkedin. Find out from the speakers and panelists how would they prefer you to address them on stage. Do practice how to pronounce their names and organizations correctly.Such pre work before the actual day enable you to know them before they know you. You can ask connecting questions, ignite chemistry and build bonding and understanding with them when you meet face to face.

My first Panel Discussion: Re-Inventing Performance Management: Why Are Companies Ditching Performance Ratings?

I started my openings with the following ways before introducing and inviting my panelists:

1) State a problem that is a double -edged sword Performance management aims to motivate and develop employees to perform to their abilities and potential and also align to the organisation’s vision, mission and business goals. However, performance management may seems to be demotivating rather than improving & developing the employees. 

2) Share a common challenge/pain that is experienced by the audience ( HR professionals) How many of us have the experience when staff disagreed with their performance ratings and complain to the HR? Can I have a show of hands? The bone of contention arises from whether the employee is appraised with fairness. What if these ratings are inaccurate based on bell curve?

I would like to thank my 3 notable and pleasant Panelists who shared enriching Performance Management experience. Their authentic sharing enabled me to moderate the discussion with ease : Seated on my left: Mr Fermin Diez, Deputy CEO & Group Director, National Council for Social Service, Ms Lisa Mulligan, International HR Director, ex Executive Director HR International, MRC Global, Mr ANG Gey Wee, Head of HR (Global Shoe Production & Sourcing), ECCO.

Seating arrangement: Noticed where I sat? If I stand at the rostrum to ask questions and moderate the discussion, it could be more formal and distant from my panelists. I decided to sit besides my panelists as "equals" and this seating arrangement will create a more relaxed and candid conversation of ideas rather than an interview. I also sat right to the end of the stage so that it was easier for my panelists to move up and down the stage easily in terms of "walking flow". For areas for improvement , the ceiling lights for the panel discussion could be brighter so that it the panelists look more refresh.

These were the Discussion Points/Questions that were given by the conference organizer on Performance Management. 

1. Are we really getting rid of performance metrics as we always know what gets measured gets done? Interestingly, all the panelists disagreed that performance metrics have to be removed. I reached a panic button and had to quickly think on the feet as the next 2 questions shown below are irrelevant.
2. What do we have in place of performance ratings?
3. How to remove performance ratings and still evaluate employees fairly?

I had to go with the flow of the panelists' replies and asked them an alternate question which sprang on the spot.  "Since we are not removing performance metrics, what are the better alternatives that will enhance a more effective and fairer performance appraisal system?" As an moderator, you have to be flexible and do not just follow with the plan blindly but change accordingly to the panelists' responses.

I had prepared "back-up" questions to get the panelists to elaborate in case there is less sharing or remaining time. My contingency questions were "How do know that the staff is actually performing and delivering the KPIs?· With the removal of performance ratings, how can we reward the staff in terms of promotion increment & bonuses?"

My 2nd day of Panel Discussion was on Strategies for Managing Multi Generation Workforce & Culture. My panelists and I had a great tea-break conversation before the panel discussion, sharing our thoughts on the multi-generational workforce and even our age to reveal which generation we were. The sincere sharing had spearheaded our panel discussion successfully. 

I started the opening by using a quote from a Thought Leader/Expert saying "The late Stephen Covey once said, “Strength lies in differences, not in similarities”. Organizations must redefine the workplace for a multigenerational workforce to thrive and contribute; harnessing their diversity & strengths of each generation. This means that organizations and their employees will need to understand how work is done differently in different generations including motivational needs, interactions and working styles.

I would like to thank these 3 gentlemen panelists from my left- we are truly of the same generation and I'm being the most senior in age : Mr Veli Aghdiran, APAC Talent Development & Cultural Director, Essence, Mr Eoin Henry, VP, APAC Talent Acquisition Manager, Bank of America Merrill Lynch & Mr Tery Chua, Head of Learning & Talent Development, Jurong Port. The 2 discussion points were : 1) How do companies prepare for and manage the 5 Generations? 2) What are the keys to success as the workforce continues to evolve?

Meet your panelists on actual day before the panel discussion to build common understanding & rapport: Our informal conversation during the earlier tea-break had created a lot of synergy in terms of smooth flowing ideas and insights like an interconnected storyline from the start to the end during the panel discussion.   

The panelists shared their thoughts that we should not label, be biased and pigeon-holed people from the 5 generations. As a panelist moderator, you had to be present and be in sync with the panelists' responses. You can add further related questions or insights if there is sufficient time. I had encouraged the panelists to share their personal experiences in which they had led or worked with a great multi-generational team. What are the success factors for this team and what were the impacts of a multi-generational team? One panelist even mentioned that although we may not be "millennials" based on our age, we had been using WhatsApp communication to prepare for this conference before we met face to face, so that everyone will be in the same page of understanding. At that juncture, I was sharp enough to add on "Yes, you are right! We have not met in person before the conference but we have communicated via WhatsApp and it was so much faster than email." This form of synergy was natural and a moderator should capture such moments to emphasis common understanding and give real examples to illustrate the points made by the panelists.

As an emcee these are the ways of giving impactful and relevant openings before introducing the speaker and the topic and inviting the speaker on stage. For instance, giving an emcee opening to invite the speaker on Cultural Intelligence (CQ): The Essential Intelligence For 21st Century by Prof Guido Gianasso Nanyang Business School, NTU

Using a recent data from Newspaper article : "Just last sat, 25 Feb 2017, The Straits Times shared the survey results conducted by United Overseas Bank with 3,000 parents, regarding the skills required for their children to be future-ready. The highest on the list is exposing them to different cultures. What about organizations, are we proactive or reactive in preparing & developing our talents with higher CQ to lead global teams? 

Another way of opening is to capitalize on a strong statement from an expert in this topic.  “Organizations often appoint leaders for their IQ. Then, years later, sack them for their lack of EQ. Common Purpose argues that in the future they will promote for CQ - Cultural Intelligence.” ― Julia Middleton, Cultural Intelligence: CQ: The Competitive Edge for Leaders Crossing Borders

Combine the strong statement made by the expert with metaphor                  

Getting the Right Talent into the Right Role Using Succession Planning by Mr Ajit ,Chief Talent Officer, Sinarmas Agri-Business & Food. I started my opening "Dave Ulrich said that “succession planning does not start with people. It starts with the requirements of the job.” Added my personal metaphor "Finding the right talent is like finding the right pierce of jigsaw puzzle to fit into the succession planning jigsaw."

Using personal anecdotes as opening leveraging on a current "talk of the town". For instance, this topic "Managing Rewards in an Economic Downturn" by Ms Anita Zuo, Director of Reward & Recognition & HRIS APAC, Electrolux. I started by saying "Recently, I was facilitating a conference focus group, the delegates in the group were lamenting about the upcoming increase of 30% in our water prices yet why their salaries do not increase to 30%? Likewise, these could be the expectations of your employees to increase salary to meet rising costs. However, in an economic downturn, organizations have to tighten or reduce the financial budget to provide monetary rewards. How can we keep our talent motivated with a tight/reduced budget?

Use questions to illustrate the purpose and content of subject: From Descriptive to Predictive: How Analytics Can Drive Your Business Strategy by Mr Ng Yee Zer, Greater Asia Region Talent Marketplace Program Manager, Intel.  My opening was "Data can only be powerful in making business decision and shape business strategies if you know what is the purpose of analyzing the data & what are the conclusive findings you gather from the data?"

Improving your probability of success: Developing, Engaging and Retaining High Performers by Mr Gary Lee is the Chief HR Specialist, Global Talent Development, Group OD, Grundfos. My opening was "High Performers are one of the forerunners to drive business performance. How have you select the high performers? How have you develop them to be future leaders of the organization, willing to chart the organization forward? How could the organization increases the probability of successful high potential?"

I have not attend any emcee and panel moderator training except being a Toastmaster, took part in story-telling and won speech competitions during school days. I'm a self-learnt emcee by observing great speakers and emcees and seek continuous improvement.  I hope my personal experiences and practical tips can help you to prepare, plan and perform your role as a conference emcee and moderator for Panel discussion.  

I have benefitted from this congress experience and would like to sincerely thank HRM Asia, Ms Domenica standing on the centre together with my HR veteran Chair- Ms Joanna Yeoh on the extreme left in the above photo. Kudos to the speakers and the panelists for making this conference a success as HR transforms for the New Economy- to be disrupted... to be reinvented... to be renewed.