Session Selection

Let's take some time and learn how Southeast Dreamin' does it's session selection.

This post is a recap of the Session Selection Informational Webinar presented on 2022-11-17. You can view the recording below. The slide deck is available here.

Session Submissions

On December 5th, 2022 we'll be opening up our Call for Presentations and will stay open until March 17th, 2023. When submitting sessions we looking for session for Admins, Developers, Architects, Business Analysts, Marketing, End Users and Nonprofits. Some examples of content could be teaching / demoing Salesforce products or features, success stories, lessons learned, case studies, group workshops or how-to guides. When submitting a session we are not interested in presentations that are selling a product / service or plagiarizing content that others produced.

Evaluation Criteria

After the Call for Presentations has concluded, a member of the Southeast Dreamin' team (or a trusted community member) will take the contents of the submissions and anonymize the title and abstract submitted. This will remove identifying information such as names, company information or Trailblazer Community awards (such as MVP, Golden Hoodie, Champion status, etc). Then, the information will be passed on to members of the Southeast Dreamin' team to vote and choose the sessions. (Note: The person who anonymizes the data will not participate in the voting process.)

Each member will individually evaluate each session and give it a ranking. The team's evaluations are determined by a couple of factors that lead to a score of a 0 to 5 with 5 being the a session that is highly desired. The individuals on the team look at the content of the abstract and title and provide a score based on the following questions

Is the topic relevant?

Does the session provide relevant information to the attendees? Is the content out of date or no longer viewed as the best practice.

Is it unique?

Does the session provide information that is not easily obtained else where in a better format? Does this session stand out from others that may be covering the same topic?

How many people would be interested in the topic?

While a session may be on an amazing part of the platform, if it's audience is limited to a very few number of attendees it may not be selected. We have to try to include sessions that many people in a single track would attend.

If I attend the session, what value do I receive?

According to the abstract, what should I walk away with? A clear list of learning objectives goes a long way.

Who benefits from the session?

Who is this session for? Outside of the specified track, it should be clear if this is for attendees just starting out on their journey or someone who has mastered the platform.

After all the team has had a chance to rate each session, then team comes together and chooses sessions. The first pass of sessions will fill 75% of our session slots blindly. This means we have no information about the person presenting, only the information in the title and abstract. After those sessions have been selected, the team fills in the names of the speakers and removes any speakers that may have been chosen more than once. Then the process is repeated until 75% of the sessions have been selected without any duplicate speakers. Then, the team will populate the demographic data of the selected speakers to understand which groups have been represented. Afterwards, the remaining 25% of the sessions will be populated by looking at their aggregate score as well as the needed demographic information to ensure that we have intentional inclusion and representation throughout our selected speakers. Some of the demographic information that the team will be looking at includes ...

• First time speakers at any event or function
• First time Southeast Dreamin' speakers
• BIPOC speakers
• Female, Trans & Non-binary speakers
• Speakers with disabilities

Selection Notification

If your session is selected you will be notified via email 1-2 weeks after the close of the call for presentations. You’ll need to accept your speaker invitation within 1 week of notification. If your session is not selected you will also be notified. While your session may not have been selected for a theater style session, you may be asked to present your session in a different format.

Selection Preparation

After the speaker has confirmed their spot, they will need to provide details to the team to have their information included on the website. Then speakers will need to provide a first draft of their slides to the team to review by a given date provided at session notification. Feedback on the session will be provided and optional coaching sessions will be provided to help with filling out presentations information. Two weeks before the event, final slides will be sent in to the team for final review.

First Time Southeast Dreamin' Speakers

If this is the first time a speaker has presented at Southeast Dreamin' then they will be required to have a dress rehearsal of their session prior to the final slide's due date. This will ensure that the speaker puts their best foot forward and provides a great session for all attendees.