Presentations are critical part of sharing and growing as a professional. I’ve gone on the record more than once stating that to truly grow you have to get as comfortable as possible presenting. But it is not merely enough to present, we need to strive for great presentations.
So coming out of WCQI a fw thoughts.
Our Slides are Mostly Awful
Powerpoint is your co-facilitator. Use it well. Do not use powerpoint as a wall of text. I actually hear a speaker this week say he put lots of text in a slide so folks can use them without hearing him speak. Oh no. Stop that.
Great advice in this post about acessibility, something we should always be standardizing.
I love the index card idea. I will be using it my next presentation.
Every Presentation is a Training
While we may not do level 3 or 4 assessments (or even formal level 2), take the attitude that each and every presentation is a training and strive for effectiveness in design.
Presentations are a Continuous Cycle of Improvement
No one was born as a good trainer. Get a coach. Ask for help. Realize that your first presentation will not be as good as your second and etc. Put the time in.
Look for Opportunities
You have done something that others are interested in. Take pride in it and share. There are always great opportunities, like BOSCON, so find them and put in a proposal. You may not get accepted, but as I said above, it is a cycle of improvement.
Share your knowledge and experience with your peers!
Proposal Deadline: August 15, 2023
About the event
BOSCON is a key event for local, national, and international quality professionals to hear speakers discuss different quality topics and network. Each year hundreds gather at this BOSCON quality conference to share best practices, expand their network, and further develop their professional and personal growth from experts and professionals in multiple quality related fields. This year BOSCON 2023 will be held on November 6th and 7th, 2023.
We invite you to join us as a key contributor to the success of the 41st BOSCON Quality Conference hosted by ASQ – Boston. It encompasses two days of presentation by the most knowledgeable and innovative quality professionals at all levels.
Presentations will be offered in 4 tracks:
Technology and Innovations
Quality and Regulations for Lifesciences
Quality Tools and Continuous Improvement
Reliability, Maintenance & Managing Risk
Format
Presentations must be 50 minutes plus up to 10 minutes of Q&A. Presenters must be on site and receive free admission to the conference, the Exhibitor Hall, keynote addresses, and lunch. The Conference Committee will evaluate all proposals, but there are only 12 time slots available each day.
September 3rd: Applicants will be notified if the submitted proposal was accepted, confirmation requires a signed speaker agreement.
September 15th: Sign speaker agreement and submit.
October 8th : Submit final set of slides by October 8th.
Speaker Proposal Form
1. Title: (Max 50 characters)
Provide a clear and concise title to list and publicize your presentation. Consider including a tag line, e.g. – “Raising the Bar to Excellence – a CAPA journey.”
2. Description: (Max 100 Words)
Show the prime focus of your presentation and what the attendee(s) will learn.
Provide a short description of your session that will be posted on the conference website and distributed electronically to registrants. Consider identifying the intended audience (Management, Engineers, Quality Professionals, etc.) and what they will learn. Think of this as an advertising blurb to capture people’s attention and make them want to attend.
3. Session Abstract(s): (250-300 Words)
Please provide a more detailed overview of your proposed presentation for inclusion in the conference materials. Abstracts should include the following:
Introduction of the topic, including context and background (don’t repeat the Description above)
Objectives in terms of what you intend to communicate; what problem(s) are you addressing?
Approaches you intend to use to get your message across, e.g. – case studies, data analyses, tips & tricks, etc.
Key takeaways the audience should expect to learn.
4. Biographical Sketch: (150-200 Words)
Please provide a summary of your career and credentials for publishing in the conference proceedings. This information should be composed from the third person perspective. You may also include a link to your LinkedIn profile or website.
5. Contact Info & Credentials:
Name, address, email, phone, organization, title, and LinkedIn profile link.
6. Additional Info:
Anything that may increase the value or credibility of your proposal, for example, presenter’s relevant credentials or experience in the related field, etc. If the proposed or similar presentation has been presented in another venue, preferably a national venue, it will add to the credibility and interest to our audience; if the organization or the presenter has won relevant industry recognitions, such as awards or press citations, this will be of benefit in attracting attendees. Attachment of your presentation or an outline slide is welcome.
I would like encourage new speakers at BOSCON, and at ASQ events in general. I will make myself available to assist and coach individuals who want to speak. I will help you refine your proposal, review and propose edits to your slides, and do some speaker coaching. Let me know if you want some coaching through this blog’s Contact or on LinkedIn.
I am pretty excited that Boscon, the local ASQ section’s conference is back on and calling for proposals. So for local folks, a good time to share some best practices and case studies.
BOSCON is an annual quality conference hosted by ASQ Boston. BOSCON is the New England signature event where national and international quality professionals hear speakers discuss different quality topics and network with them. The conference focus for 2022 is Navigating Quality Performance in a post-Pandemic World (Risk management, Impact/risk & mitigation of pandemic on companies, Work-life balance, Resource management, Employee Safety, Virtual/ remote workspace, Customer satisfaction, Supply chain).
Not interested in presenting, but want to participate as a volunteer? Contact Snehal Rane Snehalrane90@gmail.com BOSCON 2022 Chair
B0SCON 2022 PRESENTATION PROPOSAL FORM
We invite you to submit your proposal(s) for BOSCON 2022 oriented towards one of the track areas above. Please provide a concise and clear description of your session topic and the values it provides to our attendees. 50 minutes are provided for your presentation and any Q&A.
KEY DATES
August 15th => Please complete the form referenced below and submit to both Snehalrane90@gmail.com and dmanalan@alum.mit.edu as soon as possible, and no later than August 15th.
September 1st => Applicants will be notified if the submitted proposal was accepted, confirmation requires a signed speaker agreement.
September 15th => Sign speaker agreement and submit.
October 1st => Submit final set of slides by October 1st.
Paul Gustafson, chair of the Pharmaceutical Inspection Co-operation Scheme (PIC/S) and a senior corporate regulatory compliance and enforcement advisor with Health Canada, stated that the plan was to issue the widely anticipated Annex 1 in mid-year 2022. He repeatedly said July to September so that is interesting news and start getting your contamination control strategies going. There will be a one-year period before in force, with 2 years on some of the lyophilizer requirements.
For those keeping track, it retains the provision calling for testing filters used in the sterilization process, pre-use, post-sterilization integrity testing (PUPSIT). The PUPSIT provision “has driven a substantial amount of discussion and has resulted in a number of papers being drafted,” said Gustafson. This was a very gracious understatement, and I have to admit I really admired his Canadian humor.
FDA continues to evaluate COVID inspection measures
Alonza Cruse, Director of the Office of Pharmaceutical Quality Operations at FDA/ORA did a thorough job going through the COVID measures of Remote Regulatory Assessments and Remote Interactive Evaluations and discussed how the agency was in the process of learning how best to do things going forward.
He also clearly state how they were continuing to get back to normal inspections and discussed new personnel in foreign offices, such as India.
Highlights from Panels
One of my favorite panels was Jo Ann Jacobs and Kara Vogt speaking on “Building Resiliency into Single-Use-Technology Systems” They laid out some good work they are doing as part of a startup to design good functional equivalency and supplier management, obviously learning from PPAP and similar measures. Quite well done. While it leans heavily into my own practice around functional equivalency it was good to see such a rock-solid implementation, and I felt like I learned a few good ideas.
I spoke on Contamination Control, Risk Management and the Quality Management System, having a blast doing so. I was followed by Christa Myers who spoke on “Contamination Control Strategy: From Annex 1 Draft Requirements to Implementation in Practice.” We made a good duo and between the two I hope participants got a real solid idea on how to do this contamination control strategy effectively.
Today I spoke at the ASQ Lean and Six Sigma Conference on sustaining change. Great crowd (though I felt bad for the folks sitting on the floor) and the session has spawned a bunch of great conversations that I hope continues in the future.
Investigations of a Dog 