Content

• Steps

A podium discussion is a public exchange of ideas with the aim of informing the audience about any issue. In most cases, 3 or more participants, answering certain questions, share their knowledge and expertise, in a format that allows some discussion. Podium discussions are used to immerse yourself in a political, scientific or social topic, as well as to address many other issues. Use the guidelines below to organize a podium discussion in your group, organization, or company.

Steps

1. 1 Define the goals and objectives of your podium discussion. Formulate what you want to achieve through the discussion and what questions to get answers to. Concentrate on 1 or 2 topics to keep the discussion organized.
2. 2 Invite experts as participants.
   • Select knowledgeable, educated experts or people involved in the topic chosen for your podium discussion. Invite local government and community representatives if you want to have a public discussion. Participants do not need to have impressive scientific degrees or years of work experience to offer an interesting presentation.
   • Invite attendees at least 3 weeks before the event so they have time to prepare.
3. 3 Select and invite a host.
   • Choose a presenter who is not involved in the conflict of interest represented in the podium discussion topic.
   • Choose a facilitator who is capable of driving the discussion, adhering to time and thematic time frames, and rules for conducting a podium discussion.
4. 4 Develop rules for podium discussion.
   • Set a framework for open discussion if you want to have it in this format. Open Podium Discussion Forums typically begin with a question and a discussion between participants based on their comments. The discussion framework includes time limits for discussion of each of the issues.
   • Set a time frame for the limited discussion method. As a rule, each participant is given a certain amount of time, suggested by the facilitator, to answer each question. In this format, the participants do not discuss among themselves.
   • Decide how you will work with audience questions. Some discussion formats allow you to ask questions from the audience. In other cases, time is allocated for this after direct discussion.
   • Familiarize all invited participants with the discussion rules.
5. 5 Write questions for participants. These should be open-ended questions requiring a more common answer than yes or no. Prepare more questions than you need in case the discussion goes faster than expected.
6. 6 Organize filming of the podium discussion. Recording the discussion in digital format will allow you to upload the footage to the Internet without changing the format.
7. 7 Introduce and introduce all the participants at the very beginning of the podium discussion. Introduce the presenter, he should announce the purpose of the meeting to the audience and briefly outline the rules and features of the format of this discussion. The moderator should also provide a CV of all participants before the actual discussion of the topic begins.
8. 8 Lead the discussion according to the plan and in accordance with the established rules. The facilitator should ask questions and guide the discussion according to the plan.
9. 9 Close the podium discussion with short conclusions and closing comments. The facilitator should thank the audience and participants and offer information on follow-up activities.
10. 10 Send thank-you notes to all panelists and the moderator.