Call for Presentations

We are eager to receive your session proposal for the NAPO2017 Annual Conference & Organizing Expo in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from April 26-29, 2017. Before beginning the submission process, please read the following important information as there have been some changes to the submission process, instructions, and speaker fees.

The NAPO2017 conference theme is: "Bridging the World of Organization".

Session Types

We are currently accepting proposals for Concurrent Sessions that align with the conference tracks outlined above, as well as Ask the Organizer Panelist and Moderator submissions.

The appointment of an Ask the Organizer (ATO) Panel Moderator is a two year commitment. Year 1 (2017): Shadow the current ATO moderator. Year 2 (2018): You will be the ATO moderator for NAPO2018 and will mentor the moderator for NAPO2019. The ATO moderator and panelists must be members of NAPO who have not served on the ATO panel in the last 5 years.

Enhanced Concurrent Sessions

These concurrent sessions will be more in-depth than a regular concurrent session and will provide the attendee with a hands-on experience that will dig deep into a single subject matter. Participants will walk away with a tangible tool they can use in their business immediately (e.g., business plan, strategic plan, intake assessment, etc.). To be considered for one of these five prestigious slots, you will need to provide a draft of the tool that you will provide attendees with your submission (not the final PowerPoint presentation). Email your draft to Trish.Maurer@NAPO.net by August 12, 2016.

If you would like to be considered as a presenter for a new enhanced concurrent session the afternoon of Saturday, 4/29/17, be sure to check the box that's labeled "Enhanced Current Sessions".

Conference Tracks

The following eight conference tracks help frame the structure of the NAPO2017 Annual Conference & Organizing Expo presentations.

• Business Operations & Growth/Marketing/Leadership
• For those who want to learn about how to operate and/or grow their businesses. This can be achieved through marketing efforts (including blogging, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.) and/or adding employees/contractors. This might also cover additional streams of income such as speaking for a fee, authoring a book, blogging for profit, etc.
• Residential Organizing
• Working with clients in their homes to declutter and organize space, create effective processes and systems, manage households, papers and schedules.
• Workplace Productivity
• Business organizing is primarily about productivity, but it is also people management, process re-engineering, program management, etc.
• Technology & Digital Organizing
• Technology and apps that help our client be more organized and productive; organizing of digital information; this is NOT social media marketing (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, blogging).
• Niches
• Moving & Relocation, Photo Organizing, Coaching, ADHD, Students, Downsizing, Money Managers, Eco-Organizing, Brain Injury, other disabilities, etc.
• Research
• This aligns with efforts being made in the area of research in our industry; including statistics.
• Client Interaction
• Knowledge and skills necessary to effectively interact and support our clients as well as manage ourselves so that we can offer our best selves to our client. This can include topics such as communication skills, meditation for self-management, mindfulness, the "psychological side" of organizing, brain research, compassion fatigue, learning & thinking styles/modalities, etc.
• TED Style Talks
• Guided discussion of a TED Talk. Submitters will be asked to share their favorite TED talk. In the description they should indicate why this TED Talk is so impactful to them and how a discussion around this topic would be beneficial to attendees. The objectives should contain questions that would be asked during the guided discussion.

The intent of the tracks is to help attendees organize presentations they wish to attend in a meaningful way. During the submission process, you will be prompted to select which track applies to your session.

Education Levels

The education levels below are used to indicate to the attendees whether or not they need experience in the topic before attending. It's important that sessions are properly categorized so attendees can select their sessions accordingly.

General Courses have the following criteria:

• For individuals with limited or no prior knowledge of the subject area
• Helps veterans and new organizers learn about the subject area
• For individuals new to the field, just learning or starting out
• For individuals seeking to learn the fundamentals about a subject area

Advanced Courses have the following criteria:

• For individuals with greatly developed knowledge and seeking to heighten their knowledge and move ahead in the subject area
• For individuals seeking information to aid in the growth or progress of knowledge
• For individuals seeking the most up-to-date knowledge in the subject area
• For individuals who could be deemed an expert in the field

Submission Rules

• All submissions must be entered through the submission site. NAPO will not accept submissions in any other format (paper, fax, email, etc.)
• In order to be considered, submissions are due in their entirety by FRIDAY, AUGUST 12, 2016 at 11:59 PM Eastern time. Submission components (videos, descriptions, objectives, etc.) that are sent to NAPO HQ after the submission site closes will not be sent to the Conference Program Committee.
• New - There is a two (2) submission limit per speaker. This includes speakers who are participating in panel discussions and those who are not the primary presenter.

Submissions Instructions

For an outline of the submission site form, please click the link to the right for submission process instructions. The instructions will be helpful in gathering the required information to submit a complete proposal.

The Review Process

The conference submissions are peer reviewed and selected by the NAPO2017 Conference Program Committee which consists of 10 volunteer NAPO members. The committee members review each submission and assign an overall rating. The committee then holds conference calls to discuss the ratings, rank the submissions, and make their final selections.

In order to ensure a fair and impartial speaker selection process for the NAPO Annual Conference & Organizing Exposition, the following guidelines are followed:

• Committee members submitting proposals to speak at conference will not rate their own submissions and therefore will not affect the collective rankings upon which session selection is made.
• Committee members will be asked to sign a conflict of interest statement upon joining the Committee, stating that they will disclose any potential conflicts of interest during the selection process that could compromise their objectivity and that they will either be impartial or excuse themselves from relevant conversations.

Reviewers will consider the following criteria when rating each submission:

Proposal Submission

• Content
  • Relevance to the theme and topics requested
  • Relevance to the organizing and productivity industry
  • Depth of topic
• Spelling and Grammar - Please note: If the session is selected, the information from your submission is copied directly from the submission site and used on the conference website, registration site, and submission site. It should be well written and professional.

Video Submission

• Speaker presence
  • Professionalism
  • Appearance
  • Body language
  • Personality
• Speaking ability
  • Speaker(s) communicates the message clearly and effectively
  • Speaker(s) uses appropriate language and is easily understood
  • Engages the audience
• Video
  • Accessible (See instructions for video requirements)
  • Same title as proposed
  • Includes the objectives
  • Specific to this proposal (Sizzle reels, footage from another event, or proposals for another event will not be considered)

Session Selection and Assignments

The committee reviews the submissions and makes final selections 3-4 weeks after the submission site closes. Speakers will receive an email notifying them if their session was accepted or declined approximately 4-6 weeks after the site closes.

Each concurrent session time block consists of five concurrent sessions, one for each conference track. Session times are assigned by the Conference Program Committee based on the tracks and available time slots. Although we do not take requests for specific days, consideration is made for religious holidays or observance days. If you cannot present on a specific day of the conference for religious reasons, you will be able to indicate this in your submission.

If your session is accepted, you will receive a speaker contract with the date and time of your session, a checklist of the items you'll need to submit to NAPO HQ, and pertinent deadlines.

Presentations

NAPO will provide the following standard equipment (subject to change) for your presentation:

• Session room laptop
• LCD projector with screen
• One (1) Lavaliere microphone
• One (1) Podium microphone
• Table top microphones for panel discussions only
• One (1) Aisle microphone

Speakers are responsible for providing their presentation in PowerPoint if using the laptop provided. If you plan to use a Mac computer, you'll need to bring the appropriate power cords and the adapter for the projector.

Important Note - Session rooms are NOT equipped for sounds embedded in your presentation. Please plan accordingly. Additional AV equipment must be requested at the time of their submission so that NAPO is aware of the needs and can plan accordingly. If additional equipment needs are not submitted through the submission process, NAPO has the right to decline the request.

Speaker/Session Type	Benefit
Concurrent session	Maximum of two speakers per session, complimentary conference registration ($799 value based on Regular Member Registration Rate)
Concurrent session with more than 2 speakers	50% off conference registration for each speaker ($400 value)
Ask the Organizer moderator (NAPO Members Only)	Complimentary conference registration ($799 value)
Ask the Organizer panelist (NAPO Members only; 3-4 panelists)	50% off conference registration ($400 value)
More than one session	Speakers selected for two sessions will receive the highest benefit for the first session and a check for half of the benefit for the second One Concurrent session and Ask the Organizer panelist: complimentary registration and a check for $200 Two Concurrent sessions: Complimentary registration and a check for $400

Non-Industry Professionals

Those who are not currently in the organizing and productivity industry, or affiliate industries, will receive the non-industry related honorarium.

Speaker/Session Type	Benefit
Concurrent session	Maximum of two speakers per session, $799 honorarium per speaker
Concurrent session with more than two speakers	Moderator $400 honorarium. Each panelist up to five, $200 honorarium each.
More than one Concurrent session	$799 honorarium for the first session and $400 for the second

Speaker benefits are non-negotiable. By submitting a proposal for NAPO2017 you agree to accept the benefit for which you are qualified as outlined above.

We look forward to receiving your submissions! To get started, please use the buttons at the top right of the page.