Guidance for Chairs, Discussants and Presenters
This guide outlines the roles of the Chair, Discussant and Paper Presenter to help you prepare for the General Conference.
Each Panel lasts 1 hour and 45 minutes. Effective time management is therefore crucial for all roles to allow fair participation.
If you have any further queries, please get in touch with our Events Team.
Panel Chairs
The role of the Chair is to facilitate an engaging and fair discussion between the audience and the Paper Presenters.
Before the conference
- Establish contact with the Paper Presenters and Discussants early.
- How to get their contact details:
- Go to My Events in My ECPR
- Click Full Details
- Click Export Participant Details to download an Excel file.
- Remind Presenters to upload their Papers ahead of time.
On the day
Basic guidelines:
- Keep introductions brief.
- Follow the programme order unless Presenters request otherwise.
- End the session by inviting the audience to thank the Presenters.
Timekeeping:
- Start and conclude the session on time.
- Allocate sufficient time to each Presenter but keep them to schedule.
- Use time warnings:
- 5 minutes remaining
- 1 minute remaining
- Time's up
- If a Presenter has reached their time limit, move the discussion forward.
- Be prepared to adjust if someone is delayed or absent.
Audience questions:
- Use the final third of the session for Q&A.
- Reserve at least 30 minutes for audience discussion and questions.
- Divide time evenly among the Presenters.
- Be prepared with a few starter questions.
- If the audience is very active, step back.
- Ensure all presenters receive at least one question. Step in if needed.
- Distribute the questions fairly across the Presenters.
- To keep to time, encourage follow-up discussion after the Panel, or online using #ecprgc25.
Quick checklist
- Contact Presenters before the event.
- Remind them to upload papers.
- Keep the session running on time.
- Ensure fair and equal participation.
- Encourage audience discussion.
- Wrap up with thanks and next steps.
Panel Discussants
The role of the Discussant is to engage deeply with each Paper, highlight key insights, and stimulate discussion.
Before the conference
- Read and familiarise yourself with all Papers on your Panel.
- Reflect on each Paper’s main arguments, strengths, and areas for improvement.
On the day
- Suggest constructive ways to improve the Paper.
- Highlight the relevance of the Paper to academia and society.
- Prepare questions that focus on the broader implications of the Paper, rather than its technicalities.
- Link questions to the Panel theme, drawing connections with other Papers.
Paper Presenters
The role of the Presenter is to share their research findings and ideas with the audience.
Before the conference
- Upload your Full Paper via your My ECPR profile by 15 July 2025. This gives Chairs and Discussants time to prepare.
- Liaise with your Panel Chair to confirm presentation timings.
- Virtual participation (for in-person Panels) is at the discretion of the Section and Panel Chairs and must be agreed in advance.
On the day
- You’ll have around 15 minutes to present.
- Summarise key points – don’t read the Paper verbatim.
- Use PowerPoint, visuals, or audio aids, if helpful.
- Your Paper will be discussed after all Presenters have finished.
Downloading Papers in your Panel
Both Chairs and Discussants are expected to download the Papers on their Panel ahead of the event.
You can download the Papers via our event app:
- log in using the email address you registered for the event with
- go to the Programme and select the Papers tab
- click on each Paper to view its details
- click Download Full Paper (PDF) at the bottom of the Paper details window.
Please make sure sure to review all Papers ahead of the Panel to prepare for discussion and timekeeping.
