Counselor Selection Process

Selecting the best counselors for THAT Conference is a long and difficult process, as we receive so many inspiring abstracts from truly impassioned people. When reviewing potential counselors and session abstracts, we remove all information about the counselor (name, bio, email, etc.) while reviewing the proposals, to avoid any subconscious bias. We always strive for a good mix of counselors, and we want to encourage everyone to submit a proposal.

The Process

After the submission deadline, THAT Staff, together with a few other people we trust, will review all submissions and select the ones that think will make the most interesting mix at THAT Conference. We aim to to have all Counselors notified of the acceptance of their talks by April 13, 2020.

01. Initial Review

As proposals are submitted, they are reviewed by THAT Staff for completeness. THAT Staff will then vote Yes, No, or Maybe for each application. They will review applications on the following criteria:

• Is this a subject that is relevant to the THAT Conference audience?
• Has the applicant provided all the requested information?
• Does the applicant display good knowledge of the subject matter?
• Will the applicant be able to cover all of their proposed content in the time slot alloted?

02. Community Voting

Previous conference attendees and those in THAT Community take part in an anonymized voting process to rate their interest in every talk.

03. Committee Review

THAT Staff spends an entire weekend together going through submissions.

04. Contact Successful Candidates

The Counselors team will contact the applicants chosen to speak. We do this before contacting people who haven’t been selected. This is because some applicants may no longer be able to make the event, so we have the chance to go back to the pool of applicants and choose a suitable replacement.