SAS Global Forum Presenter Mentoring Program
Why should I consider presenting a paper at SAS Global Forum?
First and foremost, SAS Global Forum is a SAS user’s conference. You, the SAS end user, are the main source of content for the conference. Presenting a paper is a way for you to share your SAS knowledge and give back to the SAS community.
Presenting a paper is also a great way for you to stand above the crowd. For you to present a paper, you were accepted in a competitive process to share your knowledge and ideas. Furthermore, your paper will “live on” for decades via the online SAS Global Forum Conference Proceedings. This is a great way to differentiate yourself from your SAS peers, and could even be the difference in you getting an interview for that job you’ve always wanted. For example, you could provide the link to your paper in the online Conference Proceedings in your LinkedIn profile as a publication, and stand out from your peers on LinkedIn.
I think my work is pretty cool, but I have no idea where to begin
This is where the Presenter Mentoring program will help. The SAS Global Forum Presenter Mentors are seasoned SAS Professionals who are very experienced at presenting at SAS Global Forum. We will help you consolidate and refine your ideas, create your paper abstract, help with your paper title, give feedback on your presentation slide deck, and coach you with your presentation. If you are doing cool things in SAS, and are proud of your work, your fellow SAS peers would love to learn from you!
But I HATE public speaking!
Guess what? Many people in our industry do! I certainly am one of them. But, I forced myself to present at my local SAS User Groups, and eventually at SAS Global Forum, and I got better and better with every presentation I gave. You really will have a sympathetic audience – your fellow SAS professionals who are keen to learn what you know. After all, they chose your presentation to attend!
Furthermore, the ability to effectively present your ideas is a very valuable skill, in IT or indeed any industry. It really is a great opportunity for professional development by presenting your paper at SAS Global Forum.
And we, the Presenter Mentoring Team, will help you through the entire process, including rehearsing your presentation.
Finally, if your work is cool but you just aren’t ready to present, consider a co-presenter to do the bulk or entirety of your presentation. You, as the subject matter expert, can be there to field questions from the audience after the presentation. Or, you can submit your abstract as an e-poster, where you present your ideas in an informal setting, and just field casual one-on-one questions from attendees that attend your e-poster.
I'm sure there are many times in life that you've faced your fears, did it anyway, and grew through that process. Here is another chance for personal growth.
So, how does the process work?
In August SAS will open the SAS Global Forum Call For Papers website. A simple Google search “SAS Global Forum 2020 Call For Papers” will find the website.
Here is the direct link:
Call For Content
After creating an account with your details, you will enter your presentation title, abstract, and working outline for consideration by the SAS Global Forum Abstract Review Team.
How are abstracts chosen?
Your abstract is very important! Think of it like your resume or CV: a sloppy, poorly written, misspelled abstract and/or working outline leaves a bad impression, no matter how great you and your ideas are. I, the reviewer, think I’ll just put this abstract in the bin and pick this shiny, well-written abstract from this other person. Even if your ideas are great and your code is brilliant, your abstract and working outline are key to making a good impression that your paper and presentation will be of high quality.
Your abstract and working outline should clearly state what your paper and presentation will say. Also, your abstract is what is published in the SAS Global Forum agenda, and tells the attendees what your presentation is all about. Make me, the Abstract Reviewer, want to attend your paper, instead of the other papers being presented at the same time and on a similar topic as yours.
Put effort into your abstract. Spell check your abstract. If English is not your native language, consider getting a colleague or the Presenter Mentoring team to review your abstract for grammar, spelling, and that it’s clear, compelling, “tells a story”, and makes me want to attend your paper.
As part of the abstract submission process, you can also attach a draft (or final) version of your paper. However, consider the timing of events: the abstracts are due by 30 September 2019, while the papers are due by 27 February 2020. If you have a good quality paper that is finished, for example if you’ve presented this paper at a local or regional SAS User Group, then by all means attach your paper if it helps convince the Abstract Review Team to accept your abstract. But, don’t just attach a sloppy, misspelled, incomplete paper to your submission, as this will detract from your abstract and the overall submission. Instead, put more effort into your abstract and working outline. You can write that fantastic paper once your abstract has been accepted. Attaching a paper is optional to the submission process.
The abstract submission process is competitive. There are always more abstracts submitted than there are rooms and times available for presentations.
A panel comprised of the SAS Global Forum committee team and select seasoned SAS professionals form the Abstract Review Team. Abstracts are reviewed by members of this team, and are graded on a scale of 0 to 5. The grades are averaged across the reviewers to derive the overall abstract score. The abstracts are then sorted by score, and a cut is made based on the room allocations for that subject area (i.e. analytics, programming, administration, etc.)
I’m sold! What now?
If you know that you would like help in gathering your thoughts, coming up with an idea, and creating an abstract, then click the link below now, so we can assign you a mentor as early in the process as possible. Please provide as much information as possible, and at least your subject area (analytics, programming, administration, etc.), so we can assign an appropriate mentor to you.
Request a Mentor
Otherwise, look for the SAS Global Forum 2020 Call For Papers website in August.
