Suggestions for Conference Speakers

Suggestions to Speakers

At a conference, seminar or meeting with participants of different nationalities, conference interpreters are relied upon to enable good communication

It is always advisable to hire a professional team of interpreters to guarantee the best quality possible.

However, your cooperation is essential for helping interpreters provide a quality service. To help you plan your conference, we would like to make a few suggestions which contribute to successful communication.

Suggestions to Speakers

Distribute a copy of the "Suggestions to Speaker" text to all speakers.

Documentation

Although trained, experienced interpreters have a broad general knowledge of most areas, they are not specialists in all fields of knowledge. It is the organiser's job to provide interpreters with documentation to help familiarise themselves with the theme of the event. Remember that for an interpreter to be able to convey a message, first of all he/she needs to understand it.

In order for the interpreter to properly prepare himself/herself, he/she should receive in advance (ideally two weeks before the event) and, if possible in all working languages:
** the program or schedule of the day, general documentation informing them about the organisation (association, company, etc.), reports or minutes of previous meetings with the same theme, magazines or articles from the field, transcriptions or abstracts of the communication to be presented.

During the conference, the interpreter also needs:
* texts of the communication being read during sessions (in order for a written text to be interpreted, it is essential that the interpreters have a copy); copies of slides and other documents to be presented; a list of participants; name and a brief background of speakers and participants; name and job title of officials attending; all documentation given to participants.

Briefing

At conferences with a highly technical theme, please consider organising a briefing with the interpreters to sort out any problems regarding terminology or procedure.

Interlocutor

For the purpose of good coordination, the organisation should have a person in charge of contacting the interpreting team (they will also have a team leader or coordinator).

Technical Installation

The organisation should make sure that all technical material meets the needs of both clients and interpreters (number of cabins and channels, microphones, headphones) and that it everything is in good condition. Before the beginning of the conference, please ask the interpreting team leader and technicians to test the equipment.

Projections

If there are slides being projected, make sure that the screen is well placed allowing all interpreters a good viewing angle of the projections and also that all interpreters receive a copy of the texts being projected. 

If there are plans to project film or video, please remember that these can only be interpreted if the sound can be sent directly to the cabins, if the text of the script has been previously delivered to the interpreters and if the speed of the speech matches a normal reading speed. 

Interpreters Room

If possible, please provide the interpreters with an area where they can rest and study the documentation.

Source: APIC