7 New Updates to Enhance the Speaker Experience, Save Time and Improve Speaker Management

What We Heard

Event organizers told us they needed a better way to manage session details and speaker content—without the last-minute scramble.

‍Speakers were making changes to submissions after approval, leading to inconsistencies in printed and published materials.

‍Session leads, sponsors, and moderators required greater access to modify key details—without unnecessary bottlenecks.

‍Branded, customizable portals were a must to create a seamless event experience.‍

‍Speakers needed to access their portal and make edits on the go—calling for a fully mobile-friendly experience.

We listened—and we've updated our Portals to make speaker management and the speaker's experience best-in-class.

What We Delivered 

With our redesigned Portals, you decide who can change what, when changes are locked, and how speakers engage with your system.

1) The Power to Say No (and Yes) to Submission Edits

Event organizers needed more control over submission edits—so now, you can:

- Lock down specific fields to prevent last-minute surprises.
- Decide exactly what speakers can edit and when changes are final.
- Give speakers clear guidance on what they can update.

With these updates, your team can confidently finalize content while maintaining a smooth speaker experience.

2) Empower Your Session Participants to Delegate Portal Duties

Managing session details is now more collaborative and structured. This update allows session participants—such as speakers, moderators, or coordinators—to delegate portal duties to a designated lead who can manage key session information.

Additionally, external groups associated with a session, such as sponsors or partners, can also update specific session details to ensure alignment with their branding and messaging.

How This Helps:

Session Participants – Delegate updates to a single point person who can manage speaker bios, session descriptions, and required materials directly in the portal.

Sponsors & Partner Organizations – Maintain oversight and update key details for sponsored sessions without requiring full admin access.

This feature reduces admin workload, improves session accuracy, and streamlines collaboration.

3) Rolling Evaluations? Keep Progress Moving...

Ever approve a speaker’s submission, only for them to come back later and tweak things? Now, you control what’s final and what stays flexible.

- Lock in reviewed content while keeping new submissions open.
- Preserve evaluation integrity—no more post-approval edits.
- Eliminate rework and last-minute changes slipping through the cracks.

Now, you can prevent post-approval edits, keep evaluations consistent, and reduce last-minute changes that cause extra work.

4) Your Branding, Front and Center

Your speaker portal shouldn’t feel like a generic platform—it should reflect your brand. Now, you can:

- Apply event logos, colors, and themes for a seamless experience.
- Ensure a consistent, professional look that builds speaker confidence.
- Make your portal feel like an extension of your event, not a third-party tool.

When speakers recognize and trust the platform, engagement follows.

5) Mobile-First, Because Life Happens on the Move

Speakers are busy. They’re traveling, networking, and prepping for their sessions. Now, your portal keeps up with them.

- Submit updates, review tasks, and complete forms—all from a phone.
- A clean, intuitive mobile UI eliminates friction.
- Deadlines get met because updates are effortless.

Wherever your speakers are, they can stay on track.

6) Session-Level Tasks: Smarter, More Efficient Management

Now, admins can assign tasks directly at the session level—whether it’s A/V requests, slide uploads, speaker approvals, or deadline reminders.

- For multi-speaker sessions, assign one task and update all associated speakers at once—keeping everyone aligned.
- For single-speaker sessions, segment profile updates (e.g., headshots, bios) from session-specific tasks (e.g., signing agreements, submitting materials).
- No more tracking updates manually—tasks are automatically updated across all associated speakers' portals.

This ensures accuracy, efficiency, and less back-and-forth for organizers and speakers alike.

7) Speaker Profiles: Edit Anytime, Anywhere

Now, speakers can edit their profiles—headshot, bio, credentials—directly from their portal at any time during the event process without needing to submit a change through a form.

- Reduce admin workload with self-service updates.
- Ensure profiles remain accurate and up-to-date.
- Enhance speaker experience with seamless, real-time updates.

The Bottom Line? Smarter, Smoother Speaker Management.

More control, fewer surprises. More customization, less manual work. More speaker engagement, less scrambling at the last minute.

- Lock in speaker data before it gets out of hand.
- Empower the right people with the right access.
- Ensure your event content stays clean, organized, and aligned with your brand.

Ready to see it in action?

📅 Register for a live look via our upcoming training sessions:‍

March 6th at 12 PM ET

March 12th at 2 PM ET

Want a Personalized Look?

Book a demo to explore the new portal functionality firsthand.‍

Click here to book a demo now.

About Sessionboard

Sessionboard’s focus on continuous innovation in speaker and content management has resulted in saving organizers hundreds of hours per event while providing speakers with a streamlined, modern experience. From call for papers, abstract evaluation, awards, applications, agenda building, to speaker onboarding and communication, Sessionboard helps event organizers work smarter, move faster, and improve their ROI.