Choosing talks is part art, part science; here are some factors we consider when trying to assemble the best possible program for our local audience:

• Broad appeal: How will your talk play out in a room of people with a variety of backgrounds? Technical deep dives need more levels to provide value for the whole room, some of whom might not use your specific tool.
• New local presenters: You are the only one who can tell your story. We are very interested in the challenges and successes being experienced in our local Toronto area communities.
• Under-represented voices: We want to hear all voices, including those that may speak less frequently at similar events. Whether you’re in a field not typically thought of as a technology field, you’re in a large, traditional organization, or you’re the only person at your organization with your background, we are interested in your unique experience.
• No third-party submissions: If a PR firm or your marketing department is proposing the talk, you’ve already shown that as a speaker you’re distant from the process. This is a community-driven event, and speakers need to be directly engaged with the organizers and attendees.
• No vendor pitches: We value vendors and sponsors, however we cannot accept a talk that appears to be a pitch for your product. If you’d like to demo your product or service, please consider sponsoring the event to secure your company a table.

We strongly encourage potential speakers to submit more than one submission on more than one topic. The more submissions you contribute, the more options you give us to pick you. Be sure your talk title and abstract define the exact topic you want to talk about and what you hope people will learn from the session. In previous years, some submissions sounded interesting but we just didn’t have enough detail for them to make the final cut.

Our speaker package for this year’s event includes:

• Full conference pass
• Lunch, receptions and all activities included in regular conference
• Invitation to exclusive speakers’ dinner the night before the conference
• We offer travel support for out-of-town speakers. Details on the submission page.