Liaising with Presenters

Clear and effective communication is an important part of organizing OSC events. Throughout the planning process, you may need to communicate with a range of contributors, including guest instructors, lecturers, invited speakers, panelists, moderators, facilitators, and other subject-matter experts. This section aims to make this task easier by providing information, general guidelines, and reusable templates for crafting emails, messages, and other forms of communication when liaising with presenters and attendees of OSC events.

Liaising with Guest Instructor

Often, we invite external instructors and lecturers to be part of our events. The following will provide you with some guidance when communicating with them via email.

Disclaimer: this is a mixture of several emails to give you a clear idea of what needs to be included - carefully pick and choose the appropriate sentences.

Dear Prof Dr X

My name is Malika, I am the coordinator of the LMU Open Science Center (if they know Felix, add the following: “…whose managing director is Felix Schönbrodt”).

Based on your work XX, we were wondering if you would be willing and available to give a workshop/lecture on XX sometimes in XXMonthsXX.

I think XX what would be interesting for our community and why XX . Usually, PhD students and post docs across many disciplines constitute the core of the audience, but we can limit it to a certain type of research and specify prerequisites if more appropriate.

Would that be of interest to you? Please feel free to suggest any alternative topics. I’m available for a brief Zoom call to define a more precise topic if easier!

We usually run all our events in a hybrid format, with the presenter in person and with me facilitating the online participation. However, solely in person or online events are also possible. Should you be able to come to Munich, we would of course cover your travel and accommodation expenses. We can also cover the travel expense of an additional person you would like to bring to facilitate the workshop with you.

OR

Though all is possible, our workshops are preferentially offered in a hybrid format (I can help with online facilitation) with the presenter in person. If interested, would you be able to come in person? We would pay for your transport and accommodation of course.

A possible time for this event could be XX-XX/ from XXmonthXX

I would be grateful if you would let me know either way before XXtwo weeks laterXX and if interested, if you could please suggest a few suitable dates!

Thanks and best wishes Malika

In another email, after receiving a positive response, confirm specific details:

  • Set a date
  • Ask if they need hotel. If yes, then for what night(s) so we can book it
  • Let them know they need to book their own train and send us the e-tickets (for reimbursement)
  • Ask them for their banking info and address in a specific form to be returned as a Word document

Get the following information at least one month prior to the event.

  • Title
  • Abstract
  • Instructor short bio
  • Target audience (e.g. field, career stage, dept, interdisciplinary, country)
  • Prerequisite (e.g. prior knowledge necessary, software installed)
  • Format (e.g. hybrid, in person, online)
  • Language (english or german)
  • Custom question(s) to ask registrants (e.g. prior knowledge)
  • Max number of participants
  • Further emails

Forward them the hotel booking, usually:

Hotel Carlton Munich
Fürstenstraße 12,
80333 Munich
Tel.: +49 (89) 380 33 76 00
welcome@hotel-carlton.de

We need an invoice from the hotel with the LMU address and VAT number as found in the credential file…

LMU Open Science Center
Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
Department Psychologie
Leopoldstr. 13, 80802 München
VAT: DE811205325

Additional Considerations

Here’s a list of some additional things you may want to communicate to the instructors:

  • Send participants’ information to instructors who requested it.
  • Inform instructors of registration numbers and attendance modes (in-person/online).
  • Share any participant preferences or requirements relevant to the session (e.g. R/Julia preference, accessibility needs).
  • Ensure instructors have access to required resources (e.g. Zoom links, online workspaces, participant lists).
  • Communicate any last-minute changes, cancellations, or waiting list admissions to instructors.
  • Support instructors with logistical or technical issues during the event.
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