Talk preparation

Why Collaborate on Talks and Workshops?

Preparing a talk or a workshop is rewarding but also time-consuming. Most speakers:

• Struggle to shape an idea into a clear, compelling thesis.
• Spend hours structuring their narrative alone.
• Only get feedback when they present.

At Beyond Quality, we treat talk and workshop preparation like research: something best done in the open. With early collaboration, you save time, produce better talks, and build confidence before hitting the stage.

The talks and workshops can be suited for conferences or meetups. If you’re new in public speaking, it’s always easier to start presenting at a meetup (such as Qase Quality Engineering meetups or any other), get some practice at these medium-scaled events, and then go all-in and apply for a bigger conference.

How It Works

Step 1 — Idea Shaping (1:1 Call)

• A speaker brings a raw idea or early thesis.
• A facilitator (Vitaly, or other volunteers) helps shape it into a workable talk thesis or a workshop theme.
• This stays as a short, focused call because it’s the hardest part to do async.

Step 2 — Collaborative Expansion

• The speaker expands the thesis into key points, examples, or data.
• The draft outline is shared with the community for early critique (like research “shift-left”).

Community members can:

• Suggest angles, frameworks, or stories.
• Share references, papers, or similar talks for inspiration.
• Offer to co-develop specific sections.

Step 3 — Iteration Cycles

Instead of all iteration happening 1:1, the process opens up:

• Async feedback via comments in shared docs.
• Optional small-group “talk/workshop clinics” where 2–3 peers join a rehearsal and give feedback.
• This may happen 2–3 times until the talk or a workshop is presentation-ready.

Step 4 — Final Rehearsal

• A final round with a facilitator + peers simulates a mini-audience.
• Feedback focuses on flow, timing, and delivery.

Roles for Collaborators

Borrowing from the research framework, people can contribute at different levels:

• Level 1 (Quick win): Comment on a draft outline, suggest an example, or ask clarifying questions.
• Level 2 (Active): Join a rehearsal clinic, help refine the narrative structure, or review slides.
• Level 3 (Deep): Act as co-mentor for a speaker, supporting them across multiple iterations.

Currently, at all Qase Quality Engineering meetups, Vitaly has been taking on the Level 3 role for every speaker. This process has produced strong talks, but it’s only limited to Qase meetups. By opening mentoring up to trusted peers (e.g., Mariya, Anupam, and others), we can help more speakers prepare better talks without bottlenecking on a single person.

Connection to Research

Talk prep can directly benefit from the Research activity:

• Speakers can draw on collaborative research outputs (summaries, case studies, whitepapers) for data and examples.
• Research participants can repurpose insights into slides, stories, or frameworks for talks.
• Every talk and workshop prepared in this way helps spread the community’s collective knowledge beyond the group.