Speaker Resources

Alumni Relations, housed in the Office of External Relations & Development, assists clubs in identifying potential speakers and panelists for club events, including conferences, panels, speaker series, and more. There is a formal process managed by Alumni Relations prior to clubs contacting prospective speakers, both alumni and non-alumni, and the Board of Overseers.

The office also assists by generating alumni contact lists to facilitate alumni outreach and attendance at club events, providing templates for event invitations and speaker outreach, and assisting clubs in promoting events to the alumni community. All prospective speaker outreach, event invitations, and conference programs must be approved before a club reaches out to prospective speakers, invites alumni to a club event, or goes to print on conference programs.

Speaker Outreach Best Practices

All prospective conference speakers, alumni and non-alumni, must be vetted through External Relations prior to outreach.
External Relations will approve speaker requests and provide contact information or facilitate an invitation where possible; in addition, External Relations can suggest prospective alumni speakers for conference keynote and panelist slots, depending on the needs of the conference.
All speaker outreach (keynote and panelist) should begin 6 – 8 months prior to the conference; all speakers should be secured at least one month before the conference in order to allow sufficient time to extend invitations and secure prominent speakers. Speaker invitations must be proofed and approved by External Relations prior to being extended. Please allow 48 hours for approval.
Only one invitation can be extended per open speaking slot and External Relations should be notified of speaker responses as they are received.
Last minute cancellations on speakers and guests should not happen and are frowned upon. If circumstances require an event to be cancelled or postponed please ensure you work with External Relations for recommendations.
Make sure to send thankyou notes to all speakers within one week after the conference and confirm with External Relations which speakers actually attended.

Alumni Outreach Best Practices

Student groups can request a list of conference-affiliated alumni and may promote the conference through three emails to that group, maximum, including a save the date email.
Communications to the alumni community must be proofed and approved by External Relations prior to being sent. Please allow 72 hours for approval.
Student groups can also request that their conference be promoted through appropriate social media channels (e.g. the Columbia Business School Alumni LinkedIn group).
External Relations allows inclusion of conferences on the alumni calendar via a link to your conference’s Campus Groups event page (check the box for “Request inclusion on Alumni Umbrella events list.”)
Conference programs must be proofed and approved by External Relations, Public Relations and the Office of Student Affairs prior to going to print; all alumni must be designated with their class year (e.g. Leon Cooperman ’67) in all printed materials. Please allow 72 hours for approval.

Follow-Up Best Practices

VP of Conferences should send appropriate messaging and thank you notes to speakers, notable guests, sponsors, and different individuals who have helped to make the conference a success. Students can also obtain speaker gifts for conference speakers. You can purchase gifts via https://gear.gsb.columbia.edu/. Gifts should not exceed $75. Be sure to return any sponsor or speaker’s presentation material via mail, FedEx, or UPS.

Dean's Office Requests

Dean's Participation Requests

For flagship club events (legacy events, conferences, etc.) and high-profile speakers, club leaders may wish to request that a Dean:

Introduce a speaker
Present an opening or closing keynote
Welcome guests

Note that dean’s participation is not guaranteed. Requests should be submitted at least six weeks prior to the conference date.

Dean's Keynote Speaker Invitations

For flagship club events (legacy events, conferences, etc.) and high-profile speakers, clubs may request a keynote speaker invitation that is sent from the Dean’s office.

To obtain permission and a best practices templates please reach out to OSA and External Relations.

Speaker invitations are limited to one keynote speaker per student club per flagship event regardless of outcome.
Speakers must be cleared prior by External Relations.
Speaker information (name, place of work, title, etc.) must be accurate.
Speaker contact information (address, e-mail, etc.) must be provided.

Note on personal Relations with Potential Speakers and/or Alum

Please inform Alumni Relations if you are planning to invite an individual to a conference regardless of prior relationships. Often times speakers and alumni have multiple asks within Columbia Business School and further communication may be necessary.