FAQ

Academic conferences are a great way for scholars to connect to discuss research, but not everyone in the academic community is able to attend in person. Hosting virtual or hybrid paper sessions that run concurrently with face-to-face sessions is one way to enable broader participation in the conference, but they can be logistically complex and prohibitively expensive. AuthorConnect provides a new way for interested scholars across the world to connect virtually with conference paper authors to discuss their work.

AuthorConnect provides two primary functions. First, anyone in the research community (whether or not they are registered for a conference) can create an account and see a list of all papers at AuthorConnect-supported conferences. Via the system, users can send a message to authors of any paper to express interest in meeting virtually to discuss the paper. Authors can then set up one or more AuthorConnect sessions by creating a meeting on their virtual meeting platform of choice (e.g., Zoom, Microsoft Teams) and post the meeting time, link, and connection instructions on the AuthorConnect system. Once a meeting has been posted, any AuthorConnect user can register for the meeting to join the discussion.

Generally speaking, no. AuthorConnect is designed to facilitate research discussions among the broader research community, including but not limited to conference attendees. However, the conference’s sponsoring organization establishes policies about eligibility to participate in AuthorConnect.

No, AuthorConnect does not replace traditional face-to-face conference sessions. Conference papers are still presented in-person to registered conference attendees. AuthorConnect provides a supplemental opportunity for scholars to discuss papers with authors.

No, but you are definitely encouraged to do so! You can create a session either before or after receiving an AuthorConnect notification that someone is interested in meeting with you about your paper. You are especially encouraged to host a session if you receive such a notification.

AuthorConnect will usually be activated for a conference during a period shortly before, during, and shortly after the conference itself. Sessions should be scheduled during this period. Authors and participants are of course welcome to set up independent meetings outside of the AuthorConnect platform if they wish to continue their discussion.

With regard to session times, the system shows times in both the time zone of the conference location as well as the time zone of the system user. Authors should generally schedule at least one session during business hours in the conference time zone, but may also elect to schedule sessions at other times as well.

Not necessarily. AuthorConnect sessions are opportunities for open discussions about research. Recorded videos that accompany conference papers are a good way to share a paper presentation with a larger audience.

No, not at this time. Any AuthorConnect user can register for and participate in any posted AuthorConnect session. Private meetings can be arranged outside of the AuthorConnect system.

No. AuthorConnect sessions run in parallel with the conference but are not managed by the conference committee. AuthorConnect provides a platform for authors and other participants to connect independently. Authors are responsible for scheduling, hosting, and otherwise managing their AuthorConnect sessions. Participants should correspond with authors if they have questions about or problems connecting to a particular session.

The AuthorConnect page for each paper provides functionality for you to send a message to the paper authors inviting them to set up an AuthorConnect session. You can customize this message to convey your strong interest in meeting! 🙂 However, it is ultimately up to the authors whether and when to host an AuthorConnect session.