Seminar seating: start from the back row

At a seminar, people come to listen, write and ask questions. The seating plan quietly decides whether they can do all three. We have watched good speakers lose a room simply because the people at the back could not read the slides or had nowhere to rest a notebook.

Three layouts worth knowing

• Theatre: rows of chairs facing the stage. It seats the most people and suits short, talk-led sessions where little writing happens.
• Classroom: rows of narrow tables facing forward. It uses more floor space, but laptops, notebooks and drinks all have a home. For a long session, it is usually the kinder choice.
• Cabaret: round tables with the side nearest the stage left open. It suits seminars with discussion or small group exercises.

Sit where your delegates will sit

On the site visit, walk past the front rows and sit at the very back. Can you read a slide with ordinary body text? Does a column cut across the screen? Is the speaker visible over the heads in front? If any answer is no, move the screen, add a second one or change the layout before signing off.

For a seminar in the city centre, this guide to seminar room layouts at Marina Bay Sands compares the same three options and adds useful points on screens, walkways and the registration area.

The front of the room

Ask for a lectern, a lapel microphone for each main speaker and a confidence monitor so presenters are not twisting round to see their own slides. Leave a clear route to the stage that does not cross in front of the projector.

Small things that change the day

• Reserve aisle seats for anyone who may need to step out.
• Keep a few seats near the front for delegates with access needs.
• Put spare pens and paper on classroom tables.
• Agree a lighting level that is dim enough for slides but bright enough to write.

Layouts and room inventories change, so check current details with the venue before you print a seating plan.