Submitting a Winning Speaking Proposal
We will begin accepting speaking proposals for the 22nd Annual NASPP Conference next Monday, January 20.  Each Wednesday until the submission period closes, I’ll offer a new tip for submitting a successful proposal. 

My first tip is to participate in the Proposal Assistance Program. This program is open to any firm that exhibited at last year’s Conference and any firm that secures their booth for this year’s Conference before the submission period closes.  So if you didn’t exhibit last year, don’t wait any longer to secure your booth for this year.

During the Proposal Assistance Program, we review all of your proposal ideas before you put any time into developing them.  We tell you which ideas we like and offer suggestions to make them more compelling. We also give you suggestions for people we’d like to see on the panel. This way you can focus your efforts on the topics that are most likely to land you a speaking slot. 

In addition, proposals submitted by participants in the program receive automatic preference over proposals submitted by non-participants.  Exhibitors that participate in this program and follow our advice virtually always have at least one proposal accepted.

NASPP To Do List
Here is your NASPP to do list for this week:

• Check out our new Equity Expert podcast series in the NASPP Career Center.
• Read Andrea Best’s newest blog in the NASPP Career Center, “Working from Your Core: Step Three, Making the Connections.”
• Take this week’s Question of the Week Challenge. It’s a new year, so it’s a great time to get into the game.
• Take our newest Compliance-O-Meter quiz on Stock Plan Litigation.
• Sign up for the NASPP’s acclaimed online Stock Plan Fundamentals course which will be offered next spring.  This course is a great introduction to stock plan administration; register by February 14, 2014 for the early-bird rate.
• Save the date for the 22nd Annual NASPP Conference:  September 29-October 2, 2014 at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.
• Check out all the new member profiles we’ve posted and post your own profile today.
• Renew your NASPP membership for 2014 (if you aren’t an NASPP member, join today).
• Check out the NASPP’s newest venture into social media: our LinkedIn page.
• Check out the NASPP’s Facebook and Twitter pages.

– Barbara