Proving Ground Call for Presenters

Proving Ground Speaker Development Program Call For Presenters is OPEN!

(Looking to be a Mentor? The Call for Mentor information page is HERE.)

Roles & Responsibilities

Conflict Resolution

Call for Papers

Proving Ground was created in order to give first- time speakers (defined as anyone who has never presented at a national conference — ISACA, InfraGuard, OWASP meetings, etc. and regional BSides events are not included) a means to give a talk during one of the biggest professional development weeks for the international hacker and information security industry. We pair all accepted speakers with a mentor, who will assist them with everything from talking points to slide layout, design, and delivery prior to giving their talk in Las Vegas. The goal is to help new speakers gain experience  with public speaking in hopes that they will continue sharing their ideas and unique perspectives with the rest of the industry.

The process will work like this:

• Potential speakers will be asked to submit an abstract for a 20 minute talk that they would like help preparing for presentation using the link below. No group talks will be accepted in this track as a 1:1 mentor/mentee relationship has proven to be more effective for Proving Ground. Proving Grounds candidates will be required to accept  both Participant Roles/Responsibilities and Conflict Resolution “Policies”.
• Once the final list of Proving Ground speakers has been accepted by our CFP review team, they will be forwarded passed on to the Mentor List. Potential mentors will be able to choose indicate preference for which talks they want to help mentor. Final selection will be based on area(s) of expertise and experience.
• After all presentations have been assigned mentors, an introductory email will go out to every pair so that the mentee and mentor can begin working together to  prepare an outline for the presentation.
• Once this is completed, the mentee will schedule regular times to practice their talk with their mentor via Skype, Google Hangouts,  etc. in order to work on timing, inflection, messaging, and body language.
• On the day of the presentation, the speakers will have their mentor present in order to give them a “friendly face” in the audience as well as assist them with Q&A, should it be needed.

Each accepted mentor and candidate will be provided with:

• All speaker amenities at BSidesLV
• Breakfast and lunch, both days
• A BSidesLV Mentorship Program t-shirt
• A badge that will identify them as a part of the Proving Ground program
• An extra conference badge for a friend

Proving Ground is augmented by a scholarship program. If your talk is accepted, and  you need financial assistance in order to attend the conference, BSidesLV will provide you with a scholarship of up to $500, to help you offset the costs of coming to Las Vegas to present. Scholarships will be paid out after you have successfully completed your presentation, after  you turn in your program evaluation form. If you’re interested in taking advantage of this program, please indicate so on the CFP submission form. Good Luck!

You can find the submission page HERE. 

The BSidesLV Proving Ground Staff:

Magen Wu (@tottenkoph), Michael Ortega (@securitymoey), and Grant Dobbe (@guy_mcdudefella)