Preparation Makes Improvisation Possible
Yesterday’s CLE offered one of those reminders that even the best‑planned programs can throw a curveball.
One of the scheduled presenters simply didn’t appear — no message, no update, just an unexpected gap in the agenda that needed to be filled to keep the program running smoothly.
As chair, that’s the moment you stay anchored. I always overprepare, and I always brown‑bag my lunch when I’m chairing so I can keep an eye on the stove. You never know when you’ll need to step in.
So I did.
I covered roughly forty minutes of the absent presenter’s fifty‑minute slot with material I had ready to go, and a colleague who was scheduled to speak next filled in the remaining ten. Between the two of us, the attendees received a full, substantive program without any loss of momentum.
Afterward, the vendor rep and I talked briefly. She mentioned that some chairs check in and out throughout the day. That’s never been my approach. If you’re responsible for the program, you stay present. You watch the timing, the transitions, and the unexpected gaps — especially the unexpected gaps.
In the end, the CLE ran smoothly. Not because everything went according to plan, but because preparation makes improvisation possible. Sometimes the most important part of chairing isn’t the content you planned — it’s how you handle the moments you didn’t.