Let’s Conference: A SIOP 2020 Livestreaming Event on June 22

UPDATE: If you missed the live event, you can still check out a recording here! This will probably only stay posted for a few weeks, so get it while you can!

If you’re in the gaming space, or if you have a kid whom you’ve watched over their shoulder while they played Minecraft, you’ve probably seen a Let’s Play.

Let’s Plays are live, narrated explorations of video games. A person plays the game but also provides a bit of think-aloud as they play, and people watch in real-time. “That was weird!” “That was cool!” “Here’s what I’m planning to do next.” It is a sort of a combination of think-aloud and voyeurism?

If you’ve ever heard of the media streaming service Twitch, it’s devoted to Let’s Play livestreams. The audience also can post text contributions to the livestream, which the streamers see and respond to (or don’t).

With that background, I am proud to announce that alongside Tara Behrend, we will be hosting Let’s Conference: Virtual SIOP 2020. In the event, we’ll be live-watching SIOP video sessions on Monday, June 22 from around 2PM EDT / 11AM PDT through 6PM EDT / 3PM PDT and providing commentary. Maybe. We might end early if we get tired of doing it for whatever reason, no promises.

Let me first be perfectly clear. Although Tara and I are both highly involved in the SIOP organization, this is not an official, recognized, or even clearly allowed thing we’re doing. We’ve gone rogue! ROGUE I SAY!

So what’s the schedule? That’s still being finalized, but here’s the general docket:

1. The interesting parts of the plenaries.
2. Random friends and other colleagues whom we are pretty sure wouldn’t mind us ripping into them but we aren’t going to ask them ahead of time just to be safe.
3. GRAD STUDENT FRESH MEAT. Ok, just kidding. We will probably watch some grad students at some point by watching symposia that sound interesting, but rest assured it will be constructive and thoughtful, unlike commentary on friends whom we will be destroying just because we enjoy that sort of thing, you know who you are.
4. Anyone who wants to be! If you’d like your video to be included, please comment below and we’ll try to get your session on the roster!
5. Suggestions of live audience members! Because Let’s Conference will be a live experience, we will be watching audience comments and taking your advice when we feel like it.

In between sessions, we’ll be chatting about what we learned, what we didn’t, and discussing audience comments/questions.

You might ask why we’re doing this… to you I say, why not!?!

When the show goes live, you’ll find it here on YouTube Live. Here’s a tentative schedule, although there’s basically zero chance we will actually get to all of these sessions:

1. Opening Plenary
   • Scott Tonidandal – Conference Welcome
   • Georgia Chao – Introduction to Eden King
   • Eden King – Outgoing President’s Message
   • SIOP Foundation Visionary Circle Presentation
2. Naval Gazing Hour
   • 0005: Pay Equity Analysis: Hey, Labor Economist—Anything You Can Do I-O Can Do Better! (Master Tutorial)
   • 0912: SIOP Select: Revising the APA Ethics Code to Better Fit the Roles of I-O Psychologists (Special Event)
   • 0446: Know Your Worth: Results From the 2019 SIOP Salary Survey (Alternative Session Type)
3. Poster Break 1
   • Just a Look Around
4. Social Justice and Current Events Hour
   • 0002c: COVID-19 – Selection & Testing
   • 0137: Applying I-O to Healthcare: Opportunities for Research and Practice (Ignite)
   • 0329: Where Are the Men? Bringing Men Into the Mix to Push for Workplace Gender Equality (Symposium)
   • 0015: WHAT Is Inclusion? Its Past, Present, and Future (Special Event)
5. Poster Break 2
   • Deep Dive into Technology/Gamification/Social Media/Simulations
6. Methods Hour
   • 0815: Using MetaBUS to Locate, Synthesize, and Visualize I-O Research Findings (Master Tutorial)
   • 0016: Life in the Fast Lane: Advances in Rapid Response Measurement (Symposium)
   • 0207: Excel Can Do That Too? Five Fantastic Functions for I-Os (Ignite)
   • 0868: Trust in AI (Panel Discussion)
7. Poster Break 3
   • Deep Dive into Testing/Assessment/Selection Methods/Validation
8. Closing Plenary

Go ahead and click over now to set a reminder for yourself to watch the live show. To participate, you’ll need a computer or mobile device capable of watching YouTube. See you there!