Industry Symposia Manual

Mandatory Forms

It is mandatory for all symposium organizers to fill out the program submission form below before February 9.

Forms for Additional Orders

Please submit the forms relevant to your booking. Please note that these orders can only go through the official suppliers provided below. For more information, please read ‘Additional Orders‘ section of manual.

Important dates

Spotlight Stage 

Program

Please submit your presentation title, invited faculty and short description of your presentation via email to rblondel@theisn.org by February 9.

Schedule & Promotion

The full schedule of Spotlight Sessions is published here.  At the congress, the schedule is published and promoted in the pocket program, on slides and signage.

Set-up

• Mini stage
• Four stools
• Podium
• Laptop
• Gooseneck microphone on podium
• Two additional handheld microphones
• 55″ plasma TV screen
• Casual sitting 30 – 40 PAX

Regular Wi-Fi is available which will be sufficient for normal usage, but not for downloading heavy files or streaming.  Technical support staff includes an audio operator, IT operator and English-speaking area support. ISN staff will also be available onsite for assistance. 

*Actual set-up may differ. Images show previous set-up at WCN’23 for reference.

Location

All industry-supported spotlights are held on Spotlight Stage 1 which is located in the back of the exhibition hall and open to all delegates.  Please see floorplan below. You will receive two (2) exhibitor badges to access the hall for your session.

Instructions to Share with Your Presenters

General:

• Arrive at least 15 minutes before the scheduled start of the session.
• One minute prior, it is recommended to announce your session will begin momentarily. 
• Start presenting at the designated time – please avoid waiting for a larger crowd. Participants are expected to also join after you start.
• Be mindful of the volume of announcements or disruptions.
• Please end on time as the Spotlight Stage schedule is quite full.

Presentations:

Prepare your PowerPoint slides or presentation materials in advance. If there are multiple speakers with multiple presentations, please consolidate all slides in one deck for the entire session. Please check if links, videos, etc are working.  

The slides must be uploaded directly on the laptop on the stage (on lectern), and not in the speaker preview room. A folder tree will be set up on this laptop so you may save your materials here. Please leave the desktop organized. If you are using any online tools for quizzes or interactive elements, understand that the laptop type and settings may not be what you are used to, therefore test well in advance. 

If you would like to upload presentation slides to the laptop in advance, you may check the schedule for a free moment. If the stage is not in use, the screens may show intermission slides or video materials, however you may still approach technical staff to upload your materials. At no time disturb the session if ongoing.  

Recording

All Spotlight Stage sessions will be recorded. Companies may request a copy of the recording for internal use only. Companies are not allowed to post or share recordings outside of their organization. Please place your request after the congress via email to rblondel@Theisn.org.

 

Package

The rates charged to organize an industry symposium includes:

• Rental of the room and standard set up (theater style, stage, lectern, speaker table and chairs)
• Standard AV equipment and technician support
• Advertisement of program displayed on congress website in symposia e-book (A4-sized design provided by sponsor) – E-book separated from scientific program
• Opportunity to use digital signage in exhibition hall (Design provided by sponsor)
• Use of the speaker preparation room
• Use of congress logo on invitations and promotional documents (after approval of artwork by organizer)
• Ability to stream in virtual speakers to live session for presentation and Q&A
• Session recorded and made available with open-access on-demand for 12 months
• Five (5) symposium-only passes to access your symposium
• Catering is included for lunch symposia
• Live translation available in 30 languages

The rate does not include:

• Travel, accommodation or registration of industry symposium faculty
• Rehearsal slot
• Catering orders for breakfast and afternoon symposia
• Livestream of the session – this can be booked separately please get in touch with the ISN team.

WCN’24 faculty participating in any industry symposia are not eligible for the WCN faculty travel policy.

Schedule

Morning: 8:30 – 9:00 am
Lunch: 1:45 – 2:45 pm
Afternoon: 5:45 – 6:45 pm

What is the current industry symposia schedule?

You may find the most up-to-date schedule here

How long is the session?

The slot are either 30 or 60 minutes long. We recommend a structure of 20 or 45 minutes of presentations followed by 10-15 minutes of Q&A.

When will you have access to the room?

Companies will have only access to the symposium room 30 minutes before the assigned starting time for set up and/or rehearsal. Technical staff will be available for support at that time only.

Companies must strictly adhere to the indicated start and ending times of the reserved time slot. Extensions beyond the assigned timings are not allowed under any circumstances.

The symposium venue should be completely vacated immediately after the end of the symposium. Companies are responsible for removing all materials, waste, etc. from the room. Any costs for removal will be charged to the symposia organizer. It is compulsory that the organizers communicate to their attendees to use the bins located in the room.

Can we provide intermission slides for the 30 minutes before the symposium?

Due to a very strict schedule the intermission slides will be ISN/WCN looping only.

Audio visual

Equipment available in session rooms*:

• 2 x standing microphones
• Sound system
• 1 x comfort monitor on stage (2 for bigger capacity rooms) – Timer + Presentation for presenter view
• 1 x speaker lectern
• 1 x clicker
• 2 x tables
• 4 x chairs
• 1x camera

Companies may use the audio visual equipment that the congress uses in each room at no extra costs. Companies are however not permitted to move or take away any equipment that is used by the congress for its scientific sessions. Please note that the lectern and speaker table will have WCN branding by default.

*Please note that the equipment can vary with the size/capacity of the rooms

Can the AV set-up be changed?

Due to the strict schedule, it is not possible to adapt the equipment and AV and/or hire alternative equipment for the symposium.

Can speaker(s)/chair(s) attend WCN virtually?

It is strongly recommended to have in-person chairs/speakers but if needed chairs/speakers can be live streamed. Please let us know by February 9 if a chair/speaker will be joining virtually.

Q&A and polling

As standard, microphones on stands will be available in each room for Q&A. Depending on your preferences, we are sharing below some additional Q&A options:

• Handheld mics: Please see ‘Additional Orders‘ section. You may wish to also organize temporary staff to manage the mics.
• Online Q&A (e.g. Sli.do): Companies may provide ISN with all details of their chosen Q&A system (QR code, link…) to be embedded in their sessions’ screen by no later than March 14.
• Polling devices: Companies may rent polling devices with the official congress services supplier. Please get in touch with Met Group at florencia.v@metgroup.com.ar by March 14

For any non-standard options, we strongly recommend companies organize a rehearsal slot for practice to ensure smooth running during the day. Please see ‘Additional Orders‘ for more information.

Rooms

*Based on the rooms to be built in venue. Final capacity may slightly change.

Rooms lay-out

Recording

Symposia will be recorded and made available with open-access on-demand on the ISN Academy 7-10 business days after the congress. Recordings are available on the ISN Academy for 12 months. If you need to check the recording of your symposium for compliance before the upload please let us know in advance.

Companies may request a copy of the recording for internal use only. Companies are not allowed to post or share recordings outside of their organization. Please place your request after the congress via email to rblondel@Theisn.org.

Program

What is the deadline to submit symposia program proposals?

You must submit the program of your industry symposium for approval by February 9.

How do I submit?

Submission is made via the online symposium form. Please submit one form per symposium. Ensure to check the availability of your speakers before submitting your program.

What information is required?

Session information

• Session title (max 25 words)
• Date
• Start time (local time)
• End time (local time)
• Session duration (in minutes)

Chair(s)

• Title
• First name
• Last name
• Institute
• Country
• Email
• In-person/virtual

Speaker(s)

• Presentation title
• Title
• First name
• Last name
• Institute
• Country
• Email
• Start time
• Duration (in minutes)
• In-person/virtual

Session’s key words

All sessions will have live AI translation available in 30 languages. In order to ensure accuracy we are asking you to please send some keys words that will be used in your session e.g. trial name, drug name, speaker name, study name etc. to log into the system. In case you need to add more words after submitting your program please send them via email to rblondel@theisn.org. Please do not hesitate to get in touch with the ISN team if you have any question about this.

Who are the programs approved by?

The content of industry sessions must be submitted for review and approval by the WCN Congress Organizing Committee (COC) who will ascertain the scientific value of the program. Approval or suggestions for changes by the COC will be communicated and these recommendations must be taken into consideration. Changes cannot be made without approval. Please get in touch with ISN Team if you need to make changes to your program.

When will we know if the program is approved?

You will receive feedback on your program by February 19.

Are there any other considerations?

In line with the ISN Position Statement on Diversity, we ask that industry symposia programs are diverse from a gender, ethnicity and cultural perspective.

The following items are promotional activities included in each industry symposia package. Please take note of the information and deadlines. There are no additional costs for these items. To book additional promotion, please check the corresponding tab on the left-hand side of the page.

Digital Signage at Venue

The industry symposia programs will be looped on digital screens in a dedicated area during the event. The ISN team will use e-book visuals provided by sponsors.

E-Program Book

All industry symposia have the opportunity to provide a brochure visual/symposium invitation to be placed in the symposia program e-book. The e-book will be displayed on the WCN congress website for delegates. There is no extra fee for this.

Specifications: A4 size (210 x 297 mm/8.3 x 11.7 inches)
Format: PDF

Design submission: March 4 via email to rblondel@Theisn.org

Communications from the ISN

All symposia organized at WCN will be promoted on the meeting website and on various pre-congress communications. All symposia bookings include one collective social media post to promote the sessions. The post will include symposia topics, companies logos and sympo dates/times.

Promotion at Congress Venue

Companies are authorized to bring one (1) self-standing roll up banner to be placed outside the symposium room. Companies are requested to place the roll up banner themselves 30 minutes before the symposium and dismantle immediately after the symposium ends.

Companies are permitted to promote their symposium at their own booth, in public areas of the venue 90 minutes prior to the session until the end of the session (max. two staff promoting per sympo).

Symposium organizers are asked to refrain from leaving unused invitations, posters or symposium material at the congress venue. In the instance of non-adherence to this rule an additional cost will be charged for removal.

Promotion at Congress Hotels

Promotional leaflets, poster boards or branding hotel key cards / door drops to advertise your symposium is not allowed outside of the official WCN’24 sponsorship option.  Violation of the regulation may result in expulsion without any indemnity.

Giveaways

Gadgets that are distributed to participants should be professional in nature and should not exceed a maximum value of 5 USD per item. Sharp, pointy or dangerous objects are not allowed. The organizers reserve the right to request invoices of the gadgets at any time. Symposium organizers are asked to refrain from leaving unused giveaways at the congress venue. In the instance of non-adherence to this rule an additional cost will be charged for removal.

Promo Pack

We have prepared a promotional pack to assist in your communications on WCN’24. You can download it here:

What is included in the pack?

• Congress banners
• Congress presentation slide
• WCN logo in various formats
• Social Media templates

Livestream – NEW

Fee: $6,000 per symposium

Due to demand, the ISN is making available the option of livestreaming industry symposia to an online audience. As with symposia recordings, the live streaming will be open-access targeted at healthcare professionals. An individual is not required to be registered to WCN in order to watch the live stream of the symposium.

For companies that book this paid option, the symposium will be streamed from the CEC venue to a webpage under the www.theisn.org/wcn host site facilitated by Vimeo. There is no separate dedicated streaming platform that requires registration.

Companies will be provided with the URL link to include in your communications, and the link will also be available on the congress website where industry symposia programs are displayed. To access the link, viewers are required to provide some basic information in a pop-up including: name, country and confirmation of HCP status. This is for ISN to be able to provide some viewer reports to companies. The reports will be provided in the days following your symposium including total views, unique views and country breakdown. Companies may request additional additional custom fields in the pop-up that must be GDPR compliant (Deadline: Feb 28). However, in order to keep the form short and therefore the access to live symposium convenient, we strongly recommend limiting the number of fields required. It is not possible to track length of time spent on the livestream.

The deadline to book is February 28, 2024.

Catering for Breakfast and Afternoon Symposia

ISN will handle catering for all lunch symposia. Companies organizing a morning or afternoon symposium may order catering though it is not mandatory. If you have any questions please contact florencia.v@metgroup.com.ar with Met Group. Deadline to order: March 14

Please note that the venue prohibits external catering and thus all catering orders must go through the official WCN partner Met Group.

Catering form will be uploaded here shortly. Please check back.

Podium Branding

Fee $250 USD

All lecterns will have WCN branding by default. It is possible to customize the lectern with your own company branding. Each symposium room will be provided with one (1) speaker lectern. Please place your order with pzavalloni@theisn.org before March 14

Specifications: 1080×1920 pixels
Format: PDF
Please leave 1/3 empty space at the top of your artwork to show the speaker’s name.

Submit design: via email to pzavalloni@theisn.org by March 20

Badges Scanning

To provide symposium organizers with a fast way to scan participants at the entry of the session hall, you may hire a badge scanning device. For your convenience, the services entail both the hardware and the manpower for the operation. Scan results contain full contact details (if consented) of the delegate as made available by the congress organizer and will be provided after the congress.

To order badges scanning devices please fill out the form below and return it to florencia.v@metgroup.com.ar by March 14

Rehearsal Slots

Fee $1,000 USD

You may book a rehearsal slot for your industry symposium. To book, please get in touch with pzavalloni@theisn.org before March 14.

A limited number of rehearsal slots is available on Sunday April 14 and Monday April 15. Slots will be allocated on a first come first serve basis. We may have shorter slots from 10:30 – 11:00 available if needed.

Date	Time	Hall E	Hall D	Hall C4	Hall C1	Hall C2	Hall C3
April 14	11:00 – 12:00	Available	Reserved	Available	Reserved	Available	Available
April 15	11:00 – 12:00	Available	Reserved	Available	Available	Available	Available

Staff

A maximum number of two (2) guiding staff are allowed in the congress center to direct people to a specific symposium room by holding signs. They must remain in the main foyer/ground floor public areas/your own booth and must not disturb any scientific sessions. It is only allowed 90 minutes before your symposium. Staff situated in the hallways must not give our leaflets.

Staff can be hired independently or through our partner. For more information please get in touch with Met Group via email florencia.v@metgroup.com.ar by March 14. All staff situated inside the meeting room must wear a valid badge. Please refer to ‘Badges’ section for more details.

Advertising

Different advertising opportunities are available to further promote your symposium. If you have any enquiries please contact cclaire@theisn.org. Please note that for all additional advertising designs must be submitted by March 4.

Advertising	Ref #	Fees	Specs	Format	Example
Ad Banner in Congress Email	6	$           6,000	190W x 600H px with opportunity to provide URL	JPEG or PNG	View
Ad on Congress Website	7	$           6,000	300W x 300H px with opportunity to provide URL	PNG	View
Article in Congress Email	15	$           6,000	100-word (incl. title) text can provide a brochure/picture	Email or word JPEG or PNG	View
Digital Banner	13	$         10,000	A4	PDF	View
Hotel Welcome Cards	9	$         10,000	A5	AI
Social Medial Loop	14	$           6,000	X image: 1200 x 628px or video: max 140 seconds	PNG or MP4	View

Share Your Symposium – Package

Fee: $25,000 USD

Presentations

Language

All speakers are requested to upload the presentation file to the speaker preview room at least 2 hours prior to your session. Please bring your presentation file on a USB memory stick.

Can speakers present from their personal laptops?

Managing presentation(s) from personal laptops directly in the session rooms is not allowed.

❗When speakers upload their slides in the speaker preview room, they give the necessary consent for ISN to be able to display slides during the congress and upload onto the ISN Academy.

Presentation Preparation Guidelines

Format

All presentations are held in Microsoft PowerPoint on a PC running with Windows. Please note that the congress computers in the session rooms are being supplied with Microsoft Office 2019 or higher. If you are using other software than Microsoft PowerPoint on a PC running Windows (example: OpenOffice, PowerPoint for Mac, Keynote) please make sure your presentation is converted to Microsoft PowerPoint for Windows PCs. Please give your file name an extension ‘.PPT’ .PPTX’.

Technical instructions

• 16:9 (wide screen) ratio
• Preferred page setup is landscape orientation
• Use high-contrast colors: light text on dark background or vice versa
• It is not recommended to use time-controlled transitions
• Recommended to use a font size of minimum 28
• If including videos in your presentation, please make sure to check that they work in the speaker preview room at least 2 hours prior to your session.
• The lighter (in size) your PowerPoint presentation is the easier to handle

Important information for Mac users

In order to use a Mac presentation on a PC-compatible computer, please note that you need to prepare it according to the instructions below, before bringing it to the speaker preview room.

1. Use a common font, such as Arial, Times New Roman, Verdana, etc. (special fonts might be changed to a default font on a PowerPoint-based PC).
2. Insert pictures as JPG and PNG files (and not TIF, or PICT – these images will not be visible on a PowerPoint-based PC).
3. Use a common movie format, such as AVI, MPG, and WMV. MOV files from QuickTime will not be visible on a PowerPoint-based PC

Speaker Preview Room 

The speaker preview room is under the stairs going down the foyer. See floorplan below. Symposium staff and speakers are welcome to use the room to preview the presentation(s) at least two (2) hours before the beginning of the symposium, throughout the congress. Technicians will be present in the room to assist you.

Speaker preview room operation hours:

April 12: 2 pm – 7 pm
April 13: 8 am – 7:30 pm
April 14: 8 am – 7 pm
April 15: 8 am – 7 pm

Instructions on the day

Assemble in your session room at least 15 minutes before the beginning of the session.

• Ensure that you sit near the front of the room with easy access to the stage.
• Ensure that you keep to the time allocated to you, as it will cause disruption to sessions if you run over your allotted time.
• If there are any changes or corrections required to the presentation details, please let the technician know as soon as possible.

Quick Overview

Registration Category	Access	Display on badge	Fees
Full-congress Badge	All areas of WCN	First name and surname + country	View
Symposium-only Pass	Single symposium room only during symposium and rehearsal slot	Company name	5 included per symposium booked It is not possible to purchase additional
Exhibitor Badge	Exhibition hall only Opening hours, with extended access 30-min prior and after	Company name + country	$75 USD

 

Full-congress Registrations

Companies may receive a number of complimentary full-congress registrations depending on your booking.

Platinum supporters: 5 full-congress badges.

Gold supporters: 4 full-congress badges.

Silver supporters: 3 full-congress badges.

Full-congress registrations allow access to all WCN (in-person/on-demand) except pre-congress courses. Full-congress badges will display delegate names.

In the event that a sponsor has a full-congress badge but requires early access to the exhibition hall, please contact the ISN team to ensure smooth access to the exhibition hall outside of regular opening hours.

Symposium-only Pass

Each company will receive 5 symposium-only passes for every industry symposium that they are organizing. These allow access only to the room during your specific breakfast, lunch or evening symposium time. These access’ are intended for use only by the company or for speakers who may not wish to register to the full congress to give their presentation. Only the name of the company and symposium date/time will appear on these passes.

How to Fill in Details for Full-congress Registrations

A registration group will be automatically created with your complimentary registrations included in your package. The company’s main contact will receive a link to send their group members to finalize registration. The main contact is taken from the booking form. Please advise us in advance if this should change.

All registration must be finalized by April 1, 2024. After this date, the unused tickets will be cancelled. We kindly ask the main contacts to do not fill in the delegate registration information on behalf of their group members, but to ensure that each member of their group fill in the information by April 1, 2024. Any name changes received after the deadline are subject to a fee (50 USD). These registrations are intended for use only by the company. They cannot be used to invite delegates/doctors outside the company. If you are interested in inviting delegates/doctors outside the company, please use the group registration procedure.

How to Order Extra Full-congress Registrations 

1. Once your group is created, login into the registration platform and click on Sponsor & Exhibition Extra Registration button.
2. Click on the link WCN’24 registration and follow the instructions.
3. Select the number of additional tickets you wish to purchase and proceed to the payment page to finalize your purchase.
   –
4. Extra step for full-congress registrations: If you purchase extra Full-congress registrations once the payment is finalized, please contact registrationswcn@theisn.org to receive a link for your new group member to fill in their details (please see below).

If your organization requires a proforma invoice in order to make payments for congress registrations, this is possible through the registration portal. Once you have inputted your registration details, a proforma invoice is automatically generated with bank transfer instructions.

How to Collect Your Badges On-site

Group leaders (or an authorized representative) will be contacted in March to arrange a collection appointment. This person is responsible for distributing badges to everyone in their group.

The badges cannot be collected individually by the group members.

Do I Need to Register Faculty?

All faculty members of industry symposia are required to either have a full-congress badge or a symposium-only pass. All faculty members of spotlight stage sessions are required to either have a full-congress badge or an exhibitor badge. Symposium/spotlight organizers are responsible for checking the status of their own faculty’s registration and registering them, if needed.

A series of Q&A webinars will be organized for our industry partners to ask their questions live to the team. 

The webinars will take audiences through various elements of exhibition and industry symposia set-up. The dates for each webinar will be shared soon. 

Webinars have been arranged at varying times to accommodate for different time zones. All webinars will be recorded and posted here shortly after. 

Accommodation

Met Group is the official and exclusive housing agent for the World Congress of Nephrology 2024 and appointed by the ISN. Met Group is providing a booking service for delegates participating in WCN’24. Please find here more information. If you have any questions please reach out to: accommodation@metgroup.com.ar

Travel

We are pleased to recommend SkyTeam for your travel arrangements. SkyTeam is an international airline alliance flying to 184 countries. Book your flight to the ISN World Congress of Nephrology on this link and benefit from a special fare rate with the following event ID: 4689S.

Find out more.