2024 Call for Proposals

Continuing professional education is best accomplished in a setting that encourages dialogue, both formally within the sessions and informally.

GOSH seeks innovative session proposals that not only speak to the technical issues but also provide context. Speakers should offer real-world examples, success stories, and cautionary tales and share examples of essential tools and insights on emerging issues.

Sessions should be designed to encourage interactive audience participation by including small group discussions, exercises, and other activities to interject energy and promote dialogue.

GOSH is not looking for lectures but rather innovative and exciting sessions. GOSH expects learning objectives for proposed sessions to reflect actions and abilities the attendees can employ from participating in the session.

The learning objectives must be clear and measurable. Learning objectives need to complete the following sentence: “After completing this session, the participant will be able to…”.

Speakers are encouraged to provide additional resources such as white papers, relevant articles, tools, guides, sample programs, and other information that extends the learning beyond the session and adds value to the event.

Industry-specific sessions are welcome to make the guidance more specific. Proposals from a team or a panel of no more than three speakers are encouraged to share multiple perspectives on a topic.

Safety perspectives from other fields are welcome! Past topics have included  case studies, lessons learned, and panel discussions covering:

Construction Diversity/Inclusion General Industry
Healthcare                                                                 Human Resources Industrial Hygiene                                    Insurance                                                                          Manufacturing   OSHA Compliance

Risk Management Safety Culture Safety Leadership

Technology to Enhance Safety Transportation Warehousing

Wellness & Total Worker Health

Who attends GOSH | The conference brings together safety professionals, including safety managers, business owners, safety committee members, consultants, union and labor and industry representatives, and educators.  

Learning Levels | For attendees to have the most beneficial conference experience, presentations must be delivered at the learning level at which they were described. Please pay special attention to GOSH's Learning Level Definitions and commit to designing your presentation to fit the description.  

58% of GOSH's conference attendees are Safety professionals with 10+ years of experience. 

Beginner | 1-5 Years of Experience

Attendee has limited or no prior knowledge or experience or is new to the subject matter. Beginner sessions are geared toward attendees new to the field and seeking to learn basic concepts. Beginner’s sessions are intended to help attendees who seek to build foundational knowledge to gain a working understanding of the topic. 

Intermediate | 5-10 Years of Experience 

Attendee has a working knowledge of the topic covered but is not yet an advanced practitioner. Intermediate sessions are geared toward attendees with some competence in the subject under discussion resulting from prior training, education, and/or work experience. Attendees who seek to build upon foundational knowledge, refine and better hone their skills, and advance their understanding of the topic may wish to consider intermediate-level sessions. 

Mid Career | 10-15 Years of Experience 

Attendee has a high level of technical understanding of the topic under discussion. Mid Career sessions are geared toward attendees who have already achieved a high degree of technical competence in the subject of discussion resulting from extensive training and supplemental work experience. Attendees who wish to build upon intermediate knowledge, achieve mastery in a specific technical area, or build upon existing technical skills may want to consider advanced technical sessions.  

Experienced | 15+ Years of Experience 

Attendee has a high level of understanding of managerial and safety concepts. These sessions are geared toward attendees that have already achieved a high degree of leadership and industry competence in the subject of discussion resulting from extensive training in the area and several years of work experience. Attendees who wish to build upon intermediate knowledge, achieve mastery in specific managerial and safety areas, or build upon existing leadership skills may want to consider advanced managerial and safety sessions. 

The GOSH Program Committee reviews all proposals. During the process, we vet the potential speaker, not the speaker’s company or organization. GOSH cannot guarantee that you or your topic will be chosen for a session. 

The proposals are evaluated in whole or in part on the following criteria:

• Proposal applications that fail to meet all guidelines or are incomplete will not be considered for review.

• Subject matter is cutting-edge or presents new ideas, presented in a creative and engaging way

• Topic is timely for the industry today and will attract attendees

• Abstract and title of the session demonstrate the intent concisely

• Learning objectives and learning level are well-defined and support each other

• Attendees will be able to relate to the content and apply what they have learned in their roles

• Context of the issues, including real-world case studies, examples, and stories

• Potential for interactive audience participation

• Speaker presentation skills and experience

• Speaker is knowledgeable, engaging, and experienced on the topic submitted

• Education focused, devoid of overt and covert commercialism

• Overall quality of the written proposal

• Presentations are either 60 or 75 minutes long. 

• Available speaking slots are available on:

  • Monday, October 21

  • Tuesday, October 22

What is the deadline for the Call for Proposals? 

The deadline to submit proposals is not yet announced.

I cannot access the Google Proposal Form. Is there another option?

Yes. Click here to download the Session Proposal Form. Send your completed session proposal to GOSHConference@wannerassoc.com.

When will I find out if my proposal has been accepted? 

Notifications will be sent to speakers/submitters once the advisory committee has decided on sessions. 

Can I have multiple colleagues speak with me?

Each session can have a maximum of 3 speakers.

Can I submit multiple proposals to be a speaker?

Yes! Speakers may submit up to three (3) abstracts per conference.

Does GOSH pay speakers?

GOSH does not pay an honorarium to its concurrent session speakers. 

Do I have to pay for my conference registration?

If you are selected to speak at the GOSH Conference, you will receive a complimentary registration for the day you present.

 Complimentary registration is not transferable or able to be used as a credit.

Does GOSH pay for speaker travel costs and lodging?

We regret that we cannot cover the travel or lodging for all speakers.

Most speakers and their companies recognize the importance of being part of GOSH's educational events and embrace a philanthropic spirit by funding travel and lodgings. GOSH, educational events provide speakers the opportunity to demonstrate their expertise, knowledge, and experience and network with constituents for business development purposes. 

Can I still submit a proposal after the Call for Proposals has closed?

Please contact us at GOSHConference@wannerassoc.com to see if we can still include your proposal in the current conference review process.

What if I need to make a change to my presentation after I've submitted my final version?

No problem! If you have made changes to your presentation, please contact the conference coordinator at GOSHConference@wannerassoc.com as soon as possible. We will need to receive the updated version to be uploaded to the GOSH website for conference attendees to access.

Will I receive feedback about my session? If so, when should I expect to receive it?

Yes. It takes about 3-4 weeks to compile and calculate the session survey results. You will receive an email from GOSHConference@wannerassoc.com with your session survey results and any comments from attendees.