Managing Sessions

For each Forsta Discussions project, multiple sessions can be offered for participants to join. A session is a time and date for a meeting. A participant can choose which session they wish to attend. Sessions can be created, edited and deleted using the Manage Sessions pane.

There are two types of sessions that can be created:

• Open session – These are sessions which a participant can elect to attend in response to an invite.

• Reserved session – These are sessions where the meeting organizer predetermines which participants will attend, rather than the participants choosing online. This might be where the researcher or recruiter has already spoken to the participant outside of Forsta Discussions, and confirmed a time to participate in a meeting.

Creating Open Sessions

Multiple sessions can be created for each Forsta Discussions project, and each participant can choose which session to attend. To create a new open session, follow these steps:

1. Scroll to the Manage Sessions pane on the Project Detail page. From here, you can see a list of your existing sessions (if any). Click the Add Open Session button to create a new session.

   
   

2. Enter the title of this session in the Session Title field.
   
   

3. Select the maximum number of participants who will be attending the session at one time in the Max number of participants field. When this number is reached, no further participants will be able to choose this session. There is no theoretical limit, but it is recommended you limit this to a maximum of 20 participants, and a minimum of 1.

   
   

4. Select the date of your session from the calender by clicking in the Date field.

   
   

5. Select the session start time in the Start Time field. This is the start time which your participant(s) can select for the session.
   

   

   Note: The time shown is the local time in the timezone that your computer is set to.

6. Select the duration of the session, between 1 to 5 hours in the Duration field.

7. Select the moderator. Click in the Assigned moderators field and either begin typing the name of the moderator you'd like to assign, or select their name from the drop-down list. If you have already selected a default moderator(s), that moderator's name will already be added (but can be removed if necessary).
   
   

   Note: In order to assign a moderator, they must be an End User or Professional Author User who has already been added to your project. For instructions on Managing moderators on your project, see Managing Moderators and Observers.

8. Click the Create Session button to save the session.

   
   

Your session is now created and is visible in the Manage Sessions list.

Creating Reserved Sessions

A reserved session are those where the meeting organizer predetermines which participants will attend, rather than the participants choosing online themselves. This might be where the researcher or recruiter has already spoken to the participant outside of Forsta Discussions, and confirmed a time to participate in a meeting. To create a new reserved session:

1. Scroll to the Manage Sessions pane on the Project Detail page. From here, you can see a list of your existing sessions (if any). Click the Add Reserved Session button to create a new session.

   
   

2. The Add Reserved Session overlay appears. Complete this form in much the same way as you would for creating an Open Session (above), giving the session a name, date, start time, duration, and specifying the moderator(s). Then click the Next button to start adding participants to the session.

   
   

3. The Manage Participants overlay appears. This is split into two columns. On the left, is a list of all available participants that can be added to the session. On the right is a list of participants you have added the session. To add participants, select their name in the left column and click the + Add button. To remove a participant, select their name in the right column and click the - Remove button.

   
   

4. By default, participants who are already assigned to other sessions are not shown as available to add, but this can be changed by clicking the Show Unassigned Participants Only toggle in the top-left. If you select a participant who is already confirmed on another session, they will be canceled from the previous session and added to the one you are in the process of creating.

   
   

5. To automatically send email confirmations of the assignment of the participants to this session, ensure the Send Confirmation Email toggle in the bottom-left is selected. Emails can also be sent manually later on if you would prefer to send your own emails or use other media to confirm the session with the participant.
   

6. Finally, click the Create Session button to create the session and optionally, send the confirmation emails to the participants.

   
   

Editing Sessions

Existing sessions can be edited. To do this:

1. Scroll to the Manage Sessions pane on the Project Detail page. Locate the session you wish to edit and click the overflow icon on the right of the session row. Select Edit from the pop-up menu.

   
   

2. If the session is an open session, you can edit any field within the Edit Open Session overlay. Make the changes, then click the Save button.
   
   

   Note that the content within the Session Title field will be viewable to all participants.
   

   If the session is a reserved session, you can edit any field within the Edit Reserved Session overlay, but also manage the participants that have been assigned to the session by clicking the Manage Participants button.

   
   

3. When you have finished editing a session (and the participants, if a reserved session), Click the Save button to confirm the changes to the session/participants.

Deleting Sessions

Sessions can easily be deleted. To delete a session:

1. Scroll to the Manage Sessions pane on the Project Detail page. Locate the session you wish to delete and click the overflow icon on the right of the sessionrow. Select Delete from the pop-up menu.

   
   

2. Click the Delete Session button to confirm you'd like to delete the session.

   
   

Note: If there were participants scheduled to attend this session, you will need to contact the particpant(s) outside of Forsta Discussions to inform them of the cancellation.