Important Dates
August 1
Poster Competition abstract and poster submission deadline
September 1
General Poster abstract submission deadline for those choosing not to enter the poster competition
October 21 & 22, 12:30–2:30pm in Seattle
Poster presentations and competition
Competition and Awards
INFORMS places special emphasis on high-quality poster submissions. As in past years, a Poster Session Competition will be held to recognize the best posters. If you would like to enter this competition, you are required to submit a soft copy of your poster (in a pdf format). Three winners will be selected each day (Monday and Tuesday), with awards given for first place ($350), second place ($250), and third place ($150). The winners will also receive a certificate and will be recognized in INFORMS newsletters, OR/MS Today, and on the INFORMS website.
How the Poster Competition Works
Participation in the poster competition is voluntary. That is, an author may elect to enter the General Poster session and make a poster presentation without entering the competition. For those who wish to compete, there are three rounds in the competition. In Round 1, participants will submit their posters prior to the conference for judges to review. The judges will select a set of semi-finalists to be evaluated in Round 2. Round 2 will involve judges evaluating the semi-finalist presentations at the conference. Based on their evaluation the judges will select a list of finalists who will move to Round 3, the final round. In Round 3, the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners of each day of the competition will be identified and awarded. The recognition includes a certificate, an award check, and announcements on INFORMS website and in the INFORMS newsletters.
What is an E-Poster?
An E-Poster is an electronic poster displayed digitally instead of being printed on paper as a traditional poster. In 2019, the semi-finalists of the competition are urged to present their final poster this way.
Before the Annual Meeting
Step 1. Abstract Submission: Only one poster abstract submission will be permitted per presenting author. For the abstract submission, the following information is needed: contact information for yourself and any co-authors, the title, and a 50-word abstract.
Step 2. Poster Submission for those entering the poster competition: By August 1, 2019, the participants who wish to enter the competition will be requested to submit their poster in a PDF format for review, using the submission procedure listed below:
- A complete entry consists of an abstract and an electronic PDF file of your poster.
- Please see the guidelines for poster formatting details at the end of this page.
- You can make minor changes to the submitted poster before your presentation at the conference.
- A PDF of your poster should be uploaded in the Oasis Abstract System.
Step 3. Poster Review for Competition (Pre-conference Round): Judges will select semi-finalist posters that will be evaluated on-site at the conference center. Up to 50 posters will be selected for judging during this round. (Note that all posters are accepted for presentation, regardless of whether they are selected as semi-finalists for the poster competition or not.)
At the Annual Meeting
Step 4. Poster Presentations, E-Poster Walk & Judging (Round 1): Authors of the semi-finalist posters will give a 5-minute presentation to the judges, using either an electronic poster or a traditional printed poster. The time limit will be strictly enforced as the judges will need to listen to a number of presentations within the limited time slot. The presentation will be repeated for at least two judges. Please see below for more information about the E-Poster Walk.
Step 5. Finalists & Judging (Round 2): The top (5-6) finalists will be determined by the judges on each day of the competition. A second round of presentations and judging will reveal the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners.
Step 6. Awards Ceremony: Winners will be announced after the competition. The winners will be awarded certificates and checks. The check awards for the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners are $350, $250, and $150, respectively.
After the Annual Meeting
Step 7. Further Recognition: The winners of the poster competition will be announced on the INFORMS website, in INFORMS newsletters, and in OR/MS Today magazine.
You can view previous winners here.
Poster Preparation Guidelines & Instructions
Minimal Requirements
Traditional Poster: Each presenter not entering the competition should bring a poster display in the form of a printed single large sheet of paper/plastic that can be mounted on a bulletin board (Board will be provided by INFORMS.) The bulletin board provided by INFORMS measures 7.5 feet wide by 3.5 feet high. Your overall poster must fit within that space.
Printing Your Poster: We strongly recommend that you have your poster printed locally or by an online site before you travel to the meeting, rather than attempt to have it printed onsite in Seattle, WA. The following online sites offer design and printing services:
http://www.posterpresentations.com/
http://www.makesigns.com/SciPosters_Templates.aspx
E-Poster: Each semi-finalist presenter in the poster competition should either bring a traditional hard copy of the poster as described above or submit their poster as an E-Poster in the form of a 1-page PDF file in portrait orientation. In Pixel: 1080 width x 1536 height. In Centimeters: 38.1 width x 54.2 height. Minimum font size: 16. A link with information about the E-Poster system and the uploading of E-Posters will be sent to all abstract submitters who have registered for the poster competition. All E-Posters should be previously uploaded. All previously uploaded E-Posters will be available on the conference webpage.
Audio-visual equipment: E-Posters will be displayed on a LCD television. Please note that there will be no audio equipment available so please make sure to speak up. If the poster presenter cannot be heard, the judge will summarize the answer for him/her.
Each poster should include the poster title and full names of all contributors, their affiliations, addresses, and an email and/or web link.
Suggested Best Practices
For all posters, please follow these guidelines:
- Maintain a good contrast between background and foreground text.
- Avoid acronyms and extensive mathematical notation as much as possible.
- Include one or more of the following: a brief description of the problem, objectives of the work, the methodology utilized, conclusions, relevant diagrams, and graphs and charts in order to present an overview for the application.
- Organize your poster into sections, e.g., Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, Conclusions, and Literature Cited. (Avoid using too many citations.) You may wish to use numbers to help sequence sections of the poster.
- Arrange the material into columns.
- The title should be readable from 15–20 feet (approximately 4.5–6 meters) away.
- The text should be large enough to be read easily from at least 6 feet (approximately 2 meters) away.
- The poster should not rely upon your verbal explanation to link together the various portions.
- Avoid densely packed, high word-count posters. Posters with 800 words or less are ideal.
- Self-explanatory graphics should dominate the poster.
- Below are web pages that provide more guidelines and free poster templates:
Poster Competition Judges
TBA
