How to Add Program Chairs to Your Conference

Paige Watson

Updated on 10 March 2026

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Program Chairs play a key role in managing the academic quality of a conference. They supervise the peer review process, assign reviewers to submissions, and make final decisions on paper acceptance or rejection.

PeerSubmit allows conference organizers to easily add and manage program chairs within the conference dashboard.

Open the Program Chairs Section

To add program chairs to your conference:

• Open your conference dashboard.
• Go to Call for Submissions.
• Click CFP Settings.
• Select Program Chairs from the sidebar.

This page shows the list of all program chairs responsible for overseeing the peer review process.

Add a Program Chair

To invite a new program chair:

• Click the Add Chair button.
• Enter the chair’s Name and Email.
• Add the chair’s Institution or affiliation.
• Save the profile to assign them as a program chair.

Once added, the program chair will be part of the conference committee and will be able to manage reviewer assignments and evaluation decisions.

Responsibilities of a Program Chair

Program chairs typically manage several key responsibilities during the conference review process.

• Oversee paper submissions and review progress.
• Assign reviewers to submitted papers.
• Evaluate reviewer feedback and scores.
• Make final acceptance or rejection decisions.

Having experienced program chairs ensures a transparent and high-quality peer review process.

Managing Program Chairs

You can manage program chairs directly from the Program Chairs page.

• Edit chair details if their information changes.
• Update affiliations or expertise areas.
• Remove chairs if they are no longer part of the conference committee.

Keeping the program committee updated helps maintain an organized and efficient review workflow.

Best Practices for Selecting Program Chairs

Choosing the right program chairs can significantly improve the quality of your conference.

• Select experienced researchers or professors in the field.
• Include chairs from diverse institutions and countries.
• Assign chairs with expertise in different tracks or topics.
• Ensure chairs are available during the review and decision period.

Strong leadership from program chairs helps maintain fairness, efficiency, and academic quality in the peer review process.