Removing a speaker removes that person as a presenter for one event. It does not delete their contact record or change any other events where they have spoken. This article explains how to delete an event speaker, what happens to speakers when you delete an entire event, and why speaker records can stop you from deleting a contact or organization.
Before You Begin
Prerequisites
- You need Console access to Meetings & Shows and the event you're working in open.
- You do not need any permission beyond general Console access to delete an event speaker.
Warning
Deleting a speaker is permanent. You cannot restore a deleted speaker record in Rhythm; only your account's audit history keeps a copy of what was removed.
Delete an Event Speaker
- Go to Meetings & Shows › Events ›
<event name>› Speakers. - Open the speaker you want to remove.
- Select Delete Speaker or, from the Speaker Options menu, select Delete this Speaker.
- Confirm the deletion when asked.
Result
Rhythm removes the speaker record and returns you to the event's speakers list.
Warning
If the speaker is still listed on one or more sessions, deleting the speaker does not update those sessions automatically. A session that named this speaker may still show an empty or broken speaker line until you edit the session and remove the reference. Before you delete a speaker, use Review a Speaker's Details and Speaking History to check which sessions they present.
What Happens When You Delete the Whole Event
When you delete an event, Rhythm deletes its speakers as part of the same process, so you do not need to remove them one at a time first. This cleanup happens automatically after Rhythm allows the event to be deleted. If something else blocks the event deletion, Rhythm keeps the event and its speakers in place.
You cannot recover a deleted event's speakers after the deletion finishes.
Why You Can't Delete a Speaker's Contact or Organization
If a contact or organization is named as a speaker on any event, including a past event, Rhythm blocks you from deleting that contact or organization until you remove every speaker record that names them. This applies across your whole account, not just the event you're viewing, even if the other event is inactive or was only used for testing.
- Open the contact or organization you're trying to delete.
- Look at the Speaking Engagements tab on a contact to see every event where they're listed as a speaker.
- Remove each speaker record for every event listed, using the steps above.
- Once no speaker record names the contact or organization, delete it as usual.
See Change Status or Delete a Contact for the CRM steps to remove a contact after you've cleared its speaker records.
Tip
If you cannot tell which event is still blocking you, open the contact or organization's Database Relationships and copy the related record's ID. Then search event sessions for that ID to find the specific session. Searching events with otherwise blank fields can also help you find an inactive or test event you might not think to check.
If It Fails
- The page shows "Unable to delete speaker." Try deleting the speaker again from the speaker's own page. If it keeps failing, the speaker record may already be gone, or something else is temporarily blocking the request.
- You can't delete a contact or organization, and you're not sure why. Check whether they're named as a speaker on any past or current event. Rhythm blocks the deletion until you clear every speaking record that names them.
- A session still shows the deleted speaker's name, or an empty line where they used to be. Deleting a speaker does not remove references to that speaker elsewhere, so edit the session directly to remove the old reference.
- Saving a session fails after you deleted a speaker. A session can fail to save if it still has a reference to a speaker record that no longer exists. Edit the session, remove the old speaker reference, and save again.