These are great questions for a more detailed page. Most of the issues you raise are no longer problems for me, because I now have an explicit time-scale and c

These are great questions for a more detailed page. Most of the issues you raise are no longer problems for me, because I now have an explicit time-scale and check-list that I go through to preempt them. However: > In which steps are the failures more usual? Usually it's getting the PO number from Finance, or otherwise getting explicit agreement about payment details. > Do people expect the talk to be free or "for exposure"? Some do, but in my very first response I ask "Do you have a budget?" If that's not answered, I repeat the question with no other information. In my field there's a lot of good will, and people (almost invariably) act in good faith. > Is it common to not get paid after the talk? Very uncommon. The expectation is laid down early that I'll give a good presentation, invoice them for an agreed amount, and they'll pay. I think in 30 years I've only had three or four people ghost me and not pay. > How common is to get a bad description of the expected audience? (size, age, math level, ...) Rare. People are asking me to accomplish a task, and they know that if I'm mis-informed then it won't go as well as they'd like. I also make it clear that I'll work with pretty much any audience, at pretty much any level, so they don't need to lie to get me on site. The incentives are all in favour of accurate information. And that last comment is the key. Getting incentives aligned is the key to getting everyone working together effectively. Spending time and effort up front to get that alignment is crucial.