Making Effective Presentations

“At one time or another, every manager will have an opportunity to make an important presentation to peers and senior executives. How they perform in these situations can significantly influence the trajectory of their careers.  Often presentation style and personal confidence are as important as the actual content of the presentation itself.”

• Do background research. Become fully conversant, of course, with the subject of your presentation. But also find out who will be in the audience, why they are there and what they hope to accomplish. It will enable you to better target your presentation.

• Organize your material. Decide how many points you want to make, then determine how you will deliver them. For instance, you can make your points in sequence, one point leading to another. Alternatively, you might want to talk about a single subject but use a number of subtopics.

• Use visual aids. Visual aids help clarify concepts, increase comprehension and increase retention. Whether you use flip charts, white boards, overhead transparencies, slides, videos or PowerPoint, keep graphics simple, colorful and legible. At the same time, keep in mind that you are center for the presentation, not the visual aids.

• Verify your arrangements in advance. Allow time to troubleshoot or make alternative plans, if necessary. Arrive for your presentation early to check equipment, cable hookups, access to extension cords, etc. If you will be using audiovisual aids, have a backup copy on overheads in the event of incompatible hookups or other technical problems.

• Rehearse. Practice aloud. Practice speaking clearly both in normal tones and at a higher volume. Become so knowledgeable that you aren’t dependent on your notes and can add details or adjust to unforeseen developments or questions during your presentation.

• Your physical appearance is your first impression. Your listeners begin to form impressions of you even before you speak. Be aware of your hair, glasses, jewelry and clothing. Dress to meet the expectations of the audience. When something is askew, it draws attention. So take the keys and coins out of your pockets.

• Be conscious of facial expressions. It is pivotal in communicating your attitude toward your presentation and toward the audience. It sends an important message about your sincerity and about your comfort level. Facial expressions can predispose the audience to listen to what you have to say and even give you the benefit of the doubt, or it can put people off. So smile.

• Consider your posture. Your feet should be slightly apart and your body weight should be divided equally between them. Your head should be held high and straight. Your shoulders should be pulled back and level. Your arms should be relaxed and they should hang by your sides. Your hands should be relaxed and your fingers should be loose. Your legs should be straight and your knee joints should be loose—not locked.

• Speak confidently. Be authoritative, pausing briefly each time you make an important point. Use gestures that reflect your words. Maintain eye contact with your audience, moving your head from one group to another to invite all to listen.

• Involve the audience. If the audience seems bored, use questions to stimulate their interest. Look for people who are smiling, nodding or leaning forward in their seats and watching you intently. Make sure that you involve or engage them in your presentation.

• Adhere to a time frame. Know in advance how much time you will need or will be given. Prepare for 10 percent less than the allotted time. Select in advance information that can be dropped in the event of a time crunch.

• Visualize how successful you will be. Picture an enthusiastic audience loving every word of your speech to overcome feelings of insecurity.

PASS

• Market research. The dynamic duo of Tana and Kendra again proved their marketing savvy. They began by visiting an American Eagle store to talk to their target consumers. They asked them about their ideas and needs for incorporating technology into their clothing. In contrast, Net Worth came up with the idea of putting a laptop in the back of a jacket. I doubt anyone would want to wear an uncomfortable, heavy laptop on their body. I also doubt they ever talked to their target consumers.
   

• Keep them on task. Tana, Magna's project manager this week, again proved that she is a leader who can keep her team on task. When tempers began to flare and the team was becoming dysfunctional, she wisely intervened and redirected her team by saying emphatically, "We are just going to get it done."
   

• Understanding critical success factors. Tana wisely recognized that the presentation would be "one-third of the reason they would win or lose." Magna delivered their presentation with poise and delivered the message with clarity, energy and knowledge of the consumer and product design.
   

• When things go wrong -- improvise. Bren and Craig ran into trouble when they chose a silk-screening vendor who applied some of their logos backwards and spilled paint on the clothes. Magna kept their cool and recovered by using White Out on the clothing to patch the mistakes. OK, so White Out might not have been my first choice, but I have to give them credit for a creative solution. They bailed themselves out of a potential disaster. There was no evidence the executives even noticed the problem.
   

• Failure is not an option. Tana faced a critical decision point when the clothing came back from the silk screener and was clearly not acceptable for presentation. She said, "I could cry or I could move on." She chose to move forward to keep the team motivated. That type of behavior is at the core of inspired leadership.  Trump is looking for a leader who can handle a challenge and figure out a way around the problem -- going through it, over it, around it or under it, someone like Tana.
   

• Be prepared with the (correct) answers. Bren had the right answer -- thanks to Tana and Kendra's market research -- and was prepared when asked by the American Eagle executive, "What do you think is the most important technology for the customer?" He responded, without hesitation, "the cell phone." In contrast, Angie stumbled when asked the same question and suggested it was the iPod. Do you believe the American Eagle executives understand which device is more popular with their customers today? My bet is they do.

FAIL

• Cool under pressure. Angie failed to adapt to adversity when her model forgot the key presentation jacket and got flustered. As a result, her presentation was dismal. Unexpected situations are part of everyday business and adversity is often the norm. Effective professionals don't lose their cool when things go wrong.
   

• No preparation. Angie was ill-prepared for her presentation. It was her responsibility to ensure the pieces were in place as required for a successful and professional presentation. Instead, she repeatedly lost her train of thought, saying "um" continually and fumbling with her notes. Even junior high students know preparation is the key to delivering an effective presentation.
   

• Resource allocation. Alex failed to effectively manage his very limited resources in allowing Chris to waste several hours trying to retrieve the missing credit card. In today's business world, we are all asked to do more with less. The key to success is to maximize your available resources and minimize waste.
   

• You are the company you keep. Trump told Alex, "you hang out with losers, you become a loser." Successful executives understand that their personnel selections and team members are critical to business success. Winning is accomplished with a team that has the necessary leadership, skills and attitude to win.
   

• What's the plan? An action plan outlining critical items with a timeline is a good idea for any team project. Net Worth had no excuse for noticing 30 minutes before they were due downtown for their presentation that their models were nowhere to be found. Good planning and smart execution would have avoided this scenario, which ultimately blew their presentation and any chance of winning.

The Report Card

Net Worth: Effort -- Performance -- Creativity --   D D D	WEEK ELEVEN BOOK SMARTS Magna STREET SMARTS Net Worth
Magna: Effort -- Performance -- Creativity --   B B B