CHAPTER 8

Presentation Tips

8.1 Introduction

As project manager you quite often have to present projects. Examples are presenting to the Steering Committee about the project progress and to your team about the project planning. This chapter gives practical information about presenting.

8.2 Preparation

Preparation is key! In the audience there might be a lot of people who have not seen you before so this is their first time and you have only one opportunity to make a first impression, so it better be good the first time!

1. Indicate to the organizer what you need (projector, audio, power, Internet connection, etc.). If the required facilities may not be available you need to anticipate in advance.
2. Before the actual presentation check if the facilities are present and operational (projector, sound, etc.).
3. What is the theme of the event you are participating in order to get the big picture? You could make links in your presentation for instance. In case you are part of a series presentations ask who else will be presenting in order to make a “bridge” between presentations for instance.
4. Will the organizer publish your presentation? Keep that in mind and deliver your presentation in “pdf” format. This format normally does not consume a lot of storage space and changes can’t be made easily.

8.3 The Audience

People in the audience might have very different ideas and objectives than you. How big is the audience? Is discussion required? What is your objective? What should they take with them after you have finished your presentation?

Are you available for discussion after the presentation?

8.4 Possible Structure

1. Title page (subject, your name, date, location, logo, etc.)
2. Start with a statement (provocative, challenging)
3. Disclaimer (especially in the United States, for instance, due to the claim/sue culture)
4. Agenda
5. Content
6. Summary. Repeat statement
7. Q&A page
8. Your contact details

8.5 Storytelling

Storytelling is to tell what you want to share by means of a story and not, for example, a list of bullets in a PowerPoint presentation. You can use images, etc., to share your story by making things visible and tangible.

Make a picture of a particular situation (not a film) and describe what you see by means of colors, heat/cold, sound, smell, etc., to describe the picture. Use your body as well to depict, for instance, a nice smell. Travel together but be aware of the speed (not too fast) and verify frequently if the audience is at the same pace.

Be active and walk over the podium. You can use characters and depict them. However, be careful not to use a character that is a famous person or that could be sensitive such as a disabled person.

8.6 How to Deliver Your Message

You could use the following structure to deliver your message:

1. Context (who, what, where, and when). Use images, etc., such as described in the previous section. Get the audience in the “mood.” Repeat your statement.
2. What is the problem? From whose point of view and what is their problem? Why is this a problem? How do they experience the problem? What are the consequences when the problem is not solved? Describe the history of the problem. Repeat your statement.
3. Solution. Describe the solution including the advantages. Repeat your statement.

People in the audience can read! Don’t read your slides word by word! This is so annoying and could give the impression that you are not feeling confident, that you haven’t mastered the material, and also reduces the focus on you because people are reading.

The presentation should contain key words, pictures, symbols, hooks, etc., around which you tell your story.

Beware of too much information on a single slide. The “Miller” rule is used most of the time which is 7 plus or minus 2 subjects/bullets/pictures/etc.

In case you want to give additional information, you can create at the end of the presentation a series of “backup slides.” Of course they need more text while you will not present these.

A way could be to build the slide part by part (i.e., piece by piece to build the entire picture so not all information at the same time) during your presentation by means of “animations” in PowerPoint. The attention of the audience will be at reading and understanding the slide instead of what you are telling.

Be careful with the amount of information you are presenting. This could overload people, especially when you are the expert on what you are presenting, and could also prevent people from contacting you further because all information is already there. You could also use a presentation as invitation to contact you.

What do you want the audience to remember after your presentation?

8.7 The Environment

The environment can have a big impact on your presentation. The focus should be on you and the attention should not be distracted by other people or objects in your area. In case you are standing on a podium, which is quite often at a higher level than the audience (sometimes this can’t be prevented), check if the view from the audience is not blocked by, for example, flowers to decorate the podium.

8.8 The Presentation Itself

1. Don’t use power but passion. You must feel “it,” which will result in the audience feeling “it.”
2. Explain the process. Questions should be asked during or after the presentation.
3. Confirm if the presentation text will be available after the presentation. People can make pictures with, for example, smartphones during the presentation.
4. If you don’t know the answer to a particular question, you can tell the audience that you don’t know the answer, and can state for instance that you consider this a very interesting question and will come back later on after some research (and don’t forget it!). Or you can suggest that you will discuss this with the person after the presentation face to face.
5. If the answer will be too time consuming, state how they can get an answer in another way.
6. Speak slowly. Fast speech could be a challenge when you are enthusiastic.
7. Give the audience time to process what you have stated and observe how they react (both verbally and nonverbally).

8.9 Tips

1. Stand still for a while before you start your presentation, take a breath, and make contact with yourself and the people in the audience. When you notice that your speed is too high, take a breath and slow down.
2. Make and maintain (eye) contact with many people in the audience and not a few only.
3. Use reactions from the audience during your presentation.
4. Use video material to make, for example, your statement. The use of video attracts attention. Beware of copyright material and test if video and sound are working beforehand. Reduce the risk of having no access to Internet, where the video resides, by downloading the video to the presentation computer beforehand.
5. Use pictures as much as possible but be aware that people might have different interpretations using, for example, symbols. Don’t use religious or other sensitive material and beware of the culture of the people and/or organization in your audience.
6. When you draw conclusions or make statements use examples and facts to substantiate these. During your presentation repeat here and there the conclusion/statement.
7. When you are using an Apple computer, for instance, to connect with a projector you normally need a special cable/connector. Most projectors have HDMI and VGA video interfaces but not a direct interface for Apple computers (unless the Apple computer has an HDMI interface as well, which is no always available). Have such a cable/connector with you.
8. Arrange a remote control for your computer. This enables you to page through the slides and use a laser pointer to point at specific details on the screen while you are moving over the podium. Try to prevent standing behind a presentation desk, which limits your body language.
9. Install the presentation on your computer and also have a copy on, for example, a memory stick. In case your computer fails you can use another computer for the presentation.
10. Have a remote control with you in case this is not available. Check the battery beforehand.
11. During my (international) trips, walks, cycling, museum visits, etc., I make and collect all kinds of pictures you have seen in this document. I can use these pictures also during presentations without having copyright issues. At the same time, I can express something by means of a picture instead of words. This could be something personal because the picture has been made by me for a reason. Sharing this with the audience is making connection at a deeper level, which could make the difference to people remembering you and your message better.