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7/27/2019 Technical Presentations Book 1 Strategy Preparation and Planning
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B Nita K. Pate
IEEE-USA E-Bks
BooK1State -Pepaatin and Pannin
BooK2Stuctue - Anatmf a Successfu Pesentatin
BooK3Ste - Dnamic Deive Tecnique
BooK4
Effective Visua Aids
Tecnica PesentatinsA seies f fu bks discussin w t pepae, wite and effective deive tecnica pesentati
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Published and Hosted by IEEE-USA.
Copyright 2010 by Nita K. Patel. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States o America
Edited by Georgia C. Stelluto, IEEE-USA Publishing Manager, [email protected]
Cover design and layout by Josie Thompson, Thompson Design
This IEEE-USA publication is made possible through unding provided by a special dues assessment o IEEE
members residing in the United States.
Copying this material in any orm is not permitted without prior written approval rom the IEEE.
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4 Imptance f Effective
Deivein yu Pesentatins
Engineers and scientists are requently required to present technical inormation to a broadspectrum o individuals, including co-workers, executives and potential clients in a varietyo ormats, such as conerence papers, training materials and unding proposals. Even i you do
not present conerence papers or other ormal presentations, you must present your ideas and
opinions daily.
Most technical experts present acts in-depth and in their rame o
reerence. Technical experts requently think that acts are sel-evident;
that is, acts, statistics and data speak or themselves. Not so! Facts
require analysis, assessment, and evaluation. Facts require translation
and interpretation rom your knowledge base to that o the audience(Witt, Presentation Tips).
As a technical expert, you must know and understand the technical acts. But, to ensure that
others interpret this complex data the same way you do, you have to presentthe acts through
clear, concise and correct speech.
When presenting, you should lter just enough o the data, research and inormation necessary
or the audiences comprehension and understanding, both o which are prerequisites or
acceptance. I your audience does not understand, they will not accept your ideas.
Figure 1: Speakers Purpose Funnel Data or Understanding
TEChNICAl PrESENTATIoNS: BooK 1. STrATEgy - PrEPArATIoN AND PlANNINg
Facts are not
sel-evident.
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Simply providing the acts is not sucient to
conveythe cause o system ailures,
convinceyour colleagues to adopt your coding standards,
persuadeyour manager to und your program,
explain the complex interactions o your experiment or
train a new engineer.
You are responsible or extracting the essential components rom a large quantity o complex,
technical data and then translating this data or the background and knowledge o your
audience. You must present the inormation in such a way that others can understand, care
about and use it.
The key to successully presenting complex inormation is not what you say or do but what
your audience hears and sees. Your ability to communicate simply, passionately and clearly
will oten determine whether your idea is accepted, your proposal is unded or your training
is understood.
Planning and preparation are the most important elements to eective presentation and
communication. Preparation is a better determinant o presentation success than knowledge,
experience or even talent. Preparation is also the best way to reduce nervousness, combat
ear and ensure success.
As a result, proessional speakers recommend preparing thirty minutes or each minute o the
presentation. Preparation does not simply mean practicing. Preparation means dening a strat-
egy. Preparation involves planning, researching and understanding the audiences needs and
your message.
Technical Presentations Book 1:Planning and Preparation describes how to properly plan andprepare your presentations.
TEChNICAl PrESENTATIoNS: BooK 1. STrATEgy - PrEPArATIoN AND PlANNINg
It takes more than three weeks to
prepare a good impromptu speech.- Mak Twain
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6 Five Ws (and ne h)
A Pepaatin Tecnique
When asked to present, most people procrastinate. The remaining people begin withwriting and talking. I recommend you start with thinking and inormation-gathering(and not procrastinating). Without a strategy and appropriate preparation, a presentation will
be unocused, not apply or ail completely.
The next sections outline a ramework or you to prepare or your next presentation. The
ramework is based on the inormation-gathering technique taught in my ourth grade history
class. Journalists requently use this technique to convey all the important inormation o a
story. The technique is the Five Ws (and One H):
Who? Quis? Who is involved?
When? Quando? When does the story take place?
Where? Ubi? Where does the story take place?
What? Quid? What is the story?
Why? Cur? Why did the story happen?
How? Quomodo? How did the story happen?
For a nal exam, my history teacher required us to research and write about a topic o our
choice using this technique. I honestly cannot remember much about the research (other than
my selected topic was Alexander the Great). However, the technique has remained with me
all these years.
This technique ensured that my report covered the ull story (or which I got an A). You
will be properly prepared, too, i you answer these six simple questions at the onset o your
next presentation.
TEChNICAl PrESENTATIoNS: BooK 1. STrATEgy - PrEPArATIoN AND PlANNINg
There is nothing impossible to him
who will try.
- Aexande te geat
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TEChNICAl PrESENTATIoNS: BooK 1. STrATEgy - PrEPArATIoN AND PlANNINg
W? Knw yu Audience
Knowing whomyou will address may be more important than knowing whatyou will pres-
ent. It is imperative that your presentation be appropriate or your audience. You intuitivelyknow that you would not present the same speech at your parents 50th anniversary celebration
as you would at your riends bachelor party. So why would you present the same inormation
at a management unding request and at a technical design review?
Knowing your audience is critical to developing your speech,
particularly with complex technical topics. You must rame
your inormation in such a way that the audience will
understand. Presentations are not or your (or your egos)
benet. Presentations are about the audience, their needs,
perspectives and desires. As a result, you must understand your audience.
Analyze the audience to help you understand them. Discover inormation that will create a
link between you and the audience. The more you know and understand about your audience
and their needs, the better you can align your material to their needs. The better aligned your
inormation is to their needs, the better they will respond, remember and react.
Proessional speakers send multi-page questionnaires (example provided in Appendix A) to
conerence organizers to gather enough inormation about the audience and the speaking
event to properly customize their speeches. Whether or not you use a questionnaire, you
must assess your audience.
Who is the audience?
Identiy the audience and its individual members. Determine i the audience is a group o
ellow design engineers, the board o directors or end-users. Each type o audience will
require not only dierent inormation, but also a dierent presentation technique.
Begin by answering the ollowing questions:
Who are they?
What do they have in common?
What are their dierences?
Is it a mixed group?
Who are the decision-makers?
What is their learning style?
Presentations ocus on
the audience, not you.
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8When presenting at a large technical conerence, you may not know who will be in the audi-
ence. To nd out, greet audience members as they arrive. Discuss the upcoming presentation
and topic with them to understand their perspectives. In addition, ask your audience a ew
quick questions at the start o the presentation to learn about them. Getting to know audience
members will also alleviate some o your presentation nervousness. It is easier to speak to a
group o people you know (even minimally), rather than to a group o strangers.When presenting to a mixed audience, identiy the audience
members and rank them in terms o importance; that is,
importance with respect to the presentation purpose. Identiy
the key individuals and decision-makers in the group. Identiy
any individuals that are dominant or infuential. Identiy those
in the audience who agree with you and determine whether
you would benet by having them agree with you more. Once you have identied the more
important or infuential people, give them their inormation rst.
For example, consider presenting at a design review that is a government-contract gate such
as a System Test Readiness Review. Your peers, your boss, maybe one additional level o yourcompanys management team, government subject matter experts (SMEs), and contracting
ocers are attending. The contracting ocer may ultimately make the decision to continue the
contract. However, he will likely rely heavily on recommendations provided by the government
SMEs. As a result, your primary audience is the group o SMEs, not the contracting ocer. Do
not worry about impressing your boss or peers with your technical expertise. Focus on making
sure the SMEs understand where you are in the design and assure them that you are ready to
pass through the test-readiness gate.
What are the demographics?
What are the demographics o the audience?
Age
Gender
Occupation
Nationality
Income
Hobbies
Social status
Belies
This inormation is necessary or you to construct an audience-appropriate presentation. With
this knowledge, you will be able to choose relevant examples, acts and stories to convey
your inormation to the audience. You will nd common characteristics between you and the
audience. With this inormation, you can construct your presentation to ocus on shared traits
or emphasize dierences to illustrate points.
TEChNICAl PrESENTATIoNS: BooK 1. STrATEgy - PrEPArATIoN AND PlANNINg
Present important
inormation to key
decision-makers rst.
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Obtain demographic inormation so you can rame your message in terms o your audiences
range o needs. Sometimes the demographics do not align with your message. You must
decide whether to shit your message to meet the demographics or to proceed with your
original intent.
Consider the ollowing examples in which the presentation topic is the same, but the presenta-
tion is vastly dierent due to audience demographics:
(1) Presenting image stabilization concepts to high-school math students interested in
engineering versus a group o college proessors researching the topic
(2) Providing a tour o your engineering lab to a group rom the local senior center versus a
group o section IEEE members
(3) Discussing leadership skills with a girl-scout troop versus industry executives
How many?
How many people will be in the audience? Speaking to a small group o ve to ten people in
a conerence room is dierent rom speaking to 200-300 people in a ballroom. With a small
group, you can be more inormal in your tone, use smaller gestures and be relaxed in your
presentation style allowing you to connect more with the audience. With a larger group, you
must be more ormal, use larger gestures, and speak with more authority.
What do they know?
Whether you are trying to teach a concept, persuade or inorm an audience, knowing how
much they know about your topic will determine what details you include, what you omit and
how you structure the material.
Consider the ollowing questions: What do they already know specically about your topic?
Are they technical or non-technical?
Are they experts or novices?
Do they view you as an expert, outsider, peer, boss or subordinate?
Will they understand the technical jargon or should you avoid jargon?
Do you need to provide details?
Do you need to review undamentals?
Avoid jargon or those outside your eld o expertise.
You do not want to nd yoursel talking over their
heads and completely losing the audiences interest.
Nor do you want to talk under their level o educa-
tion. Do not spend time telling the audience what is
obvious to them. On the other hand, do not overlook
basic terms simply because they are obvious to you.
TEChNICAl PrESENTATIoNS: BooK 1. STrATEgy - PrEPArATIoN AND PlANNINg
Do not talk over or under
peoples level o experience
or understanding.
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10Technical presenters oten present in very detailed, jargon-lled, precise terms. Only do so i
your audience is technical. Otherwise, it is your responsibility to not only bridge but also narrow
the gap between your audiences knowledge and yours. Interpret the acts and inormation,
rather than providing them in excruciating detail.
For example, i you are presenting at an IEEE conerence on laser driver technology, you need
not explain the dierence between active or passive Q-switching. However, i you are talking toa general group o IEEE members at a section meeting, explain the undamental principles o
lasers beore discussing the details o your laser driver design.
Why are they there?
People attend presentations or dierent reasons. Answer the ollowing questions as you
prepare:
Why are they attending?
What is their interest in the subject?
Do they have a stake in the presentation?
What do they expect to learn or hear rom you?
Did they come voluntarily or were they required to attend?
I you are providing a tour o your lab, IEEE members may be interested in the systematic
details o the experiment. A group o high-school students simply wants to look at the cool
gadgets and understand one or two concepts. Knowing how interested your audience is allows
you to plan material appropriate to their interest level.
Vary the level o inormation you present based on the interests and backgrounds o the
audience. Technical people like details. We assume that everyone else likes details. In a sense,
they do. However, the details dier with the reason why people are listening. For example,
the CEO probably wants details about the opportunity costs about a project, rather than details
about test methodologies.
A voluntary audience, that is, a group o people who have chosen to come to the presentation
o their own volition, is easier to address because they are interested in hearing your presenta-
tion. Voluntary audiences are more homogeneous, that is, their demographic similarities, rather
than their dierences, characterize them.
Mandatory audiences, a group o people required to attend, require a greater understanding
o their motivation and biases. Mandatory audiences are more heterogeneous, that is,
demographic dierences among individuals characterize the group (Adams).
For example, you would structure your presentation dierently when addressing your sta in a
mandatory meeting about sotware-coding standards versus a brainstorming session to develop
new coding standards. Understand why your audience is attending as you prepare so that you
can present material appropriate to those interests.
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1What do they think?
Understand what your audience thinks about your topic and about you. You should consider
their biases, opinions and prejudices. Determine whether the group is open to new ideas.
Consider i you need to change their views or i they already agree with you. Determine how
credible they think you are.
I the audience believes you are a credible expert, you will sway them with your message. I an
audience does not believe you are a credible expert, you will need to spend time at the start o
the presentation explaining why you are a credible source or the inormation you will present.
Establish trust, so they are receptive to your inormation.
Understanding their perception o you and the topic is particularly important or persuasive
speeches. To persuade the audience, you must address their biases beore you can persuade
them o the benets o your perspective.
Who are they?
Understanding the audience is a critical preparation step. Your goal is to categorize andunderstand your audience to dene a common set o characteristics. However, do not lose
sight o the act that the audience consists o unique individuals with unique needs, wants
and expectations.
Each individual will learn, understand and interpret your
inormation dierently. Each individual will listen with
a dierent bias, perspective and knowledge base.
Consider how each individual will organize and process
the inormation. When you prepare your material, you
will want to provide inormation in dierent ormats.
Think about the audience in broad categories when selecting your topic and organizing thepresentation. Tailor your material to their individual needs and expectations with personal
examples and stories when writing the presentation. Incorporate material that will be
meaningul or unique, specic individuals when delivering your talk.
TEChNICAl PrESENTATIoNS: BooK 1. STrATEgy - PrEPArATIoN AND PlANNINg
The audience consists
o individuals.
The best audience is intelligent,
well-educated and a little drunk.
- Aben Wiiam Bake
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16. Team Review (variable length) In a team review, team members present their
contributions on a particular project. Presentations include multiple disciplines, such as
mechanical, optical and electrical. One challenge in this type o presentation is coordinat-
ing all speakers to ocus on a common purpose. Another challenge is balancing technical
content or the technically diverse audience.
7. Panel discussion (30-60 minutes) Each panelist covers a dierent aspect o a specicsubject. The goal is to provide dierent perspectives and inormation so that material
does not overlap. The audience composition varies.
Types o special-occasion presentations:
1. Entertaining speeches (typically 30-45 minutes) The most common type o
entertaining speech is the ater-dinner speech. The ater-dinner speech is a lighthearted
speech delivered ater, beore or during a meal. Even i the audience is highly technical,
the presentation is geared towards a non-technical audience because the audience
is relaxed and in the mood or a light topic ater a nice meal.
2. Keynote address (45-60 minutes) A keynote address sets the underlying tone or
summarizes the core message o an event. An opening keynote address at a politicalconvention outlines the issues under consideration. I you are presenting a keynote
address at the start o a conerence, you should energetically set the tone or the
conerence. I you are presenting a keynote address at the end o a conerence, tie
all the events together and look orward to a uture meeting. The audience is typically
very diverse. Address them as a non-technical group.
3. Commemoration (45-60 minutes) A commemoration recognizes important events,
people or places. The commemoration address is celebratory and marks an important
milestone. An example is a commencement address at a graduation. The audience is
typically very diverse.
4. Speaker introductions (1-3 minutes) Speaker introductions are necessary in all pre-sentation settings. The introduction can be as short one sentence or as long as a three-
to ve-minute speech. An introduction prepares the audience or and motivates them
toward the upcoming speaker. When introducing another, you should not upstage the
speaker; thereore, the introduction is typically brie, ocusing on the speakers topic and
credentials. The audience varies according to the presentation purpose.
5. Award presentation (1-3 minutes) When presenting an award, communicate the
importance o the award. Explain why the recipient is receiving the award. Present an
award in simple, non-technical language with illustrative examples.
6. Award acceptance (1-5 minutes) Express gratitude and honor or recognition in an
acceptance speech. You should present as though the audience is non-technical.
7. Tribute (2-5 minutes) A tribute, also known as a toast, is a brie recognition o a person
or event. A roast is a humorous tribute to a person. A eulogy is a tribute to a deceased
person. All tributes are brie and highlight positive attributes o the event or person. The
audience varies.
TEChNICAl PrESENTATIoNS: BooK 1. STrATEgy - PrEPArATIoN AND PlANNINg
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14 Time
Find out what time o day you are presenting. I you get nervous presenting during a meal, have
a snack beorehand and skip the meal during the presentation. I there is a presenter beore
you, consider how to condense the presentation, in case the previous speaker goes over time.
I you are giving an inspirational presentation ater a long day o technical talks, plan how to
energize the group.
Arrive 30-60 minutes beore your presentation. I you are
presenting at a conerence, upload your presentation slides
well in advance o your presentation time. I given the
opportunity to test the microphone, take it.
Allow at least 20 minutes beore your presentation to mingle with the audience. You can
nd out why they came to your presentation, what they hope to learn and to hear their stories.
You never know, you may hear a story or get an idea rom an audience member to use in your
presentation.
Allow another 20 minutes ater the presentation or audience members to ask questions or pro-vide comments. You will get immediate eedback through this process. I no one approaches
you to ask a question, take this action as specic (although not necessarily positive) eedback.
Duration
Identiy the duration o your presentation. Will you have 20 minutes, our hours or two days to
present your inormation? Determine i the time includes a question-and-answer session.
For longer presentations, you have more reedom to explore your topic in depth. Allow partici-
pants to explore concepts through exercises and provide extra examples. Remember that the
audience members can only absorb a limited amount o inormation at a time. They have only
one opportunity to hear the presentation. They cannot go back to review the inormation thatyou share. Thereore, you should take requent breaks to allow the audience to think about the
key points presented in each segment o a longer presentation.
A short presentation, on the other hand, needs to be very clear, concise and direct. You must
work harder to ocus your inormation to a central message, with relevant examples or short-
duration presentations. It takes longer to prepare a short, ocused presentation than a longer
presentation. Be sure to actor the extra time into your planning.
Neverexceed your speaking time, whether you have only fve
minutes or fve days. When you go over time, you break the
contract you have with your audience. Negative emotions creep
out when you go over time, no matter how interested you thinkthe audience is in your topic. Nobody will complain i you nish
a ew minutes early.
TEChNICAl PrESENTATIoNS: BooK 1. STrATEgy - PrEPArATIoN AND PlANNINg
Arrive early. Stay late.
Do NOT exceed
your allotted time.
A winning eort begins with preparation.
- Je gibbs
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1Wee? Scut te lcatin
As a presenter, you must know whereyou are presenting and understand how the location
will aect your delivery. Identiy your audio/visual needs and ensure those needs are met.
Location
Location is both geographic; that is, location on the world map, and spatial; that is, location in
relation to the audience.
When considering the geographiccomponents o location, ask yoursel:
Are you presenting in another country?
Are their special travel constraints you should take into consideration (visa, passport)?
Will you be staying nearby or will you need to travel to the meeting location? Are there any unique cultural dierences o which you should be aware?
Will language be a barrier to clarity?
Do you know the appropriate etiquette or the international audience?
Should you worry about seasonal weather?
I you need to travel to your presentation location, do not wear your presentation clothes while
traveling. They will wrinkle. Carry one set o your handouts and your presentation in your carry-
on just in case your luggage gets lost. You could also mail your materials to the acility ahead o
time and ensure their arrival.
When considering the spatialcomponents o location, ask yoursel:
Where will the audience be?
Where will you be in relation to your audience?
Will you be in outside or inside?
Is this a conerence call or webinar?
Will everyone be able to see and hear you?
Presenting a webinar (in which you denitely want a script) will require dierent preparation
than presenting in a stadium seating 5,000 (in which dynamic delivery is important).I the room is not ull, encourage people to move towards
the ront o the room. Having people sit toward the ront
and close together will encourage the audience to respond
as a unit. I the number o seats is greater than the number
o people attending, remove a ew chairs rom the back o
the room.
TEChNICAl PrESENTATIoNS: BooK 1. STrATEgy - PrEPArATIoN AND PlANNINg
Ask people to sit
together to encourage
a sense o community.
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16 Room
Consider the ollowing questions regarding the presentation room:
How big is the room?
Is it relatively quiet?
Is there a lectern (a reading stand behind which a speaker stands)?
Will you present rom a podium (a raised platorm on which a speaker stands)?
Does the heating and air conditioning work?
Is the room cluttered?
What is the seating layout?
Do people have a writing surace with pen and paper handy?
Is there adequate lighting?
Can you easily control the lighting?
I the room is small (seating 20-30 people) you will not need a microphone. I the room seats
more than 50-100 people, then you should use a microphone so that everyone can hear you
evenly.
Clear out any equipment or chairs that may clutter the speaking area. Remove easels, posters
or any other urniture that has nothing to do with your presentation. These items can be
distracting and divert your audiences attention away rom you during the presentation.
Identiy how you would like to have the room organized. I you plan to have people break into
small group discussions, request round tables so that each table can be a team. I you need
people to take notes, organize the room in a classroom ormat. I you would like the audienceto eel connected, request the room be setup in a theater ormat where the chairs are closer
together. Identiy how much o the seating arrangement can be changed i you need people to
move around during the presentation.
Audio/Visual (A/V) equipment
Know your equipment, its capabilities and requirements beore you present. Determine i
you need a whiteboard, chalkboard, laser pointer, wireless mouse or fip chart. I no lectern is
present or you want something less intrusive, consider a oldable music stand. The stand will
easily hold your notes and you can put the stand to the side to allow more stage area.
Determine i you have easy access to props, electricaloutlets, internet connections and/or your computer.
Identiy the location o the screen, projector or pointer
in relation to where you will be. Determine whether you
will have assistance in case equipment ails during the
presentation.
TEChNICAl PrESENTATIoNS: BooK 1. STrATEgy - PrEPArATIoN AND PlANNINg
Know your equipment
and its capabilities
beore you present.
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1Find the switches and experiment to get the maximum lighting or your presentation. I you
want to present slides or a video, make sure people at the back o the room can see the slides.
Veriy that you can turn down the lights without turning o all the lights. You do not want to
speak in a dark room. Only turn down the lights over the slides and try to avoid lighting that
creates shadows.
You should also consider any demonstration props that
you have. Test out the demonstration in the location and
in connection with the A/V equipment you will be using
during the presentation. You should practice all items
in a demonstration, especially when there are multiple
presenters with dierent components. I you are
demonstrating sotware (or any technical product), do not make any last-minute tweaks without
going through the entire demonstration to veriy all eatures are still working.
Ater identiying details regarding the room and A/V equipment, visit the location prior to writing
your presentation i possible. You will have a better idea o what delivery techniques will or will
not work. Arrive early and walk around the room on the day o your presentation. Test out theequipment i you have the opportunity, and make sure you have everything needed beore the
start o the presentation.
TEChNICAl PrESENTATIoNS: BooK 1. STrATEgy - PrEPArATIoN AND PlANNINg
Practice all product
demonstrations.
I you dont know where you are going,
any road will get you there.
- Cesie Cat, Aice in Wndeand
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18 Wat? Detemine yu Fcus (Cntent)
Understanding your audience, where you will present and the occasion completes only hal
the planning required. You must dene whatyou want to say. It seems obvious that youshould know the ocus o your presentation. However, most speakers ail to dene their core
purpose in simple, concrete language beore spending time writing the presentation.
Dierentiate whatrom why. Whatis the content. Whyis the
message. The content is the topic, idea or inormation. The
message is the meaning o the content. The message explains
how the inormation ties together, how the audience can use
the content or what the content means. Technical presentations
tend to be heavy on content; as a result, the message gets lost
in the data.
Design all presentations, regardless o their complexity, with a single purpose. State that pur-pose at the beginning o the preparation process and keep this purpose in mind throughout the
presentation development.
Unortunately, there is an innite number o presentation topics. How do you choose the
one best suited or you and the audience? First, identiy your areas o expertise and passion.
Second, understand your audience. Third, clariy the occasion. With these three items o
inormation, brainstorm topic ideas you know and care about, and that the audience is
interested in.
Your Interests
To identiy your interests, consider these questions:
What technology or topics are you knowledgeable about?
What topics are you excited about?
Which topics will you enjoy researching?
- What related experiences do you have?
What is your point o view?
What problem exists? What are its causes? How has it been addressed in the past?
Take time to identiy which topics you know. Select a topic with which you are amiliar. Memo-rizing material or a presentation is not the same as knowing the material you will present.
Selecting a topic in which you are knowledgeable will give you condence in preparing and
presenting the material.
Select a topic about which you are passionate. Audience members can eel your excitement (or
indierence). I you are not passionate about your topic, it will show.
TEChNICAl PrESENTATIoNS: BooK 1. STrATEgy - PrEPArATIoN AND PlANNINg
What = Content
Why = Message
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1Most technical presenters spend lots o time brainstorming
and researching their topic. This results in lots o inormation
and little interpretation. I your topic is too broad, you cannot
discuss it in depth. I there are too many points, your audi-
ence will not remember the inormation. Brainstorm until
you have a ocused topic. I you have a long list o topics,think about combining potentially similar ideas into an overarching theme.
As the expert, you must know what inormation to include and, more importantly, what not to
include. Know your topic well, so that you can explain it in a way that is easy to understand and
remember.
Audiences Interest
Ask yoursel the ollowing questions to determine your audiences interests:
What is important to your audience?
Which topics are relevant to your audience? Which topics are applicable to their lives?
Does the topic t the audience?
What one idea does your audience need to know most?
Based on your analysis o the audience, identiy topics that are specic, practical and relevant
to them. Once you have identied the topic, simpliy. Decide how much o the inormation
is relevant to the audience. Do not include material that is not relevant to the audience you
identied.
Technical proessionals have a tendency to cram as
much inormation as possible into the time allotted
to impress their audience. Instead o cramming
inormation and boring the audience, rerame your
thinking. It is your responsibility to understand your
topic so thoroughly that you can make it simple
enough or the audience. Your job is to identiy the relevant inormation and align it to the
audiences interests.
Use the inormation you gathered during the audience analysis to help identiy a central topic.
Your audience will remember items that resonate with them. The audience hears and absorbs
inormation i they see a connection between what you present and what they eel.
I they can connect personally to the topic, they are likely to pay attention. I the inormation is
directly applicable to them, they are likely to use it.
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Know what and what
not to include in your
presentation.
Understand your topic sothoroughly that you can
simpliy it or your audience.
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20 Intersection o Interests
Andrew Dlugan suggests you think about the intersection o your interests, the audiences
interests and your passions (see gure 2). Choose a topic in this region or maximum eect. I
you speak on a topic where you have no knowledge, your content will be empty and shallow.
I you are passionate but the audience is not interested, your audience will tune you out. I you
talk about the audiences interest but are not excited about the topic, your delivery will be fat.
Figure 2: Topic Selection
Fortunately, most technical presentations, especially conerence papers, meet the intersection
criteria. You present a conerence paper on a topic about which you are condent, interested
and amiliar. Additionally, the audience is interested in your topic or they would not attend your
session.
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Be Prepared.- B Scut Mtt
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2W? Identif te Imptance (Messae)
Whyare you going to present? You might present to get the audience to volunteer their
time, renew your grant or implement your process. Whydescribes the response thatyou want rom your audience.
Work to ocus the general topic into a specic message. Focusing the content (i.e., what) into a
concrete message (i.e., why) is a necessary step in the preparation process.
Questions to consider include:
Is your objective to motivate? Inorm? Persuade? Recommend? Report? Teach?
Entertain?
Which message do you want to convey?
What is the purpose o this speech?
What do you want to accomplish?
Do you want to convey an idea, evoke an emotion or elicit a specic response?
Do you want the audience to challenge your assumptions or conrm your data?
Presentations, regardless o their complexity, must
have a single purpose. A core purpose is the main
action, thought or eeling you want your audience
to remember, think or eel because o your
presentation. The core purpose will provide ocus
or the presentation. Inormation incorporated into the presentation should support, explain or
emphasize the core purpose.
Brainstorm
Jot down in one concise sentence what you want the audience to know, do or eel. This is
rarely a question o what you know. Rather, it is a question o what they need to know.
Brainstorm or a while (a ew hours or a couple o days) to identiy your core message. Do not
try to be clever, perect or catchy when brainstorming. Write down whatever comes to your
mind. Pare down the ideas later.
IdentiyIdentiy your core message by ocusing on the audience, not on you or generalities. Do not
succumb to the temptation to insert your objective into your core message. You must stay
ocused on your audiences objective.
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What reaction do you want
rom the audience?
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22As you work to identiy your core purpose, ask yoursel these questions:
Which message is the most interesting, appropriate and relevant to my audience?
I the audience remembers only one item rom the presentation, what should it be?
What surprised me while I was thinking about or researching this topic? Would it be
interesting to the audience?
What one item does my audience need to know most?
What one action do I want the audience to take when they leave here?
Table 1 presents a comparison o core-purpose statements rom a general, speaker and audi-
ence perspective.
Table 1: Core Purpose Comparisons
Generic Purpose You-Centric Audience-Centric
Statement Statement Statement
To inorm others on how Convince people to use a Explain how to use athey can use my technology blackberry to track e-mail blackberry to track e-mail
to improve their lives to stay connected when
out o the oce
To engage people in my Persuade people to help Provide opportunities to
project me with the project tasks expand skills by helping
with monthly project
reports
To get people to change their Motivate people to turn o Demonstrate how people
daily habit the lights when leaving a can aect the environment
room and save money by turningo lights
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2Crat
Once you have identied the core purpose, crat it. Make
the message specic and concrete. Eliminate jargon. Be
direct, accurate and concise. Try to make the message as
short as possible, but no shorter. The shorter the message,
the easier it will be or you to repeat and the audience toremember. However, brevity should not come at the expense o meaning.
You will have identied an appropriate core message when you can identiy the relevance to
your audience. Memorize the message. I you cannot, it should not be the essence o your
presentation. Ask others to judge your key message or you. I someone woke up in the middle
o the presentation and heard just the core message, would they have a clear understanding o
your purpose?
The reality o any presentation is that the audience will retain only one or two points. Unlike a
written article or book, the audience does not have the luxury o reviewing material or reerring
to a passage again. You must design your speech so that your audience remembers your core
message.
You can eectively convey only onemessage to an audience in a single presentation. You are
responsible or identiying that single ocus.
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An audience retains
only one or two points.
Success demands singleness o purpose.
- Vince lmbadi
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24 hw? Detemine te Best Fmat
Once you know what you want the audience to do, you can ocus on howyou will present
the inormation. Consider whether you will present the inormation in an inormal chat, aseminar or a training workshop. Identiy the presentation approach that will best convey your
message. Consider whether you should be direct or beat around the bush.
Once you are ready, organize your thoughts
in one o the three basics types o speeches:
(inormative, persuasive or entertaining).
Realize that the line between these types o
presentations is neither clear nor straight.
Inormative speeches can be highly entertaining.
Persuasive speeches, by their nature, must inorm
to be eective.
Presentation Types
The three basic types o speeches are:
1. Speeches that Educate (Inormative) - This speech serves to provide useul inorma-
tion to your audience. Even i your goal is to inorm, you must dene what action you
want your audience to take with this inormation.
For example, a seminar about circuits; a speech explaining how to bake brownies; a
corporate brieng outlining the status o an acquisition
2. Speeches that Motivate (Persuasive) - This speech works to convince people to
change how they think, how they act or what they believe.
For example, a candidates election speech; recruiting a volunteer to IEEE; a coachs
speech to the team beore a big game; a business proposal to potential investors
3. Speeches that Entertain (Entertaining) This speech strives to amuse the audience.
The ater-dinner speech is a typical example o an entertaining speech. You provide
enjoyment or the audience.
For example, a water-cooler story about your weekend; a able; a toast in celebration o
the 4th o July
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A clear line does not exist
between educating, persuading
and entertaining.
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Inormative Presentations
In an inormative speech, you infuence how the audience sees a subject or makes sense o
the world. You should research acts and present material in an organized manner, i your goal is
to inorm. There are our major types o inormative presentations:
1. Explanatory (about Objects) This speech ocuses on reports o current or historicalpeople, places, events, inventions or products. The objective is to explain or dene.
For example, analysis o Ronald Reagans Berlin Wall speech; a lecture on the military
ormations used during the Civil War; a discussion about the laments used in light
bulbs
2. Denitional (about Concepts) This speech denes the meaning o concepts, theo-
ries, philosophies or issues that may be unamiliar to the audience. Typically, these
concepts are abstract so you must provide real-lie, applicable examples.
For example, an explanation o Tesla coils; a discussion about Keynesian economics; an
introduction to Jainism
3. Descriptive (about Events) This speech describes in vivid detail a person, animal,place or object. Determine the characteristics, eatures or unctions you want to
describe.
For example, a layout o Heisenbergs lab; a description o the Sahara desert; a story
about the Tortoise & the Hare
4. Demonstrative (about Processes) This speech demonstrates (shows) how a task is
done. You may simply explain the process or walk the audience through the process.
For example, the steps to baking brownies; steps to building a web page; an explanation
o a pulse-measuring experiment
Persuasive Presentations
The essence o persuasion is matching your message to exactly what your audience values,
wants or needs. The aim o the speech is to infuence values, ideas or attitudes. In a persuasive
speech, you emphasize benets, rather than eatures or specications. Persuasive presenta-
tions typically incorporate statistics, expert testimony and stories appealing to the audience.
The structure o a persuasive speech typically consists o three components:
1. Identiying the need (problem)
2. Providing a plan or solution (plan)
3. Proving the solution (practicality)
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26There are three common proos used in persuasion as originally dened in Aristotles Rhetoric:
Ethos Ethos is an appeal to credibility. You appeal to the audience by highlighting your
education level, articulation and/or presentation skills.
Pathos Pathos is an appeal to emotion. You appeal to the emotions and values o the
audience.
Logos Logos is an appeal to rational thought. You appeal to the intellect or rationality
o the audience.
Entertaining Presentations
In an entertaining speech, you seek to amuse the audience. The speech does not have to be
explicitly unny. It could be a drama, a poem or another orm o diversion. The speech should
not require great depth o thinking or concentration. The speech can have a message but the
message should not be the central part o the presentation.
Entertaining speeches must include simple, vivid details in a narrative ormat. In a typical
entertaining speech, you are trying to bring people together or a shared occasion or experi-ence. As a result, most entertaining speeches are special-occasion speeches such as toasts,
roasts, award presentations or ater-dinner speeches.
In an entertaining speech more than any other, the
audience will refect your mood. I you are not passionate,
the audience will not be passionate. I you are not smiling,
the audience will not smile. I you are not enjoying
yoursel, the audience will not enjoy themselves. Smile.
Laugh. Have un. Be personable.
Dierent purposes require dierent presentation styles. Choose your speech style beore
writing your material. Your style will determine the structure o your outline and infuence yourdelivery techniques.
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The audience refects
the speakers mood.
Spectacular achievements are always
preceded by unspectacular preparation.
- re Staubac
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2
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Pepaatin Pcess
Preparation ensures readiness or the writing process. Most technical proessionals
delve immediately into writing. Only later, i at all, do they think about how to present theinormation. To improve your presentations, invert the process. Research who, what, when,
where, why and how, rst. Keep notes. Analyze the data. Formulate plans. Ater these steps
are complete, create an outline and begin the writing process.
Plan and prepare with the Five Ws (and One H)technique. Once you have dened the
audience, message and speech type, the details o the presentation and delivery will ollow.
In Book II: Structure - Anatomy of a Successful Presentation, we will explore the details
o how to structure your material in a clear organized manner.
Normal sequence o product design
1. Management announces the product
2. Technical writing publishes the manual
3. Engineering begins designing it
- Wiiam htn
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28 Appendix A Sampe Audience Anasis
Questinnaie
General Logistics
1. Date, start time and duration o presentation
2. Meeting location (address, phone number, room)
3. Contact person or presentation (name, phone number, e-mail)
4. Attire (business, business casual, ormal)
5. Room setup (round tables, classroom, theater)
6. A/V (lectern, microphone, fip chart, whiteboard, projector, lights)
7. What options are available i the A/V ails?
8. Will the presentation be taped or broadcast?
9. Is this a teleconerence, web presentation, or in-person presentation?
10. Who (audience, organizer, executive) will evaluate the presentation?
11. Will ood and/or beverages be served?
Group Demographics
1. Approximate ages, percentage o males/emales, educational backgrounds
and occupations
2. How many people will be attending?
3. Will there be special guests in the audience?
Group Interests/Needs1. What are the three main challenges/concerns aced by members o your group?
2. Why is this presentation being coordinated or the group?
3. What is the groups overall opinion about attending this meeting?
4. What is the groups overall opinion regarding this subject?
5. How much does the audience know about this topic?
6. What specically are you trying to accomplish with this meeting?
7. Are there any specic topics you eel I should include?
8. Are there any specic topics you eel I should exclude?
9. What actions do you want your group to take?
Historical Inormation
1. Is this a recurring meeting?
2. What speakers have presented in the past?
3. What topics have been presented beore?
4. What three most signicant events have occurred in the group in the past year?
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2Bibiap
Adams, Tyrone and DeCaro, Peter. Public Speaking: the ACA Open Knowledge Online Guide.
n.d. Web. 3 January 2010.
Booher, Dianna. E-Writing: 21stCentury Tools or Eective Communication. New York: Pocket
Books, 2001. Print.
Dlugan, Andrew. The Speech Preparation Series. Six Minutes. 28 February 2008. Web. 31
December 2009.
Maxwell, John. The 17 Essential Qualities o a Team Player. Tennessee: Thomas Nelson, Inc.,
2002. Print.
Mitchell, Olivia. How to Crat a Memorable Key Message in 10 Minutes. Speaking about
Presenting. n.d. Web. 31 December 2009.
Sloan, Trey. Know Your Audience to Deliver an Eective Presentation. Video Proessor. n.d.Web. 28 December 2009.
Technical Presentations, Advanced Communication and Leadership Program, Toastmasters
International, 1992
Witt, Chris. Presentation Tips, Strategy. Lie ater PowerPoint. n.d. Web. 31 December 2009.
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30 Acknwedements
Thank you or taking time to learn about preparing and planning or a technical presentation.
Your presentation prociency will not improve overnight. However, by incorporating andpracticing the suggestions provided in this book, you willimprove. For those wishing to improve
their presentation skills signicantly, I strongly recommend Toastmasters International, a sup-
portive and positive organization in which you will learn communication and leadership skills.
Thank you, Alex. Your constant support and willingness to give up many evenings, and the rare,
ree weekends made it possible or me to write this book.
Thank you, Mom and Dad. You taught me the solid principles o excellence, persistence and
ocused work, without which I would not be where I am.
I am grateul to Bob Macemon or listening, editing and reely sharing ideas.
I am grateul to Deb Nowak or reviewing, commenting and providing thoughtul eedback.
I am grateul to Lucy Paine Kezar or providing experienced, writing advice.
I am grateul to Audrey Selig or providing helpul, stylistic comments.
I am grateul to the many Toastmasters members who have helped me improve my presenta-
tion skills, and have continually inspired me to incorporate eedback to achieve excellence.
I am grateul to Georgia Stelluto, IEEE-USA Publishing Manager, or encouraging and editing
this book.
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3Abut te Aut
Nita Patel, P.E., PMP, DTM, is a practicing systems/sotware engineer and an active IEEE and
Toastmasters International volunteer. Nita is a Distinguished Toastmaster, the highest levelo certication in Toastmasters, and typically presents thirty to orty speeches each year. She
received her BSEE, BS Mathematics and MSCpE degrees rom Southern Methodist University,
Dallas, TX. Nita can be reached at [email protected].
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