Business LESSON 4
Giving a killer presentation in front of your work colleagues
Robert: Ok team, we’re off to London next week so I would like to hear all your pitches, one by one throughout the day. Please prepare your presentations and we will practise delivery. You can find the schedule in meeting room 4. The sales leaders are also welcome to sit through the presentations and give some pointers.
Carla: Robert?
Robert: Yes, Carla.
Carla: Could I run through a few tips on effective presentations with you?
Robert: Oh yes, of course. This would be your first presentation, wouldn’t it?
Carla: Yes, that’s right.
Robert: Okay. I’ll see you in my office in 20 minutes.
Carla sets off to prepare her Powerpoint. She finds a template online and starts to fill in the gaps.
Once she is done, she asks Robert if he has any advice. He praises her on the content but gives her some pointers on delivery. He doesn’t want his London-based clients to doze off during her meeting. He stresses the importance of audience involvement.
Robert: It has to be a two-way conversation. Don’t forget that Carla! And please use fewer technical words: you risk alienating your audience.
Carla then tries to make changes based on his feedback. Reading through the bullet points of her meeting, she considers what she can do to make her presentation more accessible and rooted in what she has learnt and experienced:
Carla: Hmmm, the right place to start? I have to find a personal experience to establish credibility. I’ll talk about that time in Colorado, when I had to present the customer with samples. Next, I have to show my audience that the information is supported. That the knowledge has been acquired through legwork and study, and that I haven’t just extracted relevant information without consideration. I must keep it simple but informative. There’s no point in presenting complicated slides that could possibly confuse people. By covering as much ground as possible in this way, allows for audience participation. Though I need to be prepared for surprising questions in the Q&A.
Carla carries out her presentation in front of her counterparts. She is quite self-conscious, trying to control her body language as much as possible and make no jokes.
Did she bore her colleagues or persuade them, motivating them to action with that killer presentation of hers?
English |
a killer presentation |
a pitch (a sales speech), to pitch (to present) |
a sales leader |
a template |
a pointer (a tip, a piece of advice) |
advice, a piece of advice |
a tip |
the audience involvement |
feedback |
a bullet point |
credibility |
knowledge |
legwork |
a study |
a sample |
Q&A, question and answer session |
a counterpart |
body language |
delivery (speaking style) |
to practise (Verb), practice (Noun) – British Spelling |
to sit through a presentation |
to give some pointers |
to give a presentation, to carry out a presentation |
to establish |
to acquire |
to support the information given |
to alienate |
to make a joke |
to bore someone |
to persuade someone |
to motivate someone to action |
effective |
two-way |
accessible |
rooted / established |
experienced |
relevant |
informative |
prepared for |
self-conscious /self-aware How to give a killer presentation that converts into sales. |
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