Presentation Skills

Presentation Skills Timothy J. Foster University of Nottingham 18 month Meeting, Unilever Vlaardingen, March 29-31, 2010

What Makes a good presentation?

What Makes a good presentation? • Good, simple introduction • Warm, confident voice • Clear structure • Speaking clearly • Passion for subject • Free of unnecessary jargon • Visually interesting slides • Appropriate use of humour • Large fonts

What Makes a good presentation? • Positive body language • Making sure screen is always visible • No fidgeting • Eye contact with audience • Verbal pointers indicating different sections • Summary Slide • Presentation at correct level for audience • Staying within time limit • Handling questions confidently and honestly

Presentation Skills • Skills required • Preparation • Content • Structure • Delivery • Timing • Visual Aids • Response to Questions • Summing Up

Presentation Skills • Qualities needed • Confidence • Impact • Manner • Non-verbals

Presentation Skills • Learning from experience • Self-Assessment • Feedback

Different Presentation Structures

Different Presentation Structures • The Classical • The Problem Centred • The Comparative • The Sequential • The Thesis

The Classical • Introduction • a b c • a b c • a b c 5. Conclusion

The Problem Centred • Statement of problem • Solution 1 • Solution 2 • Solution 3 • Conclusion

The Comparative • Introduction: Items X and Y • Feature 1 X and Y • Feature 2 X and Y • Feature 3 X and Y • Summary

The Sequential • Introduction • Argument 1…leads to • Argument 2…leads to • Argument 3 • Conclusion

The Thesis • Introduction • Assertion is made and then proved or disproved • Using a mixture of argument, evidence, speculation… • Conclusion

Controlling your nerves • Prepare • Rehearse • Use your breath • Get as much experience as you can • Learn from watching others

Making Talks Memorable • Good recall depends on: • Actively processing information • Gain attention/involvement • Amount to be remembered • Keep attention • Use structure • Depth of processing • Elaborate with examples, visual imagery • Make the audience work • Relationship to existing knowledge • Relate to everyday/prior experience

Gaining Attention • Startling fact • Question • Quotation • Anecdote • Humour

General Hints • KIS(S) – plenty of white space, not too many ideas per page • Use figures or pictures if appropriate • Use clear bullet points • Make sure font is big enough • Include clear introduction slide • Include a clear conclusion slide

Do Use colour carefully Practise Have prompts if you need them Do & Don’t

Do Use colour carefully Practise Have prompts if you need them (These might be visual and use them as tabs) Do & Don’t

Do Use colour carefully Practise Have prompts if you need them Don’t Over-do effects Crowd slides Have too many slides Talk with your back to the audience Use a script Do & Don’t

Close / negative Arms folded Legs folded Avoiding eye contact Nervous pacing or fidgeting Trembling Breathing shallow, high in chest Touching face Slumped shoulders Open / positive Arms uncrossed Legs uncrossed Warm eye contact Solid stance In control Breathing deep, into belly No distracting mannerisms Shoulders back Body Language

Any Questions?

Presentation Skills