business presentations course

Ideas and insights from Harvard Business Publishing Corporate Learning

Powerful and Effective Presentation Skills: More in Demand Now Than Ever

When we talk with our L&D colleagues from around the globe, we often hear that presentation skills training is one of the top opportunities they’re looking to provide their learners. And this holds true whether their learners are individual contributors, people managers, or senior leaders. This is not surprising.

Effective communications skills are a powerful career activator, and most of us are called upon to communicate in some type of formal presentation mode at some point along the way.

For instance, you might be asked to brief management on market research results, walk your team through a new process, lay out the new budget, or explain a new product to a client or prospect. Or you may want to build support for a new idea, bring a new employee into the fold, or even just present your achievements to your manager during your performance review.

And now, with so many employees working from home or in hybrid mode, and business travel in decline, there’s a growing need to find new ways to make effective presentations when the audience may be fully virtual or a combination of in person and remote attendees.

Whether you’re making a standup presentation to a large live audience, or a sit-down one-on-one, whether you’re delivering your presentation face to face or virtually, solid presentation skills matter.

Even the most seasoned and accomplished presenters may need to fine-tune or update their skills. Expectations have changed over the last decade or so. Yesterday’s PowerPoint which primarily relied on bulleted points, broken up by the occasional clip-art image, won’t cut it with today’s audience.

The digital revolution has revolutionized the way people want to receive information. People expect presentations that are more visually interesting. They expect to see data, metrics that support assertions. And now, with so many previously in-person meetings occurring virtually, there’s an entirely new level of technical preparedness required.

The leadership development tools and the individual learning opportunities you’re providing should include presentation skills training that covers both the evergreen fundamentals and the up-to-date capabilities that can make or break a presentation.

So, just what should be included in solid presentation skills training? Here’s what I think.

The fundamentals will always apply When it comes to making a powerful and effective presentation, the fundamentals will always apply. You need to understand your objective. Is it strictly to convey information, so that your audience’s knowledge is increased? Is it to persuade your audience to take some action? Is it to convince people to support your idea? Once you understand what your objective is, you need to define your central message. There may be a lot of things you want to share with your audience during your presentation, but find – and stick with – the core, the most important point you want them to walk away with. And make sure that your message is clear and compelling.

You also need to tailor your presentation to your audience. Who are they and what might they be expecting? Say you’re giving a product pitch to a client. A technical team may be interested in a lot of nitty-gritty product detail. The business side will no doubt be more interested in what returns they can expect on their investment.

Another consideration is the setting: is this a formal presentation to a large audience with questions reserved for the end, or a presentation in a smaller setting where there’s the possibility for conversation throughout? Is your presentation virtual or in-person? To be delivered individually or as a group? What time of the day will you be speaking? Will there be others speaking before you and might that impact how your message will be received?

Once these fundamentals are established, you’re in building mode. What are the specific points you want to share that will help you best meet your objective and get across your core message? Now figure out how to convey those points in the clearest, most straightforward, and succinct way. This doesn’t mean that your presentation has to be a series of clipped bullet points. No one wants to sit through a presentation in which the presenter reads through what’s on the slide. You can get your points across using stories, fact, diagrams, videos, props, and other types of media.

Visual design matters While you don’t want to clutter up your presentation with too many visual elements that don’t serve your objective and can be distracting, using a variety of visual formats to convey your core message will make your presentation more memorable than slides filled with text. A couple of tips: avoid images that are cliched and overdone. Be careful not to mix up too many different types of images. If you’re using photos, stick with photos. If you’re using drawn images, keep the style consistent. When data are presented, stay consistent with colors and fonts from one type of chart to the next. Keep things clear and simple, using data to support key points without overwhelming your audience with too much information. And don’t assume that your audience is composed of statisticians (unless, of course, it is).

When presenting qualitative data, brief videos provide a way to engage your audience and create emotional connection and impact. Word clouds are another way to get qualitative data across.

Practice makes perfect You’ve pulled together a perfect presentation. But it likely won’t be perfect unless it’s well delivered. So don’t forget to practice your presentation ahead of time. Pro tip: record yourself as you practice out loud. This will force you to think through what you’re going to say for each element of your presentation. And watching your recording will help you identify your mistakes—such as fidgeting, using too many fillers (such as “umm,” or “like”), or speaking too fast.

A key element of your preparation should involve anticipating any technical difficulties. If you’ve embedded videos, make sure they work. If you’re presenting virtually, make sure that the lighting is good, and that your speaker and camera are working. Whether presenting in person or virtually, get there early enough to work out any technical glitches before your presentation is scheduled to begin. Few things are a bigger audience turn-off than sitting there watching the presenter struggle with the delivery mechanisms!

Finally, be kind to yourself. Despite thorough preparation and practice, sometimes, things go wrong, and you need to recover in the moment, adapt, and carry on. It’s unlikely that you’ll have caused any lasting damage and the important thing is to learn from your experience, so your next presentation is stronger.

How are you providing presentation skills training for your learners?

Manika Gandhi is Senior Learning Design Manager at Harvard Business Publishing Corporate Learning. Email her at [email protected] .

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Harvard ManageMentor: Presentation Skills

By: Harvard Business Publishing

In this course, students will learn how to analyze an audience and their setting (whether in-person or remote) to more effectively prepare for and deliver a presentation. They will discover how to…

• Length: 2 hours, 44 minutes
• Publication Date: Aug 27, 2019
• Discipline: General Management
• Product #: 7178-HTM-ENG

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Harvard ManageMentor helps students develop the skills they need to thrive in the workforce. These online courses combine the latest in business thinking from management experts with interactive assignments to empower students with the skills employers seek.

In this course, students will learn how to analyze an audience and their setting (whether in-person or remote) to more effectively prepare for and deliver a presentation. They will discover how to gather and use facts, evidence, stories, and media (including visual aids) to support their main messages. As well as explore tactics for rehearsing and managing challenges that can arise while presenting, whether it's "stage fright" or provocative, tough questions from the audience. They will have the opportunity to learn strategies and best practices from business leaders, authors, and coaches like Brad Holst, Nancy Duarte, Eddie Yoon, Nick Morgan, Liz Keever, and Amy Cuddy.

Students have the option to view the content in English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Chinese. This online course has been designed and developed with the intention of complying with WCAG 2.0 AA standards. Explore all Harvard ManageMentor courses at https://hbsp.harvard.edu/harvard-manage-mentor/

Learning Objectives

Clarify your objective, identify your audience, and consider the setting for your presentation

Identify the single key point of your presentation

Construct a presentation that hooks your audience and communicates your message

Use visuals and other media in a presentation to support and enhance your words

Create an engaging remote presentation

Practice, refine, and prepare effectively for your presentation

Keep your audience engaged during a presentation

Objectively evaluate the style and substance of your presentation

Aug 27, 2019 (Revised: Nov 4, 2014)

Discipline:

General Management

Harvard Business Publishing

7178-HTM-ENG

2 hours, 44 minutes

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What It Takes to Give a Great Presentation

• Carmine Gallo

Five tips to set yourself apart.

Never underestimate the power of great communication. It can help you land the job of your dreams, attract investors to back your idea, or elevate your stature within your organization. But while there are plenty of good speakers in the world, you can set yourself apart out by being the person who can deliver something great over and over. Here are a few tips for business professionals who want to move from being good speakers to great ones: be concise (the fewer words, the better); never use bullet points (photos and images paired together are more memorable); don’t underestimate the power of your voice (raise and lower it for emphasis); give your audience something extra (unexpected moments will grab their attention); rehearse (the best speakers are the best because they practice — a lot).

I was sitting across the table from a Silicon Valley CEO who had pioneered a technology that touches many of our lives — the flash memory that stores data on smartphones, digital cameras, and computers. He was a frequent guest on CNBC and had been delivering business presentations for at least 20 years before we met. And yet, the CEO wanted to sharpen his public speaking skills.

• Carmine Gallo is a Harvard University instructor, keynote speaker, and author of 10 books translated into 40 languages. Gallo is the author of The Bezos Blueprint: Communication Secrets of the World’s Greatest Salesman  (St. Martin’s Press).

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BUS-C 104 Business Presentations

• Prerequisite(s) : None

Students are introduced to oral communication in business contexts. The course focus is on theory-based skill development that will enable students to deliver audience-centered messages, work in teams, and analyze and develop oral arguments. Credit not given for both BUS-C 104 and BUS-C 106.

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Why you should meet these 9 small businesses trying to grow and succeed

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Recently, I was a judge at a pitch presentation of 14 companies that had gone through a 90-day, 12-session training program developed by Founders First Community Development Corporation. The program’s goal is to support small businesses owned and operated by diverse founders.

The companies presenting that evening had revenue from $250,000 to $1 million. They were not startups, and none expected to raise venture capital. This was a cross-section of what America calls small mom/pop businesses that are the backbone of entrepreneurship at a very local level.

Most of them serve a small geography, and they are very clear on what problem they solve. Their dilemma, however, is classic — how can they scale up to a few million in revenue and add employees?

Nine million businesses in America have less than 20 employees. Four million have 1 to 4 employees. It was wonderful to listen to the presentations because sometimes it is really easy to get blinded by the billions sloshing around in Silicon Valley. This cohort was the grit of the game — the desire to own your own destiny.

I am very supportive of this segment of our society. I believe in chasing the dream. Let me share a few of the companies.

Growler, Jorge Ruiz : The premise is simple. They have trucks that bring the rental equipment back to the yard or out to the customer. Their problem — a lot of demand, so they need financing to buy another truck.

Harden Enterprise Services, Clyde Harden Jr. : The company is in Texas, and they do disaster recovery and restoration. Texas is a good place for that, and recently San Diego might qualify. Same problem — they need financing to grow.

Authentic Muay Thai Supply, Chelsea Pureza: They make authentic equipment for the fighters in this sport. I do not follow MMA, but they have loyal customers. I love when I learn about something new.

IREP, Kelly Johnson: They remove the junk from commercial and residential apartment properties. They recycle of course, but what I love is that they are doing a tough job (what to do with the old couch) that most folks do not want to do themselves.

Pure Health Alliance, Sophia Chang: Her company blends traditional Far East wisdom with modern medicine to prioritize well-being.

Center For Creating Change, Ebony Butler: She makes therapy cards to promote insight and healing.

ESCO Aerospace Mfg. Yvonne Escobedo: She makes complicated airplane parts using C&C machinery. She qualifies for contracts as a minority contractor. She is definitely financeable, but she needs help figuring out the defense system.

Let’s pause a moment. What I saw from these cohorts, and what I often see in the various early-stage companies that come to me for investment or mentorship is a lack of financial understanding.

Balance sheets are a bit of a black hole for many entrepreneurs, and the nuances of debt, lines of credit, revenue-based financing are not taught as often as I think they should be.

Almost all of the presenters had “product market fit,” but getting to the next level really requires a deeper understanding of “money” – where it goes, to whom it goes, why it goes, and what expectations the investor has on getting all of it (and maybe a bit more) back.

Crease Beast, Matt Jones: The product is a small foam insert that fits in a sneaker to keep the crease from forming in the front. I was astounded. Is this really a problem? Well, Senturia, once again you have proven your limitations. The company has $500,000 in revenue with backorders. Huh. Turns out this crease thing is a big deal to sneakerheads.

JCiCreatives. Jaren Collins: This guy is the epitome of charisma and personality. His business is making top-notch videos. I don’t care if they are in focus or not, just hanging with this guy would be a treat.

All in all, a great evening. Small business is the backbone of America. Believe in the dream.

Rule No. 807: “It’s a small world (after all)” — The Sherman brothers, Disney songwriters

Senturia is a serial entrepreneur who invests in startups. Please email ideas to [email protected] .

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