A project is--a series of critical presentations

Abstract

Every time you lead a project and every time you are given an opportunity to communicate about or for your project—whether it's face to face, in a meeting, or standing fearlessly (or maybe fearfully) in front of your presentation slides—you are making a presentation, and possibly a critical presentation. As a project manager, you are often called on to “lead from the stage” by giving presentations to various audiences with varying and sometimes conflicting interests. You can gain ground or lose valuable ground with a single presentation. Make every presentation count by learning seven strategies for enhancing your presentation power as a project manager.

By following the techniques presented in this paper, you can raise your presentation IQ and capitalize on every speaking and presentation opportunity that you are given or that you create. This paper will provide presentation techniques to achieve the presenter's objectives, organize complex material, get to the point quickly, influence, inspire, or motivate an audience, and bring life to technical, often dry, material.

Introduction

According to the A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK^® Guide)—Fourth Edition (Project Management Institute [PMI], 2008), “Project managers spend the majority of their time communicating with team members and other project stakeholders, whether they are internal (at all organizational levels) or external to the organization” (p. 243). The quality of this time will determine the success or failure of a project. Project managers are often called on to “lead from the podium” by giving presentations to various audiences (stakeholders) with varying interests and perspectives.

This paper provides seven strategies for enhancing the project manager's presentation power. It will emphasize the importance of being able to lead by presenting. In addition, the paper supports the premise that enhanced presentation skills will improve the probability of success for the project manager on any project regardless of size or scope. The presentation is organized around the seven strategies:

Strategy 1: Know Your Audience

“A presentation is the act of working to change the content of another person's mind at a particular time and place” (Jeary, 2005, p. 19).

To become effective and more powerful as a presenter, you must first get to know your audience. Do you know what motivates your stakeholders, your audiences? What's on their minds? What are their expectations? The success of your presentation is determined by your audience, not you.

Why should project managers invest more of their time understanding their audiences (stakeholders) prior to a presentation? Rob Sherman (2001) reported that “one executive observed, ‘just five minutes in front of the right audience can be worth more than a whole year behind your desk'” (p. 8).

Knowing your audience is critical to an effective presentation. According to the PMBOK^® Guide—Fourth Edition (PMI, 2008), “It is critical for project success to identify stakeholders early in the project, and to analyze their levels of interest, expectations, importance, and influence” (p. 246). You can then develop strategies for communicating (presenting) to these varied audiences.

Brian Tracy (2008) stated that “the starting point of preparation is your audience. Remember, it is not about you; it is about them” (p. 19). In preparing your presentation, ask yourself the following questions: “Why does my audience need this presentation?” “Why am I the one making this presentation?” “Why is it important for my message to be heard?” As a starting point for assessing your audience, you can use Abraham Maslow's (Wikipedia, 2009) hierarchy of needs to determine the state of mind and situational status of your stakeholders. Of course, stakeholders may be at different stages concurrently throughout the project life cycle. Exhibit 1 identifies the five stages from a project audience perspective:

Exhibit 1: Project audience hierarchy of needs

Similar to the stakeholder analysis process recommended by the PMBOK^® Guide—Fourth Edition (PMI, 2008, p. 248–249), I suggest taking the time prior to each presentation to analyze each stakeholder you expect in your audience. The following are some basic questions to use in your analysis:

•          How much influence or power do the individual stakeholders bring to the project?

•          What are the specific interests of the stakeholders in the project and how should you address this in your presentation?

•          What are the individual roles and responsibilities of the stakeholders?

•          What is the current status of the project from the perspective of the stakeholders?

•          Are there any significant events occurring in the organization external to the project which could affect the perspectives of the stakeholders?

•          What are your common interests, both internal to the project and external?

•          What are the demographics (age, income level, education, occupations, gender, etc.) of your stakeholders and how should you consider these in your presentation?

•          Are there any “sore subjects” that should be avoided? If so, be prepared to handle these if they come up or surface as questions.

•          Conversely, are there any “burning questions” which should be addressed? If so, do your homework and determine the best way to handle these prior to the presentation.

By answering these questions and adjusting your presentation accordingly, you will be better prepared and will set yourself up for a successful presentation. This analysis may also determine if you should conduct multiple presentations to address diverse stakeholders versus one. As Brian Tracy (2008) said, “Fully 90 percent of your success as a speaker will be determined by how well you plan your speech” (p. 18).

Strategy 2: Know Your Message

This technique addresses the importance of knowing your message in the development and delivery of your presentation. If you don't know your message, how can you expect to connect with your audience? Your message should be clear and simple. You should be able to write your message in one sentence or phrase. One simple technique for clarifying your message before you give your presentation is to write it on an index card; the simpler the message, the more powerful it will be.

If you have mixed messages or multiple important messages, you should consider separate presentations. Once you do settle on your message, you then have the foundation for your presentation. Craig Valentine, a former Toastmasters World Champion of Public Speaking, says that “without the foundational message, it is like you are building a castle on quicksand” (Valentine, 2005, p. 15).

In developing your message, you should also consider the purpose of your presentation. Ask yourself why you are giving this presentation and more specifically, why are you giving this presentation to this audience at this point in time. What is the purpose for your presentation? Every planned presentation should have a general purpose (Exhibit 2) and a specific purpose. You can use the following table to more specifically define your purpose and refine your message.

Exhibit 2: Determining general and specific purposes

Once you have defined your message, you can then build your presentation around it. Your message becomes your content filter and editor. All research, supporting material, stories, and content should support and enhance your message. As you develop your material, use your defined message to determine if your material supports the point or not. If it does not support your point, it does not belong in your presentation.

As a project manager, more often than not, your presentations and the messages of your presentations will involve some “call to action.” Your call to action could be to approve a project vision, sign a contract, commit to a project plan, or any number of project actions. Your message should be clear and strong enough to ensure that when you finish your presentation, your audience will get the message and will know what is expected of them.

Strategy 3: Research Like Your Professional Life Depends On It…It Does

“To be great up there, you must be an expert. Prepare four times the amount of material and research you will need” (Walters, 2000, p. 204).

This strategy helps you prepare for your presentation. Whether your communication is a one-minute “elevator speech” or a one-hour technical presentation, this strategy will enhance your presentation power and gain you valuable credibility.

Once you have determined your message and both the general and specific purposes for your presentation, you should then collect your material and research to support your message. Support material can include any of the following:

•          Statistics and metrics—these can come from the project itself, the industry, the internet, the company, or any other relevant source;

•          Facts—separate fact from fiction and emotion; use relevant facts to support your points;

•          Quotes—find relevant quotes to support your message; quotes add power to your speech and demonstrate that you have researched your presentation;

•          Stories and anecdotes (personal and referred)—they appeal to the emotions and can be very effective in persuading or requesting a call to action;

•          Testimony—relevant testimony can also add power to your presentations and can be used to make a point;

•          Examples—these can be used to simplify difficult concepts; and

•          Visual aids—if used properly, visual aids can also be very effective in presenting difficult concepts.

Once you have collected your material and research, select your strongest material to use in your presentation. The challenge of detailed information and material is to find ways to present the material so that it is understandable by your audience. This requires knowing your audience. Your research and material may have to be slanted differently depending on the technical knowledge of your audience.

I also recommend crosschecking your facts and sources, especially when you have obtained material through the Internet. When you present as a project manager, you are also presenting yourself as an expert. One bad fact or misrepresented statistic can damage your credibility and diminish the power of your presentation.

Strategy 4: Organize Your Message

Organize your material to support your message to ensure that you have given your audience a road map—a path to understanding and accepting your message. Every presentation should have a clearly defined opening, middle (the body of the speech), and a close.

Outlining

I suggest outlining your presentation by beginning with your clearly defined message and then by defining the supporting points for your presentation. Once you have your points, you can then organize your supporting material around these points. Your outline should also consider the ordering of your major points. Will you present your points chronologically or does some other order make more sense? This is no right way or wrong way. You should find an organizational style that helps you create a stronger presentation.

The Opening

The opening or introduction of your presentation is your opportunity to connect with your audience. You could start with an anecdote, a joke, a story, or a startling fact or question, but however you open your presentation, it should be relevant to your message and your presentation. Your opening should not only be relevant and attention-getting but it should introduce your message either directly or indirectly. Your opening should let your audience know where you are going. I suggest writing out the introduction word for word to ensure that it is as effective as possible.

The Middle (Body)

The middle or body of the speech will contain the majority of your material and your primary supporting points for your message. This is where you organize your material around your key points. Each point should be clearly defined and supported by your researched material or stories. The number of points you wish to make will, of course, be determined by the amount of time you have available, but for a short speech or presentation three to five points are usually more than enough to get your message delivered. When considering your points and supporting material, consider your audience. Generally, simple is more effective than complex.

The Close

The close for your presentation is your opportunity to finalize your message and to state your call to action either directly or indirectly. The close is also your opportunity to recap your main points and remind your audience of your message. Brian Tracy (2008) stated that “the best strategy for ending with a bang is to plan your close before you plan the rest of your speech” (p. 165). A strong close will not only make your presentation memorable but it will establish a rapport with your audience or stakeholders by helping you enhance your relationships and setting up positive expectations for your future presentations.

Strategy 5: Overcoming the Beast of Anxiety

“...people's well-documented nervousness with regard to public speaking derives from what Carl Jung concluded was the hard-wired mother of all fears: fear of the unknown” (Jeary, 2005, p. 132).

This strategy will help you overcome presentation anxiety. Anxiety is natural but it can also be used to your benefit. Professional project managers with more than adequate knowledge, skills, and perspective fall victim to the “beast” during a critical presentation. The beast is one of our basic human emotions. It is so strong that it can significantly change the intent of the presenter's objectives. The beast is fear. No training on presentation skills is complete without a focus on overcoming anxiety or fear. For a project manager, overcoming the beast is essential not only to providing an effective presentation but also to being an effective leader and project manager.

So how do we minimize our fear of the unknown? Make more of the unknown become known. This translates into simple strategies such as:

•          Understand the fear: This strategy is as simple as understanding what it is that you fear in giving your presentation. A simple analysis often proves to you that your greatest fears have no foundation. One common fear, for example, is the fear that you will make errors in your presentation. So what? No one is perfect. If you have an important message, the biggest error of all is not to give the presentation! Analyze the fear and you will most likely find that there is no basis for the fear.

•          Research your audience: As discussed earlier in this paper, understand your audience and you will connect with them; connecting with your audience will help you overcome anxiety.

•          Research your topic: Become comfortable with your material and research your topic so that you become the expert, if only temporarily. This also helps reduce the unknowns.

•          Visualize: A friend of mine, a professional speaker and a former Olympian, Ruben Gonzalez, once said something that made a significant impact on my preparation for presentations. He said, “Your mind does not know the difference between reality and fantasy.” If you take the effort to visualize and mentally rehearse your presentation, your mind will remember the live presentation as something you've done before, thereby reducing your anxiety and making your presentation more professional and polished.

•          Remember the message: If you have an important message (and remember that you always have an important message or you wouldn't be giving it), than remember how important the message is to your audience. Refer to the hierarchy of the project audience (Exhibit 1). What key questions are you

•          Preparation: - It is vital to overcoming the beast. The beast will have a difficult time dealing with a prepared presenter. Preparation begins with the basics. Know your audience—what should you do to prepare for this audience? What type of presentations is this audience expecting? Does the audience expect information at the 50,000-foot level or at a detail level? Know your “stage”—will you be giving your presentation in a meeting room for six people, a boardroom, or will you be giving it from a lectern in front of several hundred people in a darkened auditorium with a spotlight on you? Will you be using a microphone? Will you be competing with distractions or food or drink? The list can go on and on but the more you can ask and answer these questions for yourself, the better prepared you will be. On the subject of preparation, know your material, understand your own topic—know it better than anyone else with only your perspective can know it. This does not mean memorizing your presentation word for word, but it does mean knowing it well enough that you can recover from any distraction.

•          Mentally rehearse: Rehearse until you become comfortable with your presentation; eliminate your own negative surprises.

•          And most importantly: Understand your own topic!

Strategy 6: Deliver Using the Nuts and Bolts of Delivery

This strategy addresses the delivery of your message. You can have great content but poor delivery will lessen the power of your message and your content. On the other hand, weaker content can be enhanced with great delivery. You should, of course, strive for both powerful content and delivery. The great news about delivery is that it can be improved through practice. Delivery includes the following components:

•          Body Language—the key to effective body language is to know what messages your body language and gestures communicate to the audience. You should strive to eliminate any bad habits (swaying, jingling change, hands in pockets, etc.) and become purposeful in all of your movements and hand gestures.

•          Vocal variety—strive to control the use of your voice to vary your delivery of the message. Move from monotone to varied speeds, pitches, and volume. Record your presentations and review them for your use of variety.

•          Pauses—use pauses to punctuate effectively your speech. Use them to highlight the key points in your speech. Sometimes the most powerful thing you can do in a speech or presentation is to “not speak.”

•          Language—use of carefully selected words to paint an image or tell a story can add significantly to the power and effectiveness of your presentation. Speakers should select words that appeal to all of the senses.

Strategy 7: Find the Magic

This strategy highlights the importance of “people skills” in your presentation. Find your magic (your passion) and use it to communicate your message and your audience will feel special and connected every time you present. Connect with your audience not just for a moment but for a lifetime.

Magic is the ingredient that is often overlooked. It's the pinch of salt that an experienced cook can add at just the right moment to enhance the taste of a dish. It's the twinkle in the eye that says there's something special here. It's the fun and entertainment that anyone can add to any presentation. It is the passion that you naturally bring to the presentation when you are working in your “zone” or when are in the process of self-actualization. It's the ingredient that you bring when you are doing what you are meant to be doing.

Conclusion

As a project manager, you will often be called upon to give presentations or you may initiate delivering a presentation to accomplish a specific purpose. Each time you present, you have an opportunity to lead from the podium. Take advantage of these opportunities to develop your leadership skills and to enhance your project objectives.

The seven strategies presented in this paper will help you develop your presentation power. Enhanced presentation skills will improve the probability of success for the project manager on any project, regardless of size or scope.