UNIT 5

Professionalism, Teamwork, Meetings, Speaking Skills

CHAPTER 12
Making
Effective and
Professional
Oral Presentations

Instructor:
Nguyen Bich Tra, MA
tranb.iscsc.vnu@gmail.com
0904674741
Instructor Only Version
2007 Thomson South-Western

Organize
the
conclusion

Organize
the
body

Identify
your
purpose

Getting Ready
for an Oral
Presentation
Organize
the
introduction

Understand
your
audience

Before we start
What are the 5 areas as the foundation for a
professional performance?

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Ch. 1-4

Preparation
Organisation
Audience rapport
Visual aids
Delivery

 Identify Your Purpose

Decide on what you want to achieve:
Persuade or Inform
What do you want the listeners to
remember and do?
Aim all parts of your talk toward your
purpose.

Ch. 1-5

 Understand Your Audience

Friendly, neutral, uninterested,
hostile?
How to gain credibility?
How to relate this information to
their needs?
How to make them remember your
main points?

Succeeding With
Four Audience Types

Friendly
Neutral
Uninterested
Hostile

 Organize the Introduction

Capture listeners attention and
get them involved.

Ten Techniques for Getting

Your Audiences Attention
A Promise
By the end of my talk,
you will . . . .

Dramatell a moving
story; describe a problem.

Eye contactcommand
attention by making eye
contact with as many
people as possible.

 Movementleave the lectern area. Move

toward the audience.
Questionsask for a show of hands. Use a
rhetorical question.
Demonstrationsinclude a member of the
audience.
Samples, gimmicksaward prizes to
volunteer participants; pass out samples.

 Visualsuse graphics
and other visual aids.

Dress professional
dress helps you look
more competent and
qualified

Appeal to the
audiences selfinterest audience
members want to know,
What's in it for me?

 Organize the Body

Develop two to four main points.
Streamline your topic and summarize its
principal parts.
Arrange the points logically by a specific
pattern.

Patterns for Organizing the

Body of Your Presentation
Pattern

Example

Chronology

Describe the history of a problem,

organized from the first sign of trouble to
the present.

Geography/
space

Arrange a discussion of the changing

demographics of the workforce by
regions, such as East Coast, West
Coast, and so forth.

Topic/function/ Organize a report discussing mishandled

conventional
airline baggage by the names of airlines.
grouping

Pattern

Example

Comparison/
contrast
(pro/con)

Compare organic farming methods with

those of modern industrial farming.

Journalism
pattern

Explain how identity thieves ruin your

good name by discussing who, what,
when, where, why, and how.

Value/size

Arrange a report describing fluctuations

in housing costs by house value groups
(houses that cost $100,000, $200,000,
and so forth).

Importance

Organize from most important to least

important the reasons a company should
move its headquarters to a specific city.

Pattern

Example

Problem/
solution

Discuss a problem followed by

possible solutions.

Simple/
complex

Organize a report explaining genetic

modification of plants by discussing
simple seed production progressing
to complex gene introduction.

Best case/
worst case

Analyze whether two companies

should merge by presenting the best
case result (improved market share,
profitability, employee morale)
opposed to the worse case result
(devalued stock, lost market share,
employee malaise).

Switching
Directions

Summarizing

Previewing

Up to this point, I've concentrated

on . . .; now let's look at another
significant factor . . .
I've just discussed three reasons
for X. Now I want to move on to Y.
As you can see, we have two
primary reasons explaining . . .
Let me review the two major
factors I've just covered. . .
Now let's look at three reasons
for . . .
My next major point focuses on . . .

Using Verbal Signposts to Transition

Sending Positive
Nonverbal Messages

Look professional.
Animate your body.
Punctuate your words.
Use appropriate eye contact.
Get out from behind the podium.
Vary your facial expressions.

Preparing a Visually Appealing

PowerPoint Presentation
Use PowerPoint effectively.
Allow plenty of time to set up and test
equipment.
Always bring backups.
Consider transferring your presentation
to a CD or a USB flash drive.
Look at the audience, not the screen.
Do not read from a slide. Paraphrase.

Preparing a Visually Appealing

PowerPoint Presentation
Use PowerPoint effectively.
Leave the lights as bright as possible.
Use a radio remote control to advance
slides.
Use a laser pointer to highlight slide
items.
Dont rely totally on your slides.
Remember that the audience came to
see and hear you.

Stage Fright Symptoms

Stomach
butterflies
Pounding
heart
Shortage of
breath
Sweaty
palms

Dry throat
Unsteady voice
Trembling hands
Tied tongue
Wobbly knees

Combating Stage Fright

Just before you begin to talk,
take some deep breaths.
Convert your fear into
anticipation and enthusiasm.
Select a familiar, relevant
topic.
Prepare 150 percent.
Use positive self-talk.

Combating Stage Fright

Shift the focus from yourself to your
visual aids.
Ignore stumbles; keep going.
Don't admit you're nervous.
Feel proud when you finish.
Reward yourself.

Eight Serious
Presentation Blunders*
Being dull. Relying on only one or two
illustrations to make your points.
Not repeating your main point often
enough.
Not answering the audience's most
pressing question: What's in it for me?
Failing to use signal phrases to focus on
main points.
*Supplementary lecture. Not included in textbook.

 Neglecting to practice and time your

presentation out loud.
Forgetting to check your visual aids for
readability.
Answering hypothetical questions after
your presentation.
Getting distracted just before you speak.

Putting It All Together

Before
your
presentation

During
your
presentation

After
your
presentation

Before

During

After

Prepare thoroughly.
Rehearse repeatedly.
Time yourself.
Request a lectern.
Check the room.
Greet members of the audience.
Practice stress reduction.

Before

During

After

Dress professionally.
Begin with a pause.
Present your first sentence from memory.
Maintain eye contact.
Control your voice and vocabulary.
Show enthusiasm.
Put the brakes on.

 Move naturally.
Use visual aids
effectively.
Avoid
digressions.
Summarize your
main points.

Before

During

After

Distribute handouts.
Encourage questions.
Repeat questions.
Reinforce your main points.
Keep control.
Avoid Yes, but answers.
End with a summary and appreciation.