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On Delivering
EffectiveEffective Technical
Presentations
Gannon UniversityDept. of Electrical
Engineering
Technical Presentations.2
Part I - Outline
• Types of Presentations
• Goals
• Verbal Guides
• Visual Aids
• Visual Guides
Effective Technical Presentations
Technical Presentations.3
Types of Oral Communications
Manuscript Memorization Extemporaneous Speaking Impromptu Speaking Aided/Unaided
Technical Presentations.4
Presentation Goals Have audience understand and retain
• Specific portion(s) of talk
Get the Point• (Make sure you have at least one)
Jog their Memory• Read everything? NOT!NOT!
Technical Presentations.5
Parts of Speech Introduction Body Conclusion
Tell them what you’re going to tell them
Tell them
Then tell them what you just told them
Technical Presentations.6
Verbal HintsAlways : know your audience (best of your
ability) (appear to) be sincere, prepared,
enthusiastic (appear to) know your material follow your outline maintain a good pace/speed summarize in a useful form use appropriate visual aids engage your audience
Never : panic use repetitive or awkward motions draw undue attention to the speaker, away from content of talk apologize run on, digress talk too fast/slow; pause randomly fail to conclude draw attention to the delivery, not material loose your audience
Technical Presentations.7
Visual (and other) Aids
Good pictures convey ideas well
Bad pictures muddle things
Technical Presentations.8
Types of Visual AidsType Pros: Cons:
Flip Charts Interactive Pace
Overheads Summaries Boring
Presentation Graphics Interactive Hard to change
35mm Slides Summaries Sleep Factor
Chalk/Whiteboards Interactive Pace, loss of data
Film/Video Entertaining Sleep Factor
Live Demos Entertaining Distracting
Technical Presentations.9
Visual HintsAlways : Depict what you want them to
remember Depict what is conveyed best in
pictures Few key points in each image Talk about what they should see in
an image Maintain a good pace/speed Use few words Use large fonts Use good contrasting colors Give them time to digest what is
depicted before them
Never : Depict what isn’t worth remembering Use figures where words would be best Too many things in one image Skip description of a graphic, key points to be seen from graphic Run on, digress Visualize paragraphs Use small fonts, illegible scripts Use low/no contrast loose your audience
Technical Presentations.10
Part II
Public Speaking Public Speaking PrimerPrimer
Carnegie, Dale, The Quick and Easy Way to Effective Speaking, 1962
Technical Presentations.11
Acquiring Basic Skills Take heart from experience of others Keep your goal before you Predetermine your mind to success Seize every opportunity to practice
Technical Presentations.12
Develop Confidence Facts about fear of speaking in public Prepare the proper way
• Never memorize• Assemble your ideas beforehand• Rehearse with your friends
Predetermine your mind to success Act confident (Fake it ‘till you make it)
Technical Presentations.13
Speaking Effectively Speak about something you’ve earned
the right to speak about Be sure you’re excited about your
subject Be eager to share with your listeners
Technical Presentations.14
Earning the right to talk Limit your subject Develop reserve power Fill your talk with illustrations and
examples Use concrete, familiar words that create
pictures
Technical Presentations.15
Visualize the talk Choose subjects you are in
earnest about• Be in earnest about your subject
Relive the feelings you have about your topic• Have feelings about your topic
Act in earnest
Technical Presentations.16
Sharing with the Audience Talk in terms of your listeners’ interests Identify yourself with the audience Make your audience a partner in your
talk Play yourself down
Technical Presentations.17
Making a talk to inform Restrict your subject to fit in the time at your
disposal Arrange your ideas in sequence
• Someone’s got to sweat - better you than them
Enumerate your points as you make them Compare the strange with the familiar
USE VISUAL AIDS
Technical Presentations.20
Delivering the effective talk Crash through self-consciousness Don’t imitate others - be yourself Converse with your audience Put your heart into your speaking Practice making your voice
Strong and Flexible
Technical Presentations.21
Where to go from here Get serious about speaking Recognize its importance Earn the right to be up front speaking,
and realize it Practice, Practice, Practice Use tools
Technical Presentations.22
Part III
Technical Speaking Technical Speaking PrimerPrimer
Garland, James, “Advice to beginning physics and engineering
speakers,”Geophysics, the leading edge of exploration, October, 1992, pp. 50-52
Technical Presentations.23
You are presenting yourself Present your ideas
• clearly, persuasively
• with self-assurance and skill
Come across as reasonable, orderly person
Technical Presentations.24
Gauge your audience Don’t talk to just the experts
• Alienate and annoy your audience
Devote 1/2 to 2/3 of talk to careful introduction • Set up your work/problem clearly
Save highly technical material for last Summarize at the end
Technical Presentations.25
Fit your talk to the allotted time Come across as an egotistical S.O.B. Short time limits do notnot mean:
• generalities only
• gloss over specifics
Short time limits mean:• weed out extraneous material
• carefully select the scope of your talk
Technical Presentations.26
Use techno-babble sparingly Equations, schematics make talks
• hard to follow
• easy to loose your audience
• slow, ineffective in delivery
Techno-babble only that which is absolutelyabsolutely necessary
Technical Presentations.27
Be sensible about visuals Expect to spend 2-3 minutes PER
SLIDE• Audience needs time to absorb material
Don’t write full sentences Don’t write meaningless lists of words Manage your technology seamlessly
• show up early and practice
Technical Presentations.28
Practice your talk Rehearse in front of colleagues Get good criticism Tune your delivery, visuals, transitions
• find those hard-to-verbalize ideas
• smooth them out
Avoid writing out your talk, nervous mannerisms
Technical Presentations.29
Dress appropriately Button your fly Look like you deserve to be up there Don’t draw attention to yourself - and
away from your talk
Technical Presentations.30
Interact with your audience Make eye contact, speak up Ask for, handle questions
• Let your questioner finish the question
• Rephrase the question if necessary
• KEEP YOUR ANSWERS SHORT
• Confess your ignorance
• Deflect hostile questions
Technical Presentations.31
In Summary Work hard to make your presentation
clear, well-focused and understandable Let your work speak for you Be in earnest Practice