Deck 19: Making Oralpresentations

Question 1

Research a hot business communication topic from the news (ethics, the economy, job layoffs, communication technology, etc.). Find at least three sources for your topic. Then, make a two- to three-minute presentation where you share your findings with the class. Your presentation should invoke some effective communication strategies you learned in this course by discussing how the situation could have been handled more effectively.
As your instructor directs,
a. Deliver your presentation to the class.
b. Turn in a listing of your sources in APA or MLA format.
c. Write an e-mail to your instructor that discusses the situation and explains how business communication principles would have helped improve the situation.

Answer 1

Question 2

List some pointers for effectively handling questions during presentations

Answer 2

Many presentations are followed by queries by audience and panel in the end. The audience will always be eager to probe questions and to dive deeper into the situation and gain knowledge. The queries also help the presenter to understand the flaws in his presentation.
To have an effective queries session, the presenter needs to follow the below points:
• Follow a pattern: The speaker should instruct at the beginning as to whether when he will take in queries of the audience, in the middle or in the end of the presentation. When questions are asked at regular intervals, the thought process breaks. The speaker has to memorize all the facts disclosed during presentation and maintain a flow in the answer.
• Come prepared: The speaker needs to be prepared with every single related question or topic with his forecasting power. To forecast, the presenter has to do a prior brainstorming session to prepare him for all the questions.
• Not to nod head when questions being asked: During queries, the presenter should carefully listen and not nod his head, which is commonly mistaken as agreement gesture.
• Be careful of the words: The speaker should pay due attention to his words and tone of speech, while delivering speech or listening and responding to queries. Statements such as 'That's a good question' may not leave the desired impact on other listeners.
• Be careful with biased questions: If the questions are biased, the presenter should take time to rephrase it, and answer.
• Repeat questions if the audience did not understand: The speaker should be patient enough to repeat the answer, if the audience has not understood it.
• Patience: The presenter should patiently answer the queries till the questioner is clarified of his doubt.
• Learn to be smart: It is a good way to answer tricky questions. The presenter can show his smartness in tackling the question of the audience sometimes. However, this technique does not always work.
The above listed points help the speaker or presenter handle audience queries effectively.

Question 3

Making a Short Oral Presentation
As your instructor directs,
Make a short (3-5 minute) presentation with PowerPoint slides on one of the following topics:
1. Explain how what you've learned in classes, in campus activities, or at work will be useful to the employer who hires you after graduation.
2. Describe your boss's management style.
3. Describe how your co-workers employ teamwork on the job.
4. Explain a "best-practice" in your organization.
5. Explain what a new hire in your organization needs to know to be successful.
6. Tell your boss about a problem in your unit.
7. Make a presentation to raise funds for a nonprofit organization.
8. Profile someone who is successful in the field you hope to enter and explain what makes him or her successful.
9. Describe a specific situation in an organization in which communication was handled well or badly.
10. Explain one of the challenges (e.g., technology, ethics, international competition) that the field you plan to enter is facing.
11. Profile a company that you would like to work for and explain why you think it would make a good employer.
12. Share the results of an information interview.
13. Share some advice for students currently on the job market.
14. Explain your job interview strategy.

Answer 3

The importance of team work has been increasing in the organization. Due to the increasing complexities in business environment, it is not possible for an individual to carry out the operations effectively. Sometimes the teams are also formed for certain tasks or projects which perform up to a limited period.
Team work can be employed in the following ways:
• Identifying and evaluating different alternatives of problem solving
• Goal setting and directing the efforts of team towards the goal
• Monitoring and measuring the performance of the team
• Encourage communication and information sharing among the team
• Forming teams with the members of diverse backgrounds
• Prioritizing department goals rather than individual goals
Team work is one of the important aspects of working in an organization. An individual effort leaves less impact than the whole team does. By imbibing teamwork in an organization, the efficiency increases multifold times.

Question 4

Make a 5- to 12-minute presentation on one of the following. Use visuals to make your talk effective.
1. Persuade your supervisor to make a change that will benefit the organization.
2. Persuade your organization to make a change that will improve the organization's image in the community.
3. Describe the communication process of a person you've interviewed who is working in the field you plan to enter.
4. Evaluate a business document.
5. Evaluate the design of a corporate web page.
6. Present a web page you have designed.
7. Analyze rejection letters that students on your campus have received.
8. Persuade an organization on your campus to make a change.
9. Analyze international messages that your workplace has created or received.
10. Present the results of a survey you conduct.
11. Research an organization for which you would like to work.
12. Persuade classmates to donate time or money to a charitable organization.

Question 5

One of the best ways to improve your presentation skills is to watch yourself present. After you have prepared a presentation on one of the topics listed in exercise 19.8 or 19.9, use a video camera to record your presentation. You should then review your presentation, noting what you did well and what you could improve.
As your instructor directs,
a. Write a two-page e-mail that discusses your strengths and weaknesses as a presenter. Address how you could improve your weaknesses.
b. Prepare a two-minute oral summation for your peers about your strengths and weaknesses.
c. Record the presentation a second time to see if you have improved some of your weaknesses.

Question 6

What are four major components of planning effective presentations

Question 7

Make an 8- to 12-minute presentation on one of the following. Use visuals to make your talk effective.
1. Explain the role of communication in one or more organizations.
2. Create and present a fund-raising strategy for a nonprofit organization.
3. Report on the nonverbal customs of another country.
4. Report on the written communication styles of another country.
5. Report on the business outlook of another country
6. Analyze print business materials of an organization and present your findings to the class.
7. Interview the employees of an organization about their teamwork strategies and present the information to the class.
8. Interview office members about their routine communication practices and present your findings to the class.

Question 8

The following openers and closes came from class presentations on information interviews.
Does each opener make you interested in hearing the rest of the presentation
Does each opener provide a transition to the overview
Does the close end the presentation in a satisfying way
a. Opener: I interviewed Mark Perry at AT'T.
Close: Well, that's my report.
b. Opener: How many of you know what you want to do when you graduate
Close: So, if you like numbers and want to travel, think about being a CPA. Ernst Young can take you all over the world.
c. Opener: You don't have to know anything about computer programming to get a job as a technical writer at CompuServe.
Close: After talking to Raj, I decided technical writing isn't for me. But it is a good career if you work well under pressure and like learning new things all the time.
d. Opener: My report is about what it's like to work in an advertising agency.
Middle: They keep really tight security; I had to wear a badge and be escorted to Susan's desk.
Close: Susan gave me samples of the agency's ads and even a sample of a new soft drink she's developing a campaign for. But she didn't let me keep the badge.

Question 9

Evaluate an oral presentation given by a classmate or a speaker on your campus. Use the following categories:
Strategy
1. Choosing an effective kind of presentation for the situation.
2. Adapting ideas to audience's beliefs, experiences, and interests.
Content
3. Providing a clear, unifying purpose.
4. Using specific, vivid supporting material and language.
5. Providing rebuttals to counterclaims or objections.
Organization
6. Using a strong opening and close.
7. Providing an overview of main points.
8. Signposting main points in body of talk.
9. Providing adequate transitions between points and speakers.
Visuals
10. Using visual aids or other devices to involve the audience.
11. Using an appropriate design or template.
12. Using standard edited English.
13. Being creative.
Delivery
14. Making direct eye contact with audience.
15. Using voice effectively.
16. Using gestures effectively.
17. Handling questions effectively.
18. Positioning (not blocking screen).
As your instructor directs,
a. Fill out a form indicating your evaluation in each of the areas.
b. Share your evaluation orally with the speaker.
c. Write an e-mail to the speaker evaluating the presentation. Forward a copy of the e-mail to your instructor.

Question 10

What are four different kinds of presentation openers you can use

Question 11

Evaluate team presentations using the chapter checklist.
As your instructor directs,
a. Fill out a form indicating your evaluation in each of the areas.
b. Share your evaluation orally with the team.
c. Write an e-mail to the team evaluating the presentation. Send a copy of your e-mail to your instructor.

Question 12

One of the keys to preparing an engaging presentation is finding interesting points to share with your audience, either in the form of personal anecdotes to create rapport and build goodwill, or in the form of interesting facts and figures to establish your ethos as a presenter. For each of the following topics, prepare one personal anecdote based on your own experience, and research one interesting fact to share with your audience.
1. Why people need to plan.
2. Dealing with change.
3. The importance of lifelong learning.
4. The importance of effective communication.
5. The value of good customer service.
6. The value of listening.
As your instructor directs,
a. Share your points of interest with a small group of students, and critique each other's work.
b. Turn in your stories in an e-mail to your instructor.
c. Make a short (one- to two-minute) oral presentation featuring your story and fact(s) for one of the assignment topics.

Question 13

Name 10 guidelines for creating effective visuals.

Question 14

Evaluating PowerPoint Slides
Evaluate the following drafts of PowerPoint slides.
Are the slides' background appropriate for the topic
Do the slides use words or phrases rather than complete sentences
Is the font big enough to read from a distance
Is the art relevant and appropriate
Is each slide free from errors

Question 15

What are some major criteria for choosing the information for your presentation

Question 16

Attend a lecture or public presentation on your campus. While the speaker is presenting, don't focus on the content of the message. Instead, focus only on his/ her speaking ability and take notes. Pay attention to the speaker's abilities to deal with fear, use eye contact with the audience, project a clear speaking voice. In addition, notice how the speaker stands and gestures, uses notes, involves the audience, and handles questions.
As your instructor directs,
a. Deliver your findings to the rest of the class in a two- to four-minute presentation.
b. Write an e-mail to your instructor that discusses the presenter's speaking abilities, and how, if at all, they can be improved.

Question 17

Provide a suitable topic for each of the five common patterns of organization for presentations.

Question 18

Listen to a speaker talking about a controversial subject. (Go to a talk on campus or in town, or watch a speaker on a TV show like Face the Nation or 60 Minutes. ) Observe
About how many questions does the speaker answer
What is the format for asking and answering questions
Are the answers clear Responsive to the question Something that could be quoted without embarrassing the speaker and the organization he or she represents
How does the speaker handle hostile questions Does the speaker avoid getting angry Does the speaker retain control of the meeting How
If some questions were not answered well, what (if anything) could the speaker have done to leave a better impression
Did the answers leave the audience with a more or less positive impression of the speaker Why
As your instructor directs,
a. Share your evaluation with a small group of students.
b. Present your evaluation formally to the class.
c. Summarize your evaluation in an e-mail to your instructor.

Question 19

What are some ways to deal with the common fear of public speaking Which ways would work for you