how to open a presentation to senior management

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How to Present to Senior Executives

• Nancy Duarte

Cut to the chase. Keep their attention.

Senior executives are one of the toughest crowds you’ll face as a presenter. They’re incredibly impatient because their schedules are jam-packed — and they have to make lots of high-stakes decisions , often with little time to weigh options. So they won’t sit still for a long presentation with a big reveal at the end. They’ll just interrupt you before you finish your shtick.

• ND Nancy Duarte is a best-selling author with thirty years of CEO-ing under her belt. She’s driven her firm, Duarte, Inc., to be the global leader behind some of the most influential messages and visuals in business and culture. Duarte, Inc., is the largest design firm in Silicon Valley, as well as one of the top woman-owned businesses in the area. Nancy has written six best-selling books, four have won awards, and her new book, DataStory: Explain Data and Inspire Action Through Story , is available now. Follow Duarte on Twitter: @nancyduarte or LinkedIn .

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Presentations

Communication, facilitation, ​powerspeaking blog: tips and strategies for crafting presentations, how to present to senior executives [23 proven strategies].

by Carrie Beckstrom     Jun 4, 2021 10:45:46 AM

If you’re preparing to make a pitch to senior executives, you can throw most of what you’ve learned about making presentations in the trash.

Why? Because this is an entirely different audience. An executive presentation is not about inspiring and persuading, but is instead about presenting meaningful data to top decision-makers as quickly and concisely as possible. As a matter of fact, you should start with your bottom line (what you need from them). And work your way from there.

As a company that lives and breathes communication, we are dedicated to transforming your organization's communication skills, so you can watch people succeed at engaging and influencing others, achieving results, and driving business to new heights.

And today, we are going to reveal our favorite tips for a powerful executive presentation to decision-making leaders to help you get your point across efficiently, earn your audience’s attention, and know when and how to go in for the "ask."

So if you want more success from your business presentations, then you'll love this list of tips, techniques, and strategies.

Keep reading to get started with our tried and true tips!

Don't have time to read the whole checklist right now? 

Save the PDF version to your desktop and read when it's convenient for you.

Tip 1 Understand the executive mindset

Tip 2 Consider executives’ personality styles

Tip 3 Give yourself enough time to gather data

Tip 4 Find and leverage a sponsor

Tip 5 Prepare for possible questions or objections

Tip 6 Follow the 10/30 Rule

Tip 7 Set the context and confirm the time slot

Tip 8 Use the PREP model if your time gets cut

Tip 9 State the outcome you want early

Tip 10 Always use a valid business reason

Tip 11 Follow with the essential data—and do a deep dive only if asked

Tip 12 Focus on analytical proof

Tip 13 Be proactive and transparent when delivering unpleasant news

Tip 14 Remember that executives want a dialogue—not a data dump

Tip 15 Read the room

Tip 16 Use the Headline + Evidence model

Tip 17 Paraphrase complex questions to gain clarity

Tip 18 Address heated feedback and challenging questions in the moment

Tip 19 Answer the question-behind-the-question (before it is even asked)

Tip 20 Rely on the “notice and ask” strategy to refocus the discussion

Tip 21 Be personal to re-engage a disengaged executive

Tip 22 Acknowledge disagreements between top executives, but don't intervene

Tip 23 Conclude with a quick summary and resolve any noteworthy issues before your final ask

Let's dive right in.

Before you try to deliver your next presentation to executives, keep this in mind...

Most people fail with their first attempt to wow the top executives for one simple reason:

C-level executives demand an entirely different approach from presenters than does a general business audience. SVP of Strategy and Business Development at Workato , Markus Zirn says,  

“You have to throw out everything you learned from traditional presentation training. It’s not about making a speech that educates, persuades, inspires, or leads. It’s about raw decision-making.”

With that little caveat out of the way, it’s time for our first strategy…

Understand the Executive Mindset

Executives are impatient, bottom-line-focused leaders who don't care about the minutiae of your project or expertise. They want you to get to the point, step away from your slide deck, and be ready for a dynamic dialogue.

During your presentation, they might multitask and switch topics quickly, make calculations in their heads at lightning speed, and they may be challenging when analyzing data. Be ready for this.  

Understanding the executive's mindset as you are going in for the pitch will help you succeed. Watch the video below on Audience Analysis and getting started.

Here's just one executive you'll hear from...

"If it is a C-suite presentation and you’re actually asking for an outcome, you need to know what are the hot points of the CFO, or the treasurer’s office, or the VP of finance."

Consider executives’ personality styles

Think of each executive who will be in the room.

How do they prefer to have information presented to them?  Where are they on the risk profile?  Are they highly conservative, or are they innovative and open to experimentation?  How will your proposal affect their areas of responsibility? 

Starting with your audience in mind helps you strategize how to present your information.

Give yourself enough time to gather data

Weeks ahead of your presentation to executives, you may need to: meet with people in various functional areas for input and/or buy-in; check in with your manager; research executives’ hot buttons; and prepare slides or documents to send ahead. Don’t underestimate the time it will take to do all of this.

And speaking of being prepared, make sure you’ve considered the environment in which you’ll likely be with them—namely, virtual. If presenting to executives weren’t challenging enough, today’s digital interactions present another layer of things to consider.

Check out this great article, “ Digital Communication Skills: Is Your Message Getting Across? ,” by digital presenting and training guru Cindy Huggett. Great suggestions not only for putting your best digital self forward with senior executives, but also tips you can use in any virtual-meeting situation.

Find and leverage a sponsor

Find someone who knows the group you’re presenting to who is willing to not only help you prepare as your guide, but can also advocate for you during the meeting. Use your sponsor to check the validity of your logic ahead of time, rehearse with and get feedback from, and agree on when you should look to them for help during the executive meeting. 

Debrief with your sponsor after the meeting to gain insights and lessons you can use in the future.

Prepare for possible questions or objections

Consider including a slide that states the answers to anticipated questions or concerns rather than waiting for them to be brought up. This is a great way to demonstrate that you’ve kept your audience in mind when preparing your presentation.

Follow the 10/30 Rule

If you have 30 minutes on the executives’ meeting agenda, plan to present 10 minutes of material. The remainder of the time will likely be devoted to discussion and interaction and not necessarily in sequence.

R emember that your role is to facilitate a conversation, not just deliver a presentation.

Set the context and confirm the time slot

You don’t need an entertaining, attention-getting opening, but you do need to set the context as you start and get an agreement on timing. Thirty minutes originally may have been planned, but the meeting timeline can change. 

Start by saying, “I understand we have scheduled 30 minutes. Does that timing still work?”

Rajeev Goel, Co-Founder and CEO at PubMatic, and Monica Poindexter, Vice President, Inclusion & Diversity/Employee Relations at Lyft, will give you tips on overcoming the presentation challenges in regards to context.

Use the PREP model if your time gets cut

Don’t be surprised if what you thought would be a 30-minute meeting is cut to 10 minutes because the executives have another more urgent matter to discuss. Use the “PREP” model to craft your abbreviated pitch before the meeting:

State the outcome you want early

State the outcome you want from your presentation early. What do you want the executives to say “yes” to?

Be specific. For example, “I want your support” is vague. “I want you to approve a $500,000 investment in new centrifuge equipment this quarter” is specific.

Get that key message out first...

Always use a valid business reason

Clearly state what value or ROI your ask will bring in terms of revenue increase, cost reduction, protection from risk, competitive advantage, or other business drivers. It can’t be just a “nice to have” proposal. 

For example...

“The bottom line is, we’re seeking your approval for five new FTEs in account management roles for an investment of $750,000. The reason is that we have a $2M revenue opportunity with the launch of [XYZ project]. These account managers will focus on the top 20% of our customer base to ensure we maximize the sales opportunity.”

Follow with the essential data—and do a deep dive only if asked

Instead of drowning listeners in data, lead with the top two to three key points and supporting evidence that best support your ask and business reason. The key points should be answers to the primary questions you think the executives will have about your proposal. 

Keep in mind that execs want the 10,000-foot view and how it affects the organization's bottom line.  

Focus on analytical proof

Senior decision-makers don’t need to be entertained. So while your logic may follow a “storyline,” hard data is what will be more convincing.

If you have a customer success story or a brief anecdote that supports your point, use it. But remember, unlike a general audience, the C-level executives in the room will grow impatient with stories unless they’re succinct and tie directly to your proposal.

Be proactive and transparent when delivering unpleasant news

There are four steps to presenting bad news:

• Get it out at the beginning
• Be candid about what happened
• Explain how you will fix it
• Offer options and recommendations. 

You can use this 4-step framework to present bad news in a way that speaks to executives.

Let's take a look at a hypothetical example. You have to explain to them why a consultant they hired quit, and you need to rectify the situation...

1. G et it out at the beginning

The consultant you approved quit unexpectedly.  A response to the audit she was supposed to help us with is due next week. Today I want to talk about the path forward. 

2. Be candid and explain how you will fix the situation

By the end of this meeting, I’d like your approval to:

Respond to the audit in a generic way with help from the audit team

Collaborate with the internal process improvement team to assess our local processes 

Collaborate with my counterpart to create one agreement that combines the best aspects of our process and theirs 

3. Offer options on why it makes business sense 

No additional cost of hiring a consultant

We’ll be able to leverage the existing processes to create a process that is consistent across the globe

4. Offer final recommendations   

With all of that in mind, today I’d like to talk about how we should change our audit process and why I’m confident this plan will receive regulatory approval.

Is there anything else you’d like me to add?

If you have bad news, don’t try to gloss over it. Use the framework to present it in a way that speaks to executives.

Remember that executives want a dialogue—not a data dump

Expect questions and energetic discussions to occur before you have presented all of your material.

(Remember the 10/30 Rule: If you have 30 minutes, prepare only 10 minutes’ worth of “presentation.”) Respond to questions when they come up.

Use facilitation skills to refocus the discussion after a topic change.

Here are a few more tips to enhance your facilitation skills:

Read the room

Notice the process of the discussion as well as the content. When there is cross-talk, interruptions, or rapid-fire questions, you can observe first and then choose an appropriate intervention.

Reading the room can be especially challenging in virtual meetings. You want to encourage everyone to turn on their webcam. Solicit feedback via chat. Stop the presentation and do a quick “reality check” if you notice disengagement or tension.

Use the Headline + Evidence model

Again, this is a time-pressed audience that wants brief, focused answers to their questions. Use the “Headline Response” model to help you do just that.

Paraphrase complex questions to gain clarity

Instead of restating an executive’s question verbatim, use synonyms when you paraphrase.

Remember, you don’t know what is on someone’s mind. So, always check for accuracy after paraphrasing. “Did I get that right?” or just “Right?” gives the questioner a chance to agree or disagree. If your understanding wasn’t accurate, try again.

Address heated feedback and challenging questions in the moment

Especially if someone is upset, a deeper level of listening is required. Reflect on both the content and the feeling you noticed (skeptical, concerned, frustrated, etc.) and answer the question as best you can.

Always check to see if you got it right. Never say, “I know how you feel,” because you don’t, actually. 

Answer the question-behind-the-question (before it is even asked)

If you get resistance or objections to your ideas, often executives are concerned with key business drivers such as top-line and bottom-line impact, competitive positioning, and risk management.

When you paraphrase their questions, check for these concerns and be ready to address them directly.

Listen for the question-behind-the-question.

Rely on the “notice and ask” strategy to refocus the discussion

You are not in a position to tell the executives what to do.

But if the discussion goes in a different direction, you can say, “I notice our discussion is now focused on X. May I get your guidance? Would you like to keep going in this direction, or would you like to go back to our topic?” 

Be personal to re-engage a disengaged executive

You don’t want to catch anyone off guard, so give a little context when you ask someone directly for their thoughts (as a re-engagement strategy).

For example, “Jaime, given that what we are trying to do here is to reduce response time, in your experience, will this new approach work in the field?” 

Acknowledge disagreements between top executives, but don't intervene

You may look to your sponsor to help calm things down, but don’t intervene.

Conclude with a quick summary and resolve any noteworthy issues before your final ask

As you end your presentation, summarize and check to be sure you are clear on what decisions or agreements have been made and what your next steps will be. 

“I explained x and y; you also brought up a and b. Do I have your go-ahead now to purchase the new equipment for $500,000 this quarter?”

Presenting to senior executives is often a nerve-wracking, high-stakes situation. But as these leaders will tell you, it can be a great opportunity to grow, and to increase your value to the organization.

I hope you’ve found these tips enlightening and helpful. L earning to think like senior executives and present to them means learning new habits—and breaking old ones. But wow, I know it’s hard. And we present a lot of information to take in with our 23 Tips.

So, here’s one final piece of advice: start small. Pick one or two tips to apply to your next presentation. And check out this quick-read article, “ 4 Steps to Making New Habits Stick ,” by Cindy Solomon, founder, and CEO of the Courageous Leadership Institute. It will help you learn how to make the most of small steps toward new habits.

But before you get started using them for your next presentation, I’d like to hear from you.

Which presentation tip from this list was your favorite?

...Or maybe you have a suggestion that I didn't cover here?

Either way, let me know by leaving a comment below.

Join Us in Conversation . . .

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Data & Finance for Work & Life

Management Presentation: 8 Tips, Examples & a Template

In a corporate context, presenting works wonders for a career. Most professionals get exposure to presenting to informed colleagues and department managers. It’s an ideal way to get visibility and show value. But a management presentation to senior executives who aren’t familiar department nuances is a different ballgame.

A management presentation is a high-level summary to senior executive that optimizes reports to include only the details relevant to directorial decisions . They are notoriously difficult to navigate for two reasons: 1. most executives do not have working knowledge of the nuances in each department , 2. presenters rarely have time to understand executives’ preferences .

More than anything else, good management presenters learn how to strike a balance in the degree of detail: they provide enough detail so executives make informed decisions, but not so much detail that they cause confusion.

This article explores how to make a good management presentations in PowerPoint using 4 management presenting best practices , 4 management presenting techniques , providing examples for each, and finishing with a management presentation template you can apply in real life. You can use it as a jumping off point for deeper communication curriculum .

5 management presenting best practices are:

• Ask what managers prefer ahead of time.
• Have 1 message, and 1 message Only.
• The only words should be “Thought Starters.”
• Keep it short.
• Practice 7 times in advance.

4 management presenting techniques are:

• Use a CSP model – Challenge, Solution, Progress.
• Begin with a summary of exactly 3 points.
• Use only these 3 chart types: bar, line, scatter.
• Design slides with the company logo.

I will use a financial analyst perspective in this article, but everything here applies to data and business analysts as well.

Ask Executives Their Preference Ahead of Time

If you’ve ever taken a class on presentation techniques, you’ve heard the old adage “know your audience.” It’s true, the best way to deliver a great presentation is to align your message with what your audience already understands. The same applies to a management presentation.

The challenge is that, more often than not, executives are too busy for you to get to know them well. This means you hardly get the chance to understand how they like presentations. So what can you do? Well, ask them! There’s no harm in sending an email to understand better. And what’s more, once you know, you can always defer to their preferences in the future.

For a financial management presentation, common questions to ask include the following:

• Do you prefer to see raw data, or only visualizations?
• Do you prefer charts or table summaries?
• Would you like a written explanation on paper for each slide?
• Do you like averages alone, or do you prefer means, or standard deviation?
• What interests you most in a presentation?

If you gather some helpful insights, then your presentation will be that much better. That said, you may not get a response, or it may be quick and not insightful. But most senior executives will appreciate you asking .

The best part is you will be able to surprise them. Using the best practices and techniques below, in additional to any insights gathered form your email, will work wonders for you.

Have 1 Message, and 1 Message Only

The easiest mistake to make on a management presentation is trying to deliver multiple messages. Senior executives go through loads of meetings every day, and each meeting they have includes a wave of information. Your mission should be to deliver 1 essential message so they can easily understand and compartmentalize it.

This is no easy task. When I try to narrow down the focus of my management presentation message, it seems like I leave out critical information along the way. The key is to tell a story to incorporate critical information as part of a story towards the essential message.

For example, imagine you work for a wholesale watch company called Batch Watch . You want to explain a financing operation in which the company has the option of two loans to fund the initial costs of 10,000 watches. These loans have different interest rates and maturity dates. Loan A is better if the company expects to sell the watches within 3 months, while Loan B is better if the company expects to sell over more than 3 months. Each has cancellation fees and cash flow impacts.

Instead of showing the cancellation fees and cash flow impact of the each loan, all you need to say is “ we expect the company to sell them within 3 months, and we recommend loan A for that reason.” If the executives disagree on the sale timeline, they will ask for more information.

This is how you keep senior executives engaged, by integrating them in the story you tell. Ultimately, the essential message of your presentation should be how much profit the company will make from the watch funding operation. Senior executives should leave feeling like the project is in good hands with you, and they only feel that way when you tell a story around the essential message .

Whatever the Message, Use Data

Whatever message you want to send, it needs to be backed up by data. In the example above the data was financial, but it’s not always that simple. Context may require you to provide KPIs and perform extensive data analysis that culminates in a small output that your viewers can easily digest.

You need to be strong with data to deliver a good management presentation. To get started or refresh your memory, you can read AnalystAnswers’ free Intro to Data Analysis eBook .

The Only Words Should be “Thought Starters”

As a general presentation principle, you should not write many thoughts down on presentation slides. Words have two negative impacts on the audience: they demand energy from the reader, and they make the reader feel compelled to read, lest they misunderstand.

If you can avoid putting text blocks altogether, do. If you don’t need any writing at all, don’t. However, if you need guidance as you speak or want to provide reminders for a later data, use “Thought Starters.”

Thought starters are phrases of 3 words maximum that contain ideas leading to the essential message. People often call them “bullet points,” which is common for list-style thought starters. Personally, I prefer to place thought starters at different places on a slide. When I use a chart, for example, I put thought starters at relevant places on the slide.

Keep it Short

Your presentation should never consume more than 80% of the allotted timeframe. This means that if you plan a 5 minutes meeting, deliver the presentation in 4 minutes. If you’re given 30 minutes, do it in 25 minutes. If you have 1 hour, do it in 45 minutes.

By keeping the presentation short, you relieve the audience and you allow for some question buffer. Have you ever sat in a meeting planned for 1 hour, and at 45m it ends early? It’s a pleasure for everyone. Most of us feel like we’re running behind — when you put us ahead of schedule, we love you!

At the same time, senior executives may bombard you with questions throughout the presentation. If you planned to fill the whole timeframe, you won’t finish. But if you planned to finish early, you still have a chance.

And if you use the rest of these best practices and techniques, those senior executives shouldn’t need to ask too many questions!

Practice 7 Times in Advance

There’s a mix of opinions on the number of times you should rehearse a presentation before doing it live, but most people agree that it’s somewhere between 5 and 10 times. If you take nothing else from this article, take this. To deliver a good presentation, prepare excellent slides; to deliver a great presentation, practice presenting them 7 times.

To deliver a good presentation, prepare excellent slides; to deliver a great presentation, practice presenting them 7 times. AnalystAnswers.com

But just practicing isn’t enough, there are a few criteria you must meet:

• Practice in the room you will present in. There’s something about envisioning yourself live that really makes a difference. When you practice in a space other that where you’ll present, it’s good. But when you practice in the “live” room, you’re able to sensitize yourself to the environment, which calms nerves so you can focus on the message.
• Have an audience. We all behave differently when there’s stimulus of other people around. Whenever possible, get one or two people to whom you can present. In addition to getting used to having an audience, you’ll also get some feedback.
• Use the same volume of voice. When we’re not “live,” we have a tendency to hold back on our voice. This is detrimental to the presentation because you feel taken off guard by your own voice. Make sure to envision yourself in front of the senior execs when you practice.

Best Practices Recap

We’ve addressed 5 best practices — now let’s turn our attention to 4 specific techniques you can easily implement. And when you do, that work wonders for management presenting.

Use a CSP Model (Challenge, Solution, Progress)

Every presentation needs structure, but it’s easy to forget that we need to guide our audience. A great way to structure management reports is using the CSP model. CSP stands for Challenge, Solution, Progress, and it’s exactly what it sounds like.

You need to explain the challenge or goal, explain what the solution to the challenge is (or how to achieve the goal), and show where you are in the steps to completing that goal.

For example, let’s look at our Batch Watch case. Imagine you need to find funding for a new product launch — $100,000 to be exact. A sample CSP model for this would be a slide that shows:

By using the CSP model, you guide the audience. However, it’s important to note that the CSP model is not a summary . It’s an overview of the process, but a summary should always come before. Let’s talk about it now.

Begin with a Summary of Exactly 3 Points

Any good presentation begins with a summary. And a good summary communicates the essential message simply in 3 points. However, the summary is not the same thing as the CSP model. Instead, it provides an alternative view on the challenge and and solution.

For example, using our Batch Watch case of funding a new product, you could address a summary in the following way:

• Challenge, Solution, Progress
• Funding acquisition
• Project Timeline

This provides additional details that are most relevant to the project and carry added value to the CSP model.

Use only Bar Charts (aka Column Charts), Line Graphs, and Scatter Plots

Whether it’s for data, financial, and business analyst topics , management presentations should only ever have bar charts, line graphs, and scatter plots. They are common, rich in information, and well understood. Any other kind of graph is distracting more than anything else.

A bar graph is useful when you want to compare like variables. For example, if you want to show the average size of Canadian trout versus American trout. A common mistake, though, is to use bar graphs to show change over time. While it’s not incorrect to do so, line graphs are better for this purpose.

A line graph is useful when you want to show change in one variable over time (we call this time series data). For example, if you want to show the progression of revenues over time, line graphs are the perfect way to do so.

A scatter plot is best when you want to compare a set of observations of one variable to a set of observations of another. It’s the ideal way to quickly visualize the relationship between two variables. For example, if you want to see how company revenues compare to GDP, you could use a scatter plot like this:

For example, let’s look at our Batch Watch case. If we want to see how our company is performing compared to the economy as a whole, we could use this scatter plot. As you can see, we have a positive (bottom left to top right) relationship, but a weak one (points not clustered closely).

Design Slides Using the Company Logo

When you’re presenting to senior executives, you want your slides to look professional. The best way to do that is by putting your company logo on them, including any corporate design standards (colors, fonts, etc). Show through your presentation that you belong to the same company, and that you’re in it in spirit. For example, let’s add the AnalystAnswers.com logo to our CSP slide:

Techniques Recap

Here’s a sample management presentation template below. I hope you understand after reading this article that management presentation is more about your delivery than it is about the slides you prepare.

Download Management Presentation Template for Free

While the techniques we’ve discussed will help you build a good presentation, your success really depends on how well you deliver the ideas needed to help senior executives make decisions. At the end of the day, it’s all about balance.

If you only remember two things from this article, remember that great management presenters give enough detail to inform senior executive but not too much that they cause confusion, and great management presenters make sure they do so by practicing 7 times in advance. You’ll have to practice, practice, practice.

About the Author

Noah is the founder & Editor-in-Chief at AnalystAnswers. He is a transatlantic professional and entrepreneur with 5+ years of corporate finance and data analytics experience, as well as 3+ years in consumer financial products and business software. He started AnalystAnswers to provide aspiring professionals with accessible explanations of otherwise dense finance and data concepts. Noah believes everyone can benefit from an analytical mindset in growing digital world. When he's not busy at work, Noah likes to explore new European cities, exercise, and spend time with friends and family.

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Giving a Presentation to Senior Management & Executives: Templates & Tips

Giving a presentation to senior management or an executive team can be a little daunting. You need to create just the right design to appeal to a C-suite group.

This includes everything from color choice to typography to messaging. When it all comes together, you need a polished presentation deck to make a good impression.

Here, we’ve got some templates and tips to help you create just the right presentation, to help you get your message across in a stylish and professional way.

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Use a Simple Color Palette

A presentation for senior management or executives is not the place to go wild with color or other design choices. You want the content to steal the show, not the color.

Design your presentation with a muted or neutral palette. Use one or two accent colors. If you are working on a presentation for an existing brand, use the color palette according to those brand guidelines.

White, light, or neutral backgrounds are best. This isn’t the place to experiment with dark mode or trendy colors unless you are certain it is appropriate for your direct audience.

Template to try: Executive Real Estate Presentation Template

Keep Content Direct

Management and executives are busy people. Don’t drag out your presentation with content that isn’t to the point.

Use direct messaging and language with calls to action that show your audience exactly what you are trying to say. Don’t get caught up with using animations, long videos, or other design tricks. Create a presentation that is simple, direct, and focuses on the content therein.

Template to try: Companhia Business Keynote Template

Use Charts and Graphs Where Necessary

Charts, infographics, and numbers can help support certain types of presentations. Use these supporting elements where necessary to help make a strong case for what you are communicating.

As with other design elements, use supporting graphics in a way that emphasizes your message and keep them are direct and simple as possible.

This is where a presentation design template can really come in handy. Look for one that presents information in the way you want to communicate it to the audience to help create your slide deck quickly.

Template to try: Accounting Finance in Business PowerPoint Template

Order Slides in a Logical Order

As with other storytelling methods, a strong presentation has a beginning, middle, and end. Order your slides in a logical order that tells your story in this way.

Start with an introduction, mission, vision, or goals. Use a table of contents if your presentation is exceptionally long or will be viewed without you (such as an emailed presentation).

Then get to the heart of what you want to say. Make statements that you can follow up with supporting evidence. This is where charts, images, or graphics can come in handy to help better tell the story.

Finally, wrap up with outcomes or what should happen next. Provide an opportunity for questions or feedback. Don’t forget the call to action: What are the managers or executives you were presenting to supposed to do next? Give them an easy opportunity to take that action.

Template to try: Buzz Consultant PowerPoint Template

Use Easy to Read Typefaces

A presentation for senior management or executives is not the place to start experimenting with wild typefaces. Keep it simple. Readability here is vital.

For the most part, you’ll probably need two typefaces: A display typeface for titles and headers and a body typeface for everything else (you might need this one to include bold or italic options).

Simple sans serif typefaces are the preferred option in most cases. They are easy to read and won’t get in the way of your message. Serif typefaces are also acceptable. Stay away from scripts, novelty fonts, or blackletter for the most part.

Template to try: Centric Corporate PowerPoint Presentation

Don’t Use Too Many Slides

A good presentation should have a strong message. Communicate it in as few slides as possible.

This will help you be respectful of the time of the people you are presenting to, help capture more of their attention, and provide a strong focus for what you are trying to say.

There’s no exact formula for number of slides. There are a few guidelines to help you think through how many you need:

• One thought/idea per slide
• Keep text to a minimum for in-person presentations
• Design for hierarchy and scanning so it is easy to read each slide quickly
• Plan for a cadence of one to two slides per minute

Template to try: Gratus Business Keynote Template

Use Blocks of Content

Think about presentation content in chunks or blocks that help the audience easily digest information. One popular way to do this is with a split-screen design that divides content into two parts – maybe an image and text or two columns of text.

People naturally read from left to right and this can help direct visual flow and make content easier to understand.

This type of design is also organized, visually elegant, and can help you create a design that will appeal to your C-suite audience. It can also work for almost any type of content.

Template to try: Lampu Innovative Google Slides Template

A strong presentation for senior management and executives is simple, direct, and has visual flair without being overwhelming. Refine your message and slide deck to maximize impact in the most concise amount of time possible.

And don’t forget to finish with your ask. Why were you presenting in the first place? Provide a reminder at the end of the presentation with a call to action.

Moxie Institute

How To Present To Senior Management: Tips From a TEDx Speaker Coach

Think About Who You’re Presenting To

Who is attending?

Your Presentation Must Fit Your Audience!

• What does the executive team expect you to present on? What were you asked to present on?
• Have they heard a presentation about their topic before ?
• What do they already know about the topic ?—S o you don’t repeat yourself and you can make sure you’re presenting a different angle, and lastly my personal favorite—
• What keeps them up at night ?

Tailor Your Content For Maximum Impact

• What do you want the executive team to feel ?
• What do you want them to know ?
• What do you want them to do ?
• What do you want them to remember or take away?

How To Craft Your Content

• Introduction

1. Introduction = Feel

2. Body = Know

3. Conclusion (and Bridge)= Do, Remember, Takeaway

Part 1—Introduction: Greeting

Part 2—Introduction: Hook

Part 3—Introduction: Call to Adventure

• What / Why / How
• What / So What / Now What
• Problem / Solution / Benefit
• Problem / Past Solutions / New Solutions

bring it back to the beginning

Recap presentation briefly

call to action

Stay High-Level And Concise

Leave them wanting more!

The Difference Between The Slides You Present VS The Slides You Send

Bullets kill presentations

Only 6 words per slide

How To Rehearse Like A Pro

rehearsal is key to confidence

memorize the journey

Too nervous? Memorize your Intro and Conclusion!

Get feedback

Do not rehearse in the mirror

Preparing For Q&A

Set Yourself Up To Succeed With Pre-Presentation Warm-Ups

pre-presentation warm-up

check yourself before you wreck yourself

• Imposter syndrome
• Fear of failure
• Fear of not fitting in
• Catastrophizing

negativity bias

negative experiences and thoughts are ten times more powerful than positive ones

Saying thoughts out loud are 4-6x more powerful than thinking them!

visualize your success

• Be as specific as you can – What are you wearing? What do you see?
• Look in the audience, who do you see in the audience? What are their facial expressions? Hear your voice.

• Voice and Speech work

Remember: You Control The Presentation

make sure that you remained grounded and breathe.

How To Have Confident Body Language

Make sure to be open and have good posture

Make sure to smile

Quick Tips To Bring Your A-Game

plan your wardrobe the night before.

check your technology

check your lighting

check your audio

All Of This Preparation Will Help Improve Your Mindset

Audience Analysis

Crafting Content

How to Rehearse

Pre-Presentation Warmup

Body Language

Wardrobe and Technology

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How to Present to Senior Executives

Learn how to present to executives.

If you're like most people, presenting to executives has probably been a bit intimidating. The thought of walking into a room full of busy and important senior executives can be daunting. However, if you follow these tips, it's possible to make an effective presentation — even when you're nervous!

Define your objective.

The first step in presenting your ideas to senior executives is defining your objective. Before you start, you need to know what you want to achieve. 

The second step is to be sure that the person presenting their ideas and the people who are hearing them understand each other's needs. Because if we don't know what our audiences want or need from us, how can we provide them with a solution? This will also help ensure that when you ask for something, it's relevant and appropriate for the situation.

How do you present information to senior management?

Because senior executives' decisions are s o critical, it's important to understand what is expected from your presentation. Depending on their role and experience, each executive may be interested in different things. However, it's common for them to have questions such as:

• How you'll measure success
• How much time and money will be required to complete the project
• What resources will be needed (e.g., people, equipment)
• What problems might arise along the way 

It's also important that you're prepared for questions stemming from the actual presentation, especially if it's a pitch for funding. For example, how will you know if your project is on track? How do you plan to spend any excess funds? What are some obstacles that could get in your way?

What are good questions to ask about your audience?

The next step is to figure out what you need to learn about your audience. This will help you guide your presentation and allow you to make sure they understand the information that you present.

Here are some good questions to consider:

• Who is the audience? 
• Are they more interested in how things work or why things happen? 
• What level of knowledge do they have about this topic?
• What do they know about your topic?
• What do they not know about your topic?
• What are they interested in?
• What are they not interested in?
• What questions do I want my audience to ask? What do I need to do to be able to answer them?
• How much time does each attendee have available for a presentation?  

What should be included in an executive presentation?

You'll want to include:

• Problem statement. This is where you explain why there's a problem or issue to solve and its impact on your audience or organization (if applicable).
• Solution statement/recommendation(s ). This is where you outline your proposed solution or recommendation for solving the problem based on your research and findings, including any data and/or metrics that support this conclusion. You should include any risks associated with implementing this new solution as well — this helps mitigate any concerns executives might have about changing their strategy or plans to implement your recommendations.

Be prepared to answer the question "So what?"

"Why should we care about this? How does it relate to our business goals?" These are the most important questions you need to keep in mind when developing a presentation. Be prepared to respond to these questions at any time while giving your presentation. Make sure that you differentiate between issues that may seem important but aren't immediately relevant. 

Clarify in advance the role you want them to play.

Before you begin to write your presentation, you must ask yourself what role you want the audience members to play. For example, if your objective is simply to inform your audience about a new product line, their role is to listen and absorb the information. However, if you want them to make a decision or take action (e.g., approve funding), they will need some time for deliberation before doing so. This is where having a specific agenda can help ensure that discussions stay on track.

You should also determine how much structure is appropriate for your meeting: Will time be set aside for questions at the end of the presentation? Will there be an opportunity for feedback or questions after each segment? These decisions will dictate how much direction you give during each presentation section.

Answer their questions. 

When presenting to senior executives, if they ask questions during your presentation, don't give quick answers. Focus on giving thoughtful responses to be sure you're addressing their specific question. It is best to be prepared by thinking about what questions they may ask and preparing succinct answers. If you don't know the answer, don't make one up. It is fine to let them know you will get back to them. Make sure you provide a time certain for when you will get back.

Don't assume they all have the same level of knowledge.

When presenting to senior executives, it's important to remember that they all have different levels of knowledge and experience. Some may be experts in the subject you're discussing, while others may not be familiar with it at all. 

To keep things interesting for everyone, you should use creativity in your presentation style. Here are some tips:

• Understand what your audience knows about your topic — and also what they don't know. The more informed they are on the topic before you start speaking, the better off everyone will be. Suppose there are any topics or points that everyone should understand before moving forward with your presentation (e.g., "Here's how our product works"). In that case, it might make sense for someone else on your team to cover these before giving a presentation yourself so that everyone has an equal understanding of what is being discussed during this meeting/session/etc.
• Know who exactly is in attendance at each meeting (and where) . When possible, ensure every attendee has access (to what, the meeting?) beforehand, so there aren't any surprises during the delivery time!

Give them an opportunity to contribute.

When presenting to senior executives, there's a good chance they may have more experience than you. That means they might also have some great ideas worth sharing. Ask for their questions, suggestions, and other forms of insight that may be helpful to you in the future as well as during the presentation itself. Encourage them to share their opinions by asking questions like "What do you think?" or "How can we make this better?" If you're looking for specific answers, try saying something like: "I'd love to hear your thoughts on this." This will help get everyone involved in your presentation.

Watch your time.

Time management is essential. At the beginning of your presentation, set a timer and stick to it. You can use the timer on your phone or computer, but make sure you reset it for each section of your talk so you know how much time is left in that section as well as for the full presentation.

It's important to know how much time you have in advance and plan accordingly. If you're presenting on a topic that has many different parts and subtopics, give yourself enough time to talk about them all without rushing through any one section too quickly. Be sure not to spend too much time on one particular point.

If you're presenting to a group of executives who are used to being in control and having access to all the information when they feel like they've heard enough, they may cut off your presentation before it's completed. When this happens, ask them if they'll give you a few more minutes so that everyone has an opportunity to ask questions.

Stick to the point, don't ramble.

When presenting to senior executives it's important to remember that they are busy people. You need to use every second of your time wisely. They don't have time for rambling or digressions. If you find yourself going off track, consider whether the point you are making could be better focused on what they need to know rather than what you want them to know. If a certain piece of information is interesting but not vital, cut it out entirely or save it for later.

How can I impress senior executives?

What can you do to impress senior executives?

• Be prepared for any response.
• Be prepared for any situation.
• Be prepared for any outcome, no matter what it is (good or bad).

Everyone needs to make an executive presentation at some point, be ready!

Whether you have been presenting for decades or just starting out, a presentation to the executive team is a big deal and you need to be prepared for anything.

To hit it out of the park (or perhaps land safely on solid ground), you need to be confident. If you don't know enough about what you're talking about, or if you think you may not be able to answer questions confidently, it will show. Beyond the actual content, your body language and tone of voice will also show your lack of confidence. 

I've found the best way to be confident is by being well prepared and practicing with friends or colleagues beforehand. Practice until every minute detail feels natural and easy to present and discuss. Confidence is critical for any speaker. You may also want to get coaching or training. Click here for more information.

It's important to remember that executive presentations are a two-way street. If you're going to ask senior executives to listen to your ideas and seek buy-in, then you also have to be willing to listen. If they have something valuable to add, don't be afraid; instead, let it fuel your presentation.

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Dec 21 2009

7 Tips for Presenting to Senior Executives

Don't miss an opportunity to impress the execs! (c) Shutterstock

When it comes to presenting, knowing how to present to senior executives within your own company or another company is going to have the biggest impact on your career. Some presenters figure it out to their great success. Other people crash and burn only to lament an opportunity missed.

I’ve compiled a series of tips that will hopefully come in handy the next time you’re going to present to a CEO, CMO, Senior VP, VP, etc. For example, you might be proposing a promising new social media initiative to marketing executives at your company or pitching a prospect’s executives on a new web-based payroll solution. My suggestions will focus on the boardroom situations rather than keynote presentations . Boardroom presentations are typically two-way interactions in smaller, more personal settings (e.g., meeting room, office, etc.) compared to the one-way interactions with large, anonymous groups of executives at business conferences.

You’d be wise to consider the following suggestions:

1. Start strong

A good start is critical (c) Shutterstock

Starting strong is important for any presentation and audience, but you might find senior executives slightly less forgiving. Starting strong with executives means giving them confidence that you’re going to use their time wisely. You gain their confidence by establishing a clear direction for what’s going to be covered and what the desired outcome is.

Executives are frequently going from meeting to meeting — often not always knowing what the exact purpose of the next meeting is. Their admin assistant may have accepted the meeting on their behalf or they may not have had time to review any information prior to the meeting. You need to tell them why they’re there and why your topic is important to them.

2. Use your time effectively

Senior managers’ time is valuable. They have 20+ other things they could be doing in the 10-60 minutes they have given you. Be prepared to cover your content in the time allotted . Also, leave ample time for discussion or questions .

I was recently in a presentation to several VPs where the presenters delivered a great presentation, but left no time for discussion and questions at the end. Unfortunately, they missed an opportunity for the senior executives to discuss the presentation content, buy into the recommendations, and determine a plan of action. The executives had to run to their next meeting.

3. Be flexible while presenting

Be flexible and incredible like Elastigirl (c) Disney

It’s common for senior executives to ask you to jump back to a previous slide or fast forward through your slides to a particular section of your presentation. Don’t be surprised when executives interrupt you as you present a painstakingly crafted slide with “Got it. Next”. Fight the urge to scream “I spent 5 hours on this slide!” and reinterpret those three words as “Great job on this particular slide. I understood its main point. Please move on.”

An extended discussion on a particular slide may mean you need to whip through other less important slides in order to get back on track in terms of covering all of your slides. In some cases, you may even forgo covering all of your slides because the discussion on a particular aspect of your presentation is going really well. The key is to be flexible and cover what they want to focus on — not necessarily what you want to . In order to achieve your objectives (e.g., more resources, budget, executive support, etc.), you may not need to go through every slide. 

4. Be ready with supporting data

Don’t make the mistake of not being able to answer a senior manager’s question during your presentation. Executives are experts at finding holes in your logic or content. They want to be sure you understand the consequences and implications , and that they can trust your analysis and recommendations .

I made the mistake of including some preliminary survey data that indicated that customers felt differently about a particular company practice. I thought the data was interesting, but when the senior VP shouted “bull sh!t” I knew I had made a terrible mistake including it in my presentation. I should have either gathered more information on the surprising insight to verify it or left it out of my presentation entirely.

It’s a best practice to anticipate potential questions by identifying what content could be susceptible to further questioning. Be prepared with additional supporting data on any parts of your presentation that could be viewed as counter-intuitive, unexpected, challenging to current opinion or practices, or result in significant changes. You may need to have additional data at your finger tips, including back-up slides in an appendix section or a spreadsheet ready to go. Senior executives often take comfort in the fact that you have tortured the data.

5. Know your audience

Before you open that door you should know what you're heading into. (c) Shutterstock

It’s always important to know your audience and in the case of senior executives it is imperative.

• How much do the VPs know about your topic? (i.e., how much time should you spend on providing background information?)
• What topics are hot buttons or particularly interesting to the executives based on their current business goals?
• Which executives would be politically threatened by your recommendations?
• What can you find out about their pet peeves or preferences ?

For example, I worked at one company where the CEO hated when people substituted “challenge” or “issue” for the word “problem”. He wanted people to call problems what they were. It’s better to avoid pet peeves such as this one that can unnecessarily sidetrack a presentation.

You need to find an insider who can coach you on how to best present your material to the targeted executive or group of executives. That person could be your executive sponsor, one of the executive’s direct reports, their admin assistant, or another peer/next-level manager who has interacted with your audience on a regular basis. You’re looking for inside information on your audience so that you can avoid derailing your presentation and wasting everyone’s time.

6. Keep it simple

In a study that asked top executives at several large companies how people could present more effectively to them, the overall feedback was to make the presentations shorter and more candid . The researcher found that “Senior people don’t have time to learn about your topic. They just want to know how they can help you.” Remove extraneous information that could take your discussion off track or cloud your main points. You lean towards focusing on the bottom-line in presentations to executives. The more simple and candid your presentation is, the easier it will be for your executive audience to understand how they can help you and move things forward.

7. Be prepared

Be prepared like a Wilderness Explorer (c) Disney

For most of us, opportunities to present to the senior management team don’t happen everyday. A key to seizing the moment is to be prepared, which may mean conducting an exhaustive analysis and review of the topic, carefully building slides that clearly and succinctly convey your message, creating back-up slides with supporting data, rehearsing your slides several times, seeking peer feedback prior to presenting, etc.

Being prepared means that you will be more confident in these intimidating situations. You’ll also be more flexible when executives throw curve balls your way such as switching the focus to a whiteboard instead of reviewing the rest of your slides. Your preparedness and polish will leave a positive impression on your executive audience — one that will benefit your career long-term.

What has been your experience?

I’m sure many of you have had different experiences with senior executive presentations — both good and bad. I’d love to hear your war stories and what valuable lessons you have learned along the way. If you’re a senior executive, I’d love to hear your perspective as well.

While writing this blog post, I found a couple of related articles on this subject which may be helpful to you. Good luck with your senior executive presentations in 2010!

• “ Now That We Have Your Complete Attention… ” (Eric Matson, Fast Company)
• “ Presenting to the Big Dogs ” (Marsha Redmon, Bnet)

No related posts.

Tags: audience , boardroom , clarity , executives , preparation , time , time management

Comments (8)

8 Responses to “7 Tips for Presenting to Senior Executives”

I love the visuals as well as the numbered headed contents. This is my favorite blog of the year. Thanks for the tips!

[…] 7 Tips for Presenting to Senior Executives […]

Great post. I think #3 and #7 particularly go hand in hand. I’ve found that quite often when presenting to senior executives, or at least those who view themselves in a powerful position, you always have to be on your toes and ready to react. It’s not uncommon to be interrupted, challenged, or questioned. Not only do you have to be ready to stop and change directions on a dime, but you must be prepared to back up your statements/facts. And make sure you get to the point, fast, as it relates to them.

Great job putting all of this information together. It’s definitely a great resource.

[…] Powerpoint Ninja includes more detailed suggestions in 7 Tips for Presenting to Senior Executives. My favorite is: Executives are frequently going from meeting to meeting — often not always […]

[…] ‘7 tips for presenting to executives’, viewed 14 September 2011, https://www.powerpointninja.com/presentation-delivery/7-tips-for-presenting-to-senior-executives/ […]

[…] https://www.powerpointninja.com/presentation-delivery/7-tips-for-presenting-to-senior-executives/ […]

Educative,good

[…] 7 Tips for Presenting to Senior Executives – PowerPoint Ninja […]

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How To Present To Senior Executives & The Board

Posted by Belinda Huckle  |  On September 7, 2021  |  In Presentation Training, Tips & Advice

In this Article...quick links

Tip 1: Know your audience.

Tip 2: what else is on the agenda of the meeting, tip 3: answer the brief., tip 4: rehearse., tip 5: don’t use jargon., tip 6: structure your presentation to reflect their needs., tip 7: start with the bottom line., tip 8: manage their expectations., tip 9: be flexible., tip 10: expect to be interrupted., tip 11: anticipate questions in advance., learning to present to senior management, senior executives, the c-suite and to boards is a career-critical skill., follow us on social media for more great presentation tips:.

It can be nerve-wracking the first time you have to present to senior management, a group of senior executives or the Board . You want to be able to walk out of the room with more credibility than you came in with.

It’s an opportunity to demonstrate that you are knowledgeable about your subject, and that you understand the impact that your recommendations have on the organisation and to the bottom line.

You need to remember that senior executives are time poor, impatient and used to making difficult decisions by quickly weighing up the pros and cons of any situation.

They absolutely do not want to be presented with all your data (but they want to know that you have it and are totally across it).

They will be looking for a summary or your solution within the first few minutes, otherwise they’ll dive in with difficult, very pointed questions that might well put you off your stride and impact your confidence.

The way you research, prepare and structure your presentation beforehand is key to success.

Here are our top tips for presenting to senior executives, senior management, the C-Suite or a Board of Directors.

You should already know the executive team or Board by reputation if not directly. If you don’t, find out about their preferences in terms of presentation style, use of visual aids, graphics and pet hates from the people who know them best.

Preparing to present to senior management and executives should include an assessment of:

• How much each of them knows about the subject matter you’re presenting on
• Whether there are differing views within the group
• What their expectations are of the presentation and the potential decisions they will have to make as a result.

Talk to people who have presented to them before, you might pick up some valuable tips.

This is important so that you understand the context of your presentation and where your presentation fits within the meeting. Are you presenting after a break or following a ‘numbers heavy’ agenda item? This might influence your presentation style or use of visual aids.

Sounds simple, doesn’t it? But you’d be surprised how many senior executives complain that they have to sit through a whole lot of ‘useless information’ before getting to the key point. It’s their agenda, not yours, so be succinct and make sure your recommendations are upfront and clear.

Get honest feedback from trusted colleagues who have experience of presenting to senior executives . Are your findings and recommendations clear? Is anything missing? For specific tips on how to pitch a new idea to senior leaders check out our recent blog.

The Board is typically made up of senior executives with a broad range of skill sets and experiences; finance, sales, technical, organisational etc. So don’t expect them all to have the same knowledge base on the subject that you are addressing. You’ll lose their attention if they aren’t familiar with the language.

It’s unlikely that your presentation slot will be more than 30 minutes and you should expect this to get cut short if the agenda is running late. So, be prepared and make sure you get the key points across; top line findings, conclusions, recommendations and actions, in the first few minutes.

Create summary slides using the 10% rule (if you have 30 slides, usually as a pre-read, try to summarise your key points in 3 slides), the rest of your presentation can focus on supporting material and more detailed discussion points.

It’s how senior executives make decisions and it’s the language of communication between them. It may not be what you are used to but it’s what they will need. How does your idea impact the bottom line?

When presenting to the Board, explain that you will spend the first five minutes summarising the key points, detailing your recommendation/s and outlining what you need from them (remember they are there to make decisions, not just listen to information). The rest of your allotted time can then be allocated to presenting and discussing your supporting material. This approach will help ensure you’re less likely to get interrupted before getting the main points across.

Make sure you can navigate easily between slides in case the audience wants to focus on one particular point or deal with the supporting material in a different order to the one you have created.

Senior executives are unlikely to wait for you to announce that you are ready for a Q&A. They will likely interrupt frequently and ask questions or may need clarification. Be prepared and don’t let it put you off. If you feel you need to refocus, just take a breath, adjust your position and move on. No one will notice.

When presenting to senior management, make sure you think about ‘big picture’ questions as well as routine, data-based questions, with the company goals top of mind.

Your presentation to senior executives may only address one specific area of the organisation but the impact of any board decision is always felt company wide. So, make sure you understand how your role fits within the big picture and practise your answers in advance.

Questions to consider when presenting to senior executives, the Board or the C-Suite are:

• What happens if we do nothing? This is a common question and will test your understanding of the bottom-line impact of your recommendations. If you’ve over exaggerated the benefits this will become clear.
• What do you need from us? Have a clear understanding of what needs to happen next if your recommendations are approved. The end of the presentation is potentially the start of a new project so you need to be clear about every aspect going forward.
• Who else do you need on board? Success should be a team effort, it’s not about you looking good by trying to drive an idea forward alone, it’s about the entire company. If there are vital stakeholders that need to be convinced make sure you get them on side in advance. It’s not the role of the board to do the selling for you.
• How do you think this will impact the company as a whole? This will test your understanding of how your role and recommendations will help to drive the organisation forward.
• How would you prioritise your recommendation in relation to projects x, y and z? Budgets are tight. Is your recommendation more important than other projects within the organisation. If so, why?
• What is your suggestion/answer? Make sure you have one! You’re not there to present the facts and let them decide. Don’t worry about your opinion being the wrong one. If you can back up your recommendation with clear facts then your view will be listened to and respected. It also shows you have the ability to make decisions and are confident in your understanding of the project.

Presenting to senior executives or the Board needn’t be stressful , but there is more to a great presentation than just ‘knowing your stuff’. Check out our recent blog and discover 16 ways to improve your presentation skills .

If you want to take your presenting skills (or your people’s) to the next level, we can help. We take people further TM because our programs are 100% tailored for your business and fully personalised for you/your people.

For nearly 20 years we have been the Business Presentation Skills Experts , training & coaching thousands of people in an A-Z of global blue-chip organisations – check out what they say about our programs .

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Written By Belinda Huckle

Co-Founder & Managing Director

Belinda is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of SecondNature International. With a determination to drive a paradigm shift in the delivery of presentation skills training both In-Person and Online, she is a strong advocate of a more personal and sustainable presentation skills training methodology.

Belinda believes that people don’t have to change who they are to be the presenter they want to be. So she developed a coaching approach that harnesses people’s unique personality to build their own authentic presentation style and personal brand.

She has helped to transform the presentation skills of people around the world in an A-Z of organisations including Amazon, BBC, Brother, BT, CocaCola, DHL, EE, ESRI, IpsosMORI, Heineken, MARS Inc., Moody’s, Moonpig, Nationwide, Pfizer, Publicis Groupe, Roche, Savills, Triumph and Walmart – to name just a few.

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How to Prepare for Presenting to Senior Executives

If this were the only challenge, then more people would be successful in their presentations to key decision makers. But, the fact of the matter is that senior executives are one of the toughest audiences , no matter how much speaking experience you have.

This article will outline three significant challenges that accompany presenting to senior executives and will provide actionable steps on how you — as a top professional or executive — can further hone your skills and ensure that you are adequately prepared for the challenges that are to come.

Challenge 1: Their time is precious.

Everyone on the planet has limited time, but this is especially true for senior executives who balance their time over a range of responsibilities and endless to-do lists. Their daily schedules tend to be overbooked, and their brains are often scattered over a variety of matters, which means they aren’t very giving when it comes to where they spend their time.

If you have their attention, even for a small session, you need to make sure that you are worth it.

• This may seem like a lot of pressure, and it can be if you don’t prepare adequately. In order to ensure that you aren’t wasting their time, make sure that you begin your presentation on a strong note so that you capture their attention from the start.
• From the moment you start speaking, you want to be clear about the direction that your presentation is going to take and give them an overview of what you will be discussing and the purpose of this meeting.
• While preparing your presentation, ensure that you can get through everything in your allotted amount of time , while also leaving ample minutes for questions or discussions. During your presentation, keep your eyes on the clock . You don’t want your time to run out while you have yet to reach the crucial points.

Challenge 2: They immediately want to know the answer to “So what?”

“ Make sure you can state in one sentence what your audience will get out of your presentation. ”

Senior executives are tasked with making the high-stakes decisions in a company. Their actions and choices determine the course that the firm is going to take.

For you to keep their attention and to have them listen to your proposal, you need to get to the point right away.

• From the beginning, they want to know why they should care about what you are saying . They don’t have time for a funny introduction, or a long story about how you got to these conclusions. Instead, they want to know why this is essential for the business and how it is going to help them grow. For this reason, you want to make sure that you are presenting on the topic that they agreed to spend time listening to.
• Include summary slides at the beginning that give an overview of all essential facts, figures, findings , or whatever else is pertinent to the conversation at hand. Have extra slides in your presentation with more in-depth details and insights that you can pull up should a senior executive ask for more information.
• The best way to structure your presentation is by setting the stage, illuminating the predicament, proposing a resolution, and explaining the result of your suggestion . In this way, you can keep it simple and straight to the point and ensure that you are sticking to your objective. Make sure you can state in one sentence what your audience will get out of your presentation .

Challenge 3: They are a nerve-wracking audience.

“ You need to believe that you deserve to be in that room speaking to them. ”

Presenting to senior executives can be one of the scariest tasks that an employee will ever confront. After all, they are the bosses, and they tend to have more knowledge, more experience, and more power than you do. That instantly makes it far scarier than if you were asked to present to peers.

However, you have to keep in mind that there is a reason you are presenting to them. Whether it is your particular knowledge in an area (as a result of the fantastic work you have been doing), or the fact that you have come up with a promising solution, you need to believe that you deserve to be in that room speaking to them.

• To calm your nerves, give yourself plenty of time to prepare . There is nothing that makes nerves worse than the knowledge that you aren’t sufficiently ready and equipped for what is to come.
• This means taking the time to get to know your audience . Discern how much each of them already knows about the said topic as you want to ensure that you are all on the same page when you present your solutions.
• Additionally, find out their preferences concerning presentations and word choices . Speaking with your manager, or someone else who has experience presenting to your senior executives, will help tremendously in this regard.
• After practising your presentation multiple times, ask a colleague to listen to it and critique it to secure an outside opinion. While you may think you are covering all bases, someone from the outside may be able to locate loopholes or unnecessary slides.

The more you prepare, the more confident you will feel when the time comes. Confidence will go a long way in being able to convince the senior executives that you know what you are talking about and that you are an expert in this field that should be listened to and taken seriously. If you often find yourself nervous about presenting, consider investing in public speaking classes or coaching to take your career to the next level.

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Audience Analysis and Data based recommendations are key to having higher chances of persuading or convincing the executives to buy into your idea. Focus on knowing what motivates them, and presenting valuable data supporting your claims, and then you will have an easier time dealing with this type of presentations.

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10 Tips for Presenting to Senior management

Apr 13, 2019 by maurice decastro in communication skills , leadership , mindfulness , presentation skills , presentation tips.

Presenting to senior management can feel like a challenge for many presenters in organisations today; even the most experienced.

It’s one thing having to speak up in a team meeting to update your colleagues on a project you have been working on but having to convince or co-opt the executive is something else. We all value our reputation and credibility immensely, which means that the stakes feel very high the moment you begin to speak.

There are a number of forces at play and understanding them provides the platform to success, especially when presenting to senior management. Here are 3 of the common ones.

Imposter syndrome  

It’s a term that’s becoming all too familiar among many professionals who are climbing their career ladders. Psychology Today describes the affliction as, ‘A psychological term referring to a pattern of behaviour where people doubt their accomplishments and have a persistent, often internalized fear of being exposed as a fraud.’

When it comes to presenting to senior management, whilst you may be extremely good at your job, its that feeling that you are about to be found out for being an imposter.

Symptoms – Speaking too fast, rambling or waffling, excessive ‘umming’, ‘erring’. Poor posture, lack of vocal energy and passion; poor eye contact.

Dunning-Kruger Effect 

This is the opposite of the Imposter syndrome. It’s the delusion that you are, ‘Smarter and more capable than you really are’

It’s not as common as the Imposter Syndrome but can be just as damaging from a different perspective. If you’ve ever listened to a presenter go on and on about a topic where it is quite evident to everyone in the room that they don’t know what they are talking about, you would have witnessed the Dunning-Kruger Effect.

Symptoms – Self- importance, lack of empathy for audience, irrelevant content, repetition, arrogance.

Mindlessness  

Is another trait of the ego. When your primary aim is to impress your audience by showing them how clever you are, how much you know and how hard you work, you are suffering from mindlessness .

Symptoms – Lack or preparation, little or no practice, disregard for audience’s needs or feelings. Sets an objective of impressing rather than connecting.

It’s worth recognising these cognitive biases because inattention to them when presenting to the executive will tarnish your credibility and reputation.

Presenting to senior management – 10 priorities

-Tell them immediately what you can help them to accomplish, fix or avoid. Don’t save the punchline for the end.

– If you can say it in 5 minutes don’t take 20.

– If the solution or opportunity is going to take 5 months to complete, have an answer to how you can achieve it much quicker.

– Present your idea with laser like clarity; don’t deluge them with data or blind them with science.

– Tell them what is so important, why it’s so important and why they should care; show them the size of the prize or size of the pain.

– Tell them exactly what you need from them; don’t leave them guessing.

3. Humility

–  Set out to connect with them and show them how you can make a difference; don’t set out to impress them.

– Be your best self; show them your belief, energy and passion. Leave the corporate spokesperson at your desk.

– Tell and show them how you feel? 

–  Breathe life into your idea by painting pictures in their mind, tell them stories, use anecdotes, metaphors and descriptive language

–  If you’re using slides use powerful and compelling images.

–  Build in contrast, lighten up and be expressive.

 – How does your idea align itself to and support the organisations values and strategic objectives?

 – What’s the impact, benefit and return on investment?

– What’s the big picture; what does the future look like?

–  What could go wrong and how do we avoid it?

–  Be honest and explicit, don’t sugar coat the challenges.

– Have an answer to the question ‘what if?

7. Remember

 – The only difference between you and your senior management is your salary and their title. Even if they have a car parking space and you don’t, the fact is you have far more in common that you may appreciate.

– They’ve been in your shoes and its more than likely they know exactly how you feel.

– They want you to do well and to help them do well.

8. Re-frame

 – Instead of seeing the presentation as a performance see it as an opportunity to share your voice, express yourself and make a difference.

– You may be feeling symptoms you associate with anxiety but in reality, we feel the same when we are excited. See this as your body and mind being excited rather than fearful.

– You wouldn’t even be allowed to speak if your audience didn’t believe you knew what you were talking about. Remind yourself how far you have come and believe in yourself.

 – Dare to be different.The world is full of people playing it safe; telling management teams what they already know or could easily find out for themselves.

– Tell them something they don’t know, ask them thought provoking questions, be bold and challenge their thinking.

– Be prepared for questions. Give yourself time to breathe and think about the answers and if you don’t know the answer don’t be afraid to say so.

– Tell them what you want, need or expect from them.

– If you want them to sign off a budget then ask for it.

– If you want their support or approval then ask for it.

Presenting isn’t easy, it takes time, energy, creativity and considerable mindfulness to craft and deliver a high impact presentation. Presenting to senior management is often perceived as a much greater challenge; that’s probably because it is.

The reason is they often know what they want, they have little time to receive it and are very discerning. If you follow these 10 tips you will give them what they want and greatly increase your chances of success.

If you’d like to some help presenting to senior management:

– Book yourself onto a powerful  public speaking course .

– Invest in some really good one to one  public speaking coaching .

– Get yourself some excellent  presentation training

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Ace the Presentation

Presentation to Senior Management – 5 great Insights for Success!

As an employee, you always have to present something to the senior management or executives. Learning how to deliver a presentation to senior management might just be what gives you that opening and impact your career/business opportunity in/with that company.

Generally, presenting to senior management is one of the most challenging tasks that you will ever face. They are highly  impatient  (busy) and will only listen to you if you can get their attention. They have a tight schedule, and you need to make it worth their time. If your ideas or presentation appeals to them, then they will give pay attention to you, else they might interrupt you and fire random questions at you.

You must not give up an opportunity to present to senior management. You may be in this position because you have got amazing solutions to their problems or that you are talented.

Related Articles:

9 Qualities of a Great Presenter

10 Awesome tips for Successful Business Presentations

14 Types of Speeches that You can use to Achieve any Desirable result

Why learn how to deliver a presentation to senior management?

As a professional or an entrepreneur, if you ever need to catch the attention of the management or executives to prove your worth, to sell your product or services, having the right  presentation skills will benefit you.

1. What is the purpose of the presentation?

If you are  presenting to senior executives , it’s generally about pitching a new business idea, reporting about your department or work, sharing some valuable feedback with them or maybe even giving an interview.

If you are talented enough or you have some new business ideas that can help the company in any way, then the best way to showcase it to your executives is via a presentation. 

Sometimes the executives want to know how well their department’s function, in such cases they may ask an employee from that department to give a presentation.

In some companies, to apply for a higher role or any role, they may ask to present yourself, or a case on how you would tackle the challenges that the person in that role would come to solve. A presentation can help the panel understand your worth to the company. You can prove to them that you are valuable to the company by displaying promising stats and experience.

2. What are the characteristics of the audience? What do they expect to hear?

You need to know your audience well for you to be able to present to them well. Your attendance for the presentation will generally consist of top-ranking officials of the company. They are usually very impatient and have very little time. They have more tasks at hand and can only give you a fraction of their time. 

Such busy executives expect to hear solutions or details that are relevant to them. They cannot sit through a lengthy presentation that is a waste of their time. They expect vital points and various data or facts to support your presentation.

They also expect you to be clear about what you are presenting. If you get nervous during your presentation, then even the officials may not give any heed. You need to provide some time for the officials to ask questions after your presentation. They might have some questions and even some suggestions for your presentation, and you need to address them well.

3. What kind of data do I have to back up my speech?

Most of the professional presentations consist of various numbers and predictions that prove to the executives that your presentation is thorough. Generally, for a business idea or any pitch, you need to show some numbers so that the executives can go with your idea. It can be a number that shows some percentage increase in sales, costs that can be cut, and much more.

For such data, you need to do some sound research of your company as well as obtain some data from various reports and the internet. The data must be more realistic than a prediction. Such data must be supportive of your presentation and catch the eyes of your management.

In general, the data must be real and relevant to your presentation. They can be represented graphically to be more self-explanatory. 

Most of all, showing that you took the time to learn the pain points of the organization, the critical challenges that those senior managers or executives you are presenting to are trying to overcome, and add insightful solutions to them as you go along your presentation, will win you huge points.   Remember that!

4. What is my main call to action?

Once you prove that you are going to solve the problems of your company or make the company better, you need to explain how you will go about it. 

You can present a summarized version of the steps of action and elaborate on them, if necessary. You need to talk about the problems that you are addressing and also propose a strategic plan to overcome them.

You need to make your presentation informative and intimidating (a sense of urgency helps) so that your executives act upon it and don’t disregard it as a waste of time.

You can show that your ideas have medium or long term gains even though there are some immediate losses. If your ideas are effective, then you can assure immediate benefits as well. You need to convince the audience that your ideas are important and useful.

5. How to drive the presentation home?

There are multiple ways to drive the presentation home. Giving a fantastic presentation is all about appealing to the audience in the right direction. If you can captivate their attention and keep them hooked onto your presentation, then you have been successful in your attempts.

• You need to start your presentation strong so that the executives listen to you from the beginning. You need to maintain the same enthusiasm and rapport throughout the presentation so that you don’t just start strong and let them down eventually.
• Before you begin, you can give a summary of the various sections of your presentation so that the executives know what they can expect in the next 10 – 15 minutes.
• If you can support your ideas and solutions with data(dashboards, graphs, statistics, etc.), then the executives tend to believe it more. If you can prove to the panel of executives that you can solve their problems or add value to the company, then they will give importance to you.
• For a successful presentation, you need to be prepared well and keep it simple. You need to stay confident throughout the presentation and give ample time to the executives to discuss and ask questions.
• The best structure for any successful presentation is an introduction, analysis, and presenting your solution backed with real data and predictions.
• The executives may interrupt your flow of presentation by asking to move to the next slide or to go back; in such cases, you must be flexible and continue your performance.

Having the right amount of  presentation skills  can help your career growth. You may receive the respect and recognition from your management, which will help you get better opportunities and roles.

Presenting to senior management is a once in a lifetime opportunity, and you need to MAKE IT COUNT. If your presentation goes well, then you may be up for a promotion sooner than expected. Confidence will help you the most in such presentations, and for that, you need to prepare well. You can attend some public speaking training sessions to better your presentation skills.

That’s it for now! I hope you understood and are confident now on how to deliver a presentation to senior management, and ready to nail it.

REFERENCES & FURTHER READING

Annyck Nuyens. How to Prepare to Present to Senior Executives.  http://sixminutes.dlugan.com/present-senior-executives/

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“The beginning is the most important part of the work.” —Plato

When we speak, we have about 60 seconds to capture our audience’s attention, establish credibility, orient them to our topic, and motivate them to listen, says Darlene Price, president of Well Said, Inc., and author of “Well Said! Presentations and Conversations That Get Results.”

If you waste those precious opening seconds with a joke, an agenda, an apology, housekeeping details, a string of thank-yous, or a rambling, pointless paragraph littered with “ums” and “uhs,” your audience’s minds are likely to drift, and you may not get them back. “You need to put the art in the start, the most important part of the work,” says Price.

That’s a tall order for any speaker — and it requires us to develop and rehearse a well-crafted, attention-getting opener.

Price offers seven options:

1. Tell a captivating story.

“Of all the starters in your toolkit, storytelling is among the most powerful and consistently successful,” Price says. “As humans, we’re hard-wired to enjoy and learn from stories. From bedtime stories and campfires, to Broadway theaters and boardrooms — heroes, villains, conflict, plots, dialogue, and lessons learned draw us in, remind us of our own lives, and hold our attention.”

The story can be about you personally, which tells the audience first-hand why you’re invested in and passionate about the topic. Or you can tell a story about another person who the audience can learn from. “Another option: Tell a fable, wisdom tale, historic event, or anecdote,” Price says. “The idea is, start with a brief 60- to 90-second narrative that launches your speech and captivates your listeners, and make sure the story encapsulates the key point of your message.”

She suggests you consider these questions as you craft your version of “Once upon a time”: What challenges have you (or another) faced in relation to your topic? How did you (or another) overcome them? Who or what helped you or harmed you? What lessons were learned? What do you want your audience to gain, feel, or do as a result of the story?

2. Ask a rhetorical, thought-provoking question.

“As Shakespeare wrote in ‘The Merchant of Venice,’ ‘If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?'” says Price. “As a speaker, you ask rhetorical questions for persuasive effect; you don’t expect the audience to answer aloud, rather silently to themselves.

When crafted and delivered well, rhetorical questions influence an audience to believe in the position of the speaker. “Clearly, Shakespeare’s character Shylock is leading his listeners to think ‘yes’ four times in order to justify revenge against Antonio. What do you want your audience to say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to?”

In addition to yes or no questions, you can also arouse curiosity and motivate your audience to think about the answer, she says.

3. State a shocking statistic or headline.

Price says the vice president of sales for America’s leading healthcare IT company successfully sells software solutions to hospitals by starting her presentations with the following:

“According to a new study in the Journal of Patient Safety, medical errors leading to patient death are much higher than previously thought. Preventable adverse events, known as PAEs, cause up to 400,000 deaths per year for patients who seek care at a hospital. That means medical errors are the third leading cause of death behind heart disease and cancer. Our vision is to create a world free of medical errors, and we need your help.”

“The statistic, bold claim, or headline needs to be directly related to the main purpose of your presentation,” Price explains. “Its impact ideally persuades the audience to listen and respond positively to your recommendation and next steps.”

4. Use a powerful quote.

“Employ the wise words of a well-known person, because the name allows you to tap into his or her credibility, likeability, and notoriety,” she says. The quote must have meaning and relevance to the audience.

Imagine you’re urging a group to reach consensus, or giving a talk on conflict management. You could open with: “Mark Twain once said, ‘If two people agree on everything, one of them is unnecessary.’ Even though some of us disagree on the xyz issue, each of us is necessary in reaching a resolution.”

5. Show a gripping photo.

A picture is worth a thousand words — “maybe even more,” Price says.

“Use photos instead of text, when possible,” she suggests. A quality photo adds aesthetic appeal, increases comprehension, engages the audience’s imagination, and makes the message more memorable.

Price offers the following example of an effective use of an image:

The president of an electronics equipment company needed his managers to cut costs. Rather than showing mundane charts, graphs, and spreadsheets, he opened the meeting by asking, “What sank the Titanic?” When everyone in unison replied, “an iceberg,” he displayed a beautiful high-definition image of an iceberg on the screen: the tip of the iceberg was clearly visible above the water; the much larger portion was dimly visible below the surface of the water.

“The same thing is about to happen to our company,” he continued. “Hidden costs — the dangers beneath the surface — are about to sink this company. I need your help.” This visual metaphor spawned a creative, productive brainstorming session that inspired every business unit manager to diligently hunt for what they labeled the “icebergs,” says Price. The result was saving millions and ultimately the company.

6. Use a prop or creative visual aid.

“A prop is a magnetic tool that hooks your audience and keeps them watching — or listening,” Price says. A visual aid can also help emphasize a point.

Price uses the example of a sales VP at a large insurance company, who happens to be an avid tennis player. She says he wanted to kick off his annual meeting with a bang — so he “brilliantly used his tennis racquet to emphasize ‘acing the competition,’ ‘rallying together as a team,’ and winning a ‘grand slam’ through great customer service.” Year after year, other speakers were compared to this leader’s creative ability to present a motivational message, she says.

“Think about how you could use items like a big wall clock, a colorful gift bag, juggling balls, a deck of cards, a bunch of carrots, or another prop, to introduce your topic, captivate the audience, inject humor, and drive home your message.”

7. Play a short video.

Imagine kicking off a product management meeting with a video of compelling customer testimonials, or opening a fundraising event for endangered species by showing an Amur Leopard playing with her cubs in the wild.

“Videos evoke emotional responses,” Price explains. “Unlike text and bullet points on a slide, you can employ people, pictures, and sound to reel in the audience, add drama, and communicate the gist of your message quickly.”

As Walt Disney said, “I would rather entertain and hope that people learned something than educate people and hope they were entertained.”

This article is published in collaboration with Business Insider . Publication does not imply endorsement of views by the World Economic Forum.

To keep up with the Agenda  subscribe to our weekly newsletter .

Author: Jacquelyn Smith joined Business Insider as the careers editor in February 2014.

Image: an empty meeting room is shown. REUTERS.

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How To Present To Senior Executives

Today, I’m handing the blog over to Leigh Espy.  Project communication management often involves giving confident presentations. In this piece, Leigh talks about how to tailor your presentations for C-suite level senior executives.

As you grow in your project management career, you’ll be called upon to make various presentations. However not all presentations are the same. Presentations to senior executives can be very different than presenting project information to peers.

The level of formality might vary depending on your organization, but usually the focus and needs of those at the C-suite level are the same, and are very different than those at the individual contributor or manager level.

What does C-suite mean?

By C-suite we’re talking about people who have job titles starting with ‘C’ like CEO, Chief Operating Officer, CFO or similar. The top people in your company; your Board.

These are senior managers in the organization: the people who are executive leaders. Think: they have the corner office! And often offices on the top floor. With windows and a view… at least that’s how things used to be.

Today’s senior leaders are just as likely to hot desk with the rest of us.

However, regardless of where they sit, you still need to understand their views and what they need from a presentation. Understanding the different needs for the executive audience will help you prepare and give presentations about your projects with confidence and grace.

Let’s look first at the differences between what an executive leadership audience wants from a presentation and what will go down best with your colleagues.

Tips for Starting Executive Presentations

You will likely not have as much time if you’ve been fit into the agenda of an executive session. You need to get to the point as quickly as possible.

Don’t start with stories, but rather get to the point. Lead with what you need from them. Use a summary slide (as per this advice from HBR ) to summarize everything in your presentation, and then use the rest of your presentation to support that.

Tip: You need to have the data available in case it is requested. This is different to how you would present to your peers.

You want to engage your peers with the “Why” of the project. Help them understand the benefits so that you can get their buy-in and support. Speak from a perspective that they can relate to. By connecting with a story, you can capture their interest and draw them in more.

6 Tips for Strong Executive Presentations

Here are my top 6 tips for managing the middle part of your senior leadership presentation. You’ve been called to a C-level meeting to show your stuff, let’s not waste the opportunity!

• Once you’ve explained your position or what you need, give a brief explanation of why this is important to the company. Give it context.
• Provide evidence that your position is important. Do this with high level data, and use graphs or charts if possible. Present outcomes and what the data supports.
• Be ready with the drill-down data if it is requested.
• If the executives stray from what you’ve rehearsed, be ready to go with it. You have to let the conversation flow in the direction they take it. They may need to have peripheral discussions in order to come to agreement or decisions on your topic.
• Be clear on your goals and bottom line
• Be ready to provide a much shorter version of your presentation
• Be ready to discuss even if you must stray from your rehearsed presentation
• Go immediately to your bottom line.
• Read the room and make changes to accommodate what is going on in the moment – be flexible and ready for the direction the discussion goes.

This article has more tips for presenting at work if you feel like you want to dig into these strategies a bit further.

How senior management presentations differ from other presentations

When you are talking to your peers about your work, you can take a different approach.

The main part of your presentation can be shaped in a different way, because they need to take away different information so they can make decisions or do their job, or understand what is coming.

Here are some tips for managing that kind of presentation.

• Using silences in your stories and presentations can be powerful.
• Your audience wants to be both informed and entertained. Telling stories and explaining your points in ways that resonate with your audience is going to impact them more. Use stories that grab their attention ( find out how to do that here ).
• Your presentation should flow in a logical order. If you are presenting about a new software product, set the context for the audience and build on the information. If you are presenting new process changes that must be adopted by others, you might give a story about the challenges currently faced and how you approached the process development to get the right inputs for the changes. Then you might tell about the changes and how they will benefit others. You might follow with the rollout/ adoption plans. Ensure that your presentation flows well.
• If your audience veers off topic, bring them back on point to keep the presentation focused.

Tip: Stay on the stage! Read about the time Elizabeth fell off the stage .

The Presentation Book is a good reference on how to make stand-out presentations that people will remember.

How to close a presentation to senior executives

For the best presentation to your senior leadership team, you’ll want to be clear on what is needed from them (or overall), and on the next steps.

If someone has an action item or follow-up activities, be clear on who that is and what action is to be taken.

Final tips for creating successful executive presentations (that also work for all presentations)

There are similarities that will support a successful presentation for both types of audiences: both your executive audience and your peers or other people. You should:

• Know your audience
• Be aware of the various concerns in the room before you present
• Anticipate the questions that will be asked so that you’re ready to answer or provide the detail they will be requested
• Do not read from PowerPoint slides
• Practice, practice, practice!

By knowing what is needed for both briefing senior leaders and your colleagues, you’ll be ready to present to both peers and executives successfully.

Your team and management will trust you to represent the project or your department with grace and confidence in a variety of situations, and you’ll step in front of each knowing you’re well-prepared.

Want more tips? Here’s a quick video on how to deliver a great presentation about your project.

About the Author: Leigh Espy has 18 years of project management experience, with a primary focus on IT project management. She’s worked in the public and private sectors, and domestically and internationally. She loves helping newer PMs and those hoping to make the switch to project management. She blogs at projectbliss.net .

Pin for later reading:

Project manager, author, mentor

Elizabeth Harrin is a Fellow of the Association for Project Management in the UK. She holds degrees from the University of York and Roehampton University, and several project management certifications including APM PMQ. She first took her PRINCE2 Practitioner exam in 2004 and has worked extensively in project delivery for over 20 years. Elizabeth is also the founder of the Project Management Rebels community, a mentoring group for professionals. She's written several books for project managers including Managing Multiple Projects .

More From Forbes

How not to—and how to start a presentation.

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Selection of hardcover books on shelf

According to an article in The Atlantic , bestselling author “Stephen King spends ‘months and even years’ writing opening sentences.”

Yet the opening sentences in most presentations are typically one of these:

• “And now, let me turn the floor over to Mary Smith, our Vice President of Marketing.” “Hi, I’m Mary Smith, the Vice President of Marketing.”
• “Good morning. I’ve come here today to talk about the industry-leading bells and whistles of our new product/service.”
• “Good morning. First, I’d like to talk about X, and then Y, and, last but not least, Z.”
• “Good morning. I just realized that I left my speaker notes in the Uber, so I’m going to have to wing it.”

It’s likely that only minutes or seconds—if that—were spent on those opening sentences; and equally likely that the result was a horror story that would challenge Stephen King.

The four examples failed for the following reasons:

• Repeated information that indicates poor communication between the presenters
• It’s all about you and not the audience
• A laundry list
• Lack of preparation

A.O. Scott, who spent nearly a quarter of a century at a film critic for The New York Times and is now a critic at large for their Book Review, knows a thing or two about the importance of capturing an audience’s attention early. In a recent article on the use of literary allusions in the titles of books, (Admit it, you do judge a book by its cover!) he wrote, “ Perhaps the frisson of cleverness (I know where that’s from!), or the flip-side cringe of ignorance (I should know where that’s from!), is enough to spur you to buy a book, the way a search-optimized headline compels you to click a link. After all, titles are especially fertile ground for allusion-mongering. The name of a book becomes more memorable when it echoes something you might have heard — or think you should have heard — before.”

Why Is Chief Boden Leaving ‘Chicago Fire?’ Eamonn Walker’s Exit Explained

Nvidia are splitting 10-for-1 here’s what it means and how to profit, massive dota 2 7 36 patch notes add innate abilities and facets.

It is equally important that, like a book cover, you must capture your audience’s attention immediately. Literary allusions to the rescue. “I know where that’s from” rings a bell in the audience’s mind and gets their attention.

Here are some famous literary allusions and how you can use them in your business presentations:

• “What we’ve got here is a failure to communicate,” a phrase from the 1967 Paul Newman film Cool Hand Luke, could be used to pitch an improved communication system.
• “If you build it, they will come,” a phrase from the 1989 Kevin Costner film Field of Dreams , could be used to pitch a request to green light a new project.
• “Control our own destiny,” a phrase from the 1823 Monroe Doctrine in which the United States established independence from European colonialism, could be used to pitch the spinoff of a unit of a larger company into an independent line of business.
• “The sky’s the limit” a phrase from Miguel Cervantes’ 1605 Don Quixote , could be used to pitch the potential of a new market.
• “Neither a borrower nor a lender be,” from Willam Shakespeare’s Hamlet could be to pitch new financial planning software.

To paraphrase A.O. Scott, your words become more memorable to your audience when they echo something they might have heard — or think they should have heard — before.

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Click on "Learn more about this agency" button below to view Eligibilities being considered and other IMPORTANT information. WHERE CAN I FIND OUT MORE ABOUT OTHER IRS CAREERS? Visit us on the web at www.jobs.irs.gov

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Telework eligible

Yes—as determined by the agency policy.

Travel Required

25% or less - You may be expected to travel for this position.

Relocation expenses reimbursed

Appointment type, work schedule.

Competitive

Promotion potential

Job family (series).

1035 Public Affairs

Supervisory status

Security clearance.

Not Required

Position sensitivity and risk

Moderate Risk (MR)

Trust determination process

Suitability/Fitness

Announcement number

24-12421646A-TEB-1035-5T11

Control number

This job is open to.

• Recent graduates

Individuals who have graduated from an accredited educational institute or certificate program within the last 2 years or 6 years for Veterans.

Clarification from the agency

Open to IRS Career/Career-Conditional employees who have completed a degree or certificate from a qualifying education institution within the previous 2 years or are within 9 months of graduating. Veterans unable to apply within 2 years of receiving their degree, due to military service obligation, have a full 2-year eligibility period upon release or discharge from active duty. The eligibility period for veterans must be within 6 years of degree completion.

• Successful completion of at least 1 to 2 years of continuous service depending on the position;
• Completion of at least 40 hours of interactive training;
• Mentorship;
• Demonstration of successful job performance; and
• Meet the qualification position standards.
• Assists with edit designs, performs lay-out, takes photographs, provides graphic art/desktop publishing expertise and works with a Public Affairs Specialist or Communications Analyst(s) to prepare communication vehicles that may include original articles for local and national publications, briefing materials and presentations, etc. for use by cross-functional and high-level management including up to executive level.
• Establishes and maintains effective working relationships with high level IRS management, members of the news media, specialized groups interested in IRS programs and IRS employees.
• The incumbent uses knowledge of a wide variety of communications vehicles and techniques analyzes assigned tasks and objectives and recommends the appropriate vehicles(s) for realizing an assigned communications objective.
• With assistance, edits designs, performs lay-out, takes photographs, provides graphic art/desktop publishing expertise and works with Communications Analyst(s) to prepare communication vehicles that may include original articles for local and national publications, briefing materials and presentations, etc. for use by cross-functional and high-level management including up to executive level.

Requirements

Conditions of employment.

• Telework Eligible Positions : Telework eligible positions do not guarantee telework. Employees must meet and sustain IRS telework eligibility requirements (e.g., reporting at least twice a pay period to your assigned Post of Duty (POD) ) and supervisor's approval to participate in the IRS Telework Program. Employees must also be within a 200-mile radius of their official assigned post-of-duty (POD) while in a telework status. As a reminder - If you are selected for a position, you are responsible for reporting to your designated POD (location) on the negotiated start date or as directed by management.
• All selectees must sign a Participant Agreement.
• A 1-year probationary period is required (unless already completed).

Qualifications

This position has an education requirement. You MUST submit dated documentation showing completion or intended completion of all educational requirements (e.g. letter from the registrar, unofficial transcripts). An official transcript will be required if you are selected. A college or university degree generally must be from an accredited (or pre-accredited) college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools which meet these criteria, please refer to Department of Education Accreditation page . FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. You must show proof the education credentials have been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education program. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. Click here for Foreign Education Credentialing instructions. CERTIFICATE: A Certificate program is a post-secondary educational program, in a qualifying educational institution, equivalent to at least one full- time academic year of study, that is part of an accredited college-level, technical, trade, vocational or business school curriculum.

Additional information

• We may select from this announcement or any other source to fill one or more vacancies. Additional jobs may be filled.
• The salary range indicated in this announcement reflects the minimum locality pay up to maximum locality pay for all duty locations listed. The range will be adjusted for selected duty location. General Schedule locality pay tables may be found under Salaries & Wages .
• This is a bargaining unit position.
• Tour of Duty: Day Shift hours ranging from 6:00am to 6:00pm
• Alternative work schedule, staggered work hours or telework may be available.
• In the event that a building is closed due to rent management, new hires may be placed in a local commuting location.
• Relocation expenses - No

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How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be determined based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents) and the responses you provide on the application questionnaire. Please be sure that your resume includes detailed information to support your qualifications for this position; failure to provide sufficient evidence in your resume may result in a "not qualified" determination. In order to be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process and meet all qualifications. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Applicants who disqualify themselves will not be evaluated further. Rating: Your application will be evaluated on the Critical Job Elements (CJE) of the position to be filled per the National Agreement Article 13. Your application will be rated and ranked among others, based on your responses to the online questions, regarding your experience, education, and training performance appraisals and awards relevant to the duties of this position. You may obtain your most recent awards listing at https://persinfo.web.irs.gov/. Your rating may be lowered, if your responses to the online questions are not supported by the education and/or experience described in your application. Referral: If you are among the top qualified candidates, your application may be referred to a selecting official for consideration. Candidates, if required to participate in a selection interview (telephonic and/or in person at the discretion of the Selecting Official in accordance with hiring practices), will be interviewed in quality group order. We will not reimburse costs related to the interview such as travel to and from the interview site. If you are a displaced or surplus Federal employee eligible for Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) , you must receive a score of 80 or better to be rated as well qualified to receive special selection priority.

As a new or existing federal employee, you and your family may have access to a range of benefits. Your benefits depend on the type of position you have - whether you're a permanent, part-time, temporary or an intermittent employee. You may be eligible for the following benefits, however, check with your agency to make sure you're eligible under their policies.

• Resume - Your resume MUST contain dates of employment (i.e., month/year to month/year or present). To ensure you receive full credit for relevant experience, include the hours worked per week. We recommend that your resume not exceed 5 pages. If including Federal service experience, you MUST provide the pay plan, series, and grade, i.e., GS-0301-09. If the pay plan, series, and grade are not provided, it may result in an ineligible determination. Your resume must NOT include photographs, classified or government sensitive information, social security number (SSN), encrypted/digitally signed documents, or other inappropriate material or content. If your resume contains prohibited information as listed above, your application will be determined ineligible, and you will not receive consideration for this position. ( Cover letters are optional.) Please view Resume Tips. It is also recommended that your resume not include personal information such as age, gender, religion, race, disability, etc.
• Online Application - Questionnaire responses
• Education - See Education Section above
• Performance Appraisal/Awards (if applicable) - You are strongly encouraged to submit a copy of your most recent, signed, completed annual performance appraisal which includes the final rating and copies of any incentive/performance awards you received. If a revalidated appraisal is used for merit promotion, the supervisor must prepare a narrative for each critical job element that does not have a narrative describing the performance in the appraisal period covered by the rating. Note: If you are a manager or management official, your most recent annual performance appraisal must be used for the overall rating identified.
• Registration/License (if applicable) - active, current registration/license
• IRS Reassignment Preference Program (RPP)(if applicable) - You MUST meet the requirements in your RPP notice. Submit a copy of your RPP Notice along with a copy of your most recent annual performance appraisal. Your performance appraisal must have a fully successful or higher overall rating.
• Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP)(if applicable) - You MUST submit the required documentation as outlined at: Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP). If you are an IRS CTAP eligible, you can apply for jobs within and outside the commuting area. If you are a Treasury CTAP eligible can apply for jobs within the commuting area.
• To begin the application process, click the "Apply Online" button.
• You will be re-directed to Treasury's hiring system to complete your application process; answer the online questions, and submit all required documents. (To submit supporting documents, click one of the available options; Upload; Fax; or Reuse existing documents. To protect your privacy, we suggest you first remove your SSN).
• To complete , you must click the "Submit Application" button prior to 11:59 PM (ET) on 06/06/2024.

Agency contact information

(erc) employee resource center.

866-743-5748

Treasury believes in a working environment that supports inclusion; please view our reasonable accommodation policies and procedures at https://www.jobs.irs.gov/midcareer/reasonable-accommodation.html . We will provide reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis; please contact us if you require this for any part of the application and hiring process. Once your application package and online questionnaire is received you will receive an acknowledgement email. You are responsible for checking status updates and notifications in USAJOBS. Hard copy notifications will not be sent to you. You may check the status of your application for this position at any time by logging onto the USAJOBS "My Account" tab and clicking on "Application Status." For a more detailed update of your application status, you may click on "more information." Please notify us if your contact information changes after the closing date of the announcement. If your email mailbox is full or blocked (SPAM) you may not receive important communication that could affect your consideration for this position. As a current employee, you know the great benefits we offer. Should you have any questions about benefits, please contact the Employee Resource Center (ERC) at 1-866-743-5748 option #1 for ERC.

The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.

• Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Policy
• Criminal history inquiries
• Reasonable accommodation policy
• Financial suitability
• Selective Service
• New employee probationary period
• Signature and false statements
• Privacy Act
• Social security number request

Required Documents

How to apply, fair & transparent.

This job originated on www.usajobs.gov . For the full announcement and to apply, visit www.usajobs.gov/job/792557600 . Only resumes submitted according to the instructions on the job announcement listed at www.usajobs.gov will be considered.

Learn more about

Internal Revenue Service

WHY IS THE IRS A GREAT PLACE TO WORK? As an IRS employee, you will feel proud knowing you helped make America stronger while working at one of the world's biggest financial institutions. You will be part of an organization that collects over $2 trillion in revenue and processes over 200 million tax returns annually. We are proud of how we apply the tax law with integrity and fairness to all. The IRS hires talented and dedicated individuals from many backgrounds, including accounting, business, finance, law enforcement and information technology. You will be challenged & supported on a daily basis. Whether you are just starting out or looking for a new opportunity, consider an IRS career. The U.S. Department of the Treasury has a distinguished history dating back to the founding of our nation. As the steward of U.S. economic and financial systems, Treasury is a major and influential leader in today's global economy. We have over 100,000 employees across the country and around the world. Come Join the Department of the Treasury and Invest in Tomorrow.

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