A Guide for Your Project Presentations Tips for a Successful Project Oral

Presentation Objectives 1. Reduce your anxiety by establishing clear expectations for the project oral 2. Understand the features / barriers of oral communication 3. Show you how to structure and design an excellent slideshow

Presentation Outline 1. Opening remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual aids 4. Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

1. Opening Remarks  Things to know about the project oral  Communication barriers in oral presentations  Things to know about your audience

Things to know about the project oral  Total time = 30 minutes: set up, delivery, Q&A, disassembly. Larger groups will have more time.  Prepare a PowerPoint presentation  Make sure all speakers contribute equally 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4. Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

Things to know about the project oral  Try to impress us with your submerged knowledge of the topic  Try to demonstrate confidence, credibility, professionalism  Think visual presentation not oral presentation 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4. Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

Things to know about the project oral  We won’t interrogate you  Do not give us a scattered “information- dump”  Do not read slides or prepared text 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4. Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

Communication barriers in oral presentations  The audience will forget 80% of a well delivered presentation 2 minutes after it’s over  The audience will not listen if we don’t know where the presentation is going  The audience will be irritated by presentations that are disorganized  Listening is by far our WORST communication skill 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4.Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

Things to know about your audience  Who is your audience? What do they expect? Fellow students: they want you to give them background and context about your project; they also want you to show them how these projects are executed. Jim & Patrick: We want you to present well and clearly demonstrate that you met the requirements of your project Keith: ditto---but he will want more emphasis on the credibility of your calculations 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4.Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

2. Structure  The presentation: how to create a structurally perfect Introduction section Body sections Conclusion section

Introduction section  Have these components for a perfect introduction Introduce yourself / the group Clearly state the project requirements Include a visual TOC Place a “hook” somewhere that gives the audience an idea of what inspired you to undertake the topic, why it is relevant etc. 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4. Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

Body Sections  Have these components for perfect body sections Content: must answer these questions  What did you initially set out to do? (design evolution)  Can you show me the final prototype? (technical description; more show---less tell)  Can you prove you accomplished your project goals? (calculations) 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4.Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

Body sections  Notes on the body sections: Name the body sections exactly as you named them in the presentation outline Announce each new section with a mini- introduction  Have section objectives  Preview the content of the section 1.Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4. Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

Body sections  Notes on the body sections: Name the subsections exactly as you named them in the section overview Move smoothly from point to point / section to section --- create logical transitions Announce when the section is over; transition to new section 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4. Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

Conclusion section  Have these components for a perfect conclusion Restate and summarize the main points Show you have met the project requirements State any future enhancements / requirements needed to meet project requirements (if necessary) 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4.Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

Conclusion section  Have these components for a perfect conclusion (continued) State recommendations for further study State the larger significance of the topic Tell us it’s over---cue Q&A session 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4.Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

Conclusion section  Notes on conclusions: Please have one…. Include an informative summary so you don’t mechanically repeat points Relate the project objectives back to the points covered in the presentation 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4.Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

3. Visual aids  Common problems with slideshows and how to fix them  Elements of a good slideshow

Barriers  We forget  We won’t listen  We get irritated  Listening is difficult Figure 1: An example of a poorly designed slide

Communication barriers in oral presentations  The audience will forget 80% of a well delivered presentation 2 minutes after it’s over  The audience will not listen if we don’t know where the presentation is going  The audience will be irritated by presentations that are disorganized  Listening is by far our WORST communication skill 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4. Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks Figure 2: An example of a well designed slide

Elements of a good slideshow  Use navigational cues to make sure we can’t get lost (headings, previews, and a TOC)  Avoid points / slides with too much information Maximum of 4 points a slide No long paragraphs  Avoid points / slides that do not have enough information 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4.Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

Elements of a good slideshow  Avoid points / slides that do not have enough information Each point must be a complete thought  Visuals must have A title An explanation 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4. Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

Elements of a good slideshow Avoid uneven formatting 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4. Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

4. Delivery Style  Tips for success

Tips for success Project self-assurance Use normal gestures Look at the audience Smile---at least look like you are enjoying yourself Vary your tone of voice Talk slowly DON’T READ Persuade us that you know what you are talking about 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4. Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

5. Closing remarks

 You must overcome unique barriers in oral communication: Structure the content so we can track the train of your thought  See the “structure section” for advice on arranging content Take the work out of listening  Design effective slides that help us understand the content and prevent us from getting lost 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4. Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks

5. Closing remarks  Pay attention to the physical aspects of speaking Enthusiasm Voice Body language 1. Opening Remarks 2. Structure 3. Visual Aids 4. Delivery Style 5. Closing Remarks