1. Planning issues and challenges
Group Presentations
Planning issues and challenges

2. Why present in a group?
Group presentations are common in the working world
Employees are usually grouped in teams/divisions/departments
Several presenters can be more effective than a single person
Provides variety that keeps audience tuned in
Skills and perspectives of several people can give a more complete message
Can boost audience receptivity by providing balance of gender, age, ethnicity etc.

3. Planning a group presentation
Group presentation follow same principles as solo presentations
same preparation, same structure, same audience analysis, same visual aids
Group presentations require more planning than solo presentations
Decision making requires discussion
Coordinating roles can be a challenge

4. Planning a group presentation
Members need to agree on goals, timeline and approaches to collaboration.
Once the overall plan is set, members can work on their individual parts on their own
There is little advantage of having 2 or more members working on the same segment
Some members can perform specialized jobs such as slide design

5. Planning a group presentation
STEP 1: Group and Task Orientation
Essential to establish common understanding of task and what individuals and the group are meant to achieve.
Establish yourselves as a group
agree on how you will work together (form a schedule of meetings, a record keeping and messaging process, individual roles e.g.)

6. Planning a group presentation
Analyze the group task
You need a common understanding of the task and what needs to be done.
Analyze:
the topic
what your group is expected to do
the criteria that will be used to assess your presentation.

7. Planning a group presentation
STEP 2: Scoping the project
Aspects of group presentation that need to be agreed on:
map the whole task and identify any special requirements e.g. use of handouts, audio-visual aids, models, resources
who will do what: team leader, visual design etc.

8. Planning a group presentation
It helps to develop a chart for all group members showing the complete project:
Task
Useful Resources
Group member
Completion date
Comments
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3

9. Planning a group presentation
Establish a schedule of meetings (agreed dates and venues).
Electronic discussion can be useful but you will need a minimum number of meetings, including a rehearsal, to ensure the quality of your presentation. Your meeting schedule must take everyone’s commitments into account.

10. Planning a group presentation
STEP 3. Develop a review process
develop a systematic approach to monitoring your progress
Think about how you will:
give practical and encouraging feedback to each other?
identify gaps in the material?
re-allocate work if some parts prove easier or harder than others

11. Planning a group presentation
STEP 4. Plan the final presentation
Once you’ve established your overall process and group goals you need to discuss HOW to do an oral presentation on the material
decide on a presentation format and order of speakers
agree on audio/visual aids for the presentation
schedule rehearsals as a group and as individuals (peer review each other).

12. Questions to consider How much time does each presenter have?
How much time for the total presentation?
In what order will everyone present?
Who will precede and who will follow you and how, especially, can you link your remarks to theirs?
Will the meeting have a moderator? If not, who will introduce you?
Will you introduce the next presenter?

13. Format of group presentation Who will say what?
Organizing by topic
Break presentation into segments
Each speaker addresses one or more topics
Effective when each topic calls for specialist expertise
Organizing by task
Assign different tasks to speakers
Spokes person
Example giver

14. The Introduction Especially important in group presentations
Helps audience to follow overall plan and prevents confusion
First speaker needs to introduce all speakers and explain their roles in the presentation

15. Transitions Very important to help audience with change of speakers
2 ways of handling a smooth transition:
Spokes person (if there is such a role) makes transition
Every speaker makes transition to the next
Important: relationship between preceding and following sections must be clear

16. The Conclusion Conclusions can be handled effectively in 2 Ways:
Given by the assigned spokes person
Given by the last person to speak
Be sure to restate the groups overall thesis and not only last remarks.

17. Last advice The most important thing:
it has to look like a team presentation—and not a series of loosely connected parts. Each segment should be integrated with the others to create a sense of fluent communication.