A large part of my professional life has to do with delivering presentations, seminars and workshops on all kinds of topics, ranging from how to get the millennials to behave in the workplace (or at least civil according to their boomer bosses) – to how to motivate employees without spending a dime – to how to speak to a CFO about that “fuzzy” stuff called human resources, or god forbid, organization development.  Yes, most of my work  has to do with behavior – would you expect any less from the Whisperer?

When I develop my presentations though,  I really try hard to do three important things to hook my audience:  1) impart factual, easy to use information, 2) be creative and interesting in the delivery of the presentation and, 3) use PowerPoint as a compliment to the presentation, NOT be the presentation.

I found that Guy Kawasaki is the total guru when it comes to the art of PowerPoint and using that to your advantage when selling an idea.  Guy was one of the early employees at Apple and has since branched out to the world of venture capital.  He wrote the book, “Art of the Start” after seeing countless PP presentations that were one big block of text and thus, one big yawn.  Guy says that if you’re gonna use PP as a part of your presentation, then make sure it follows what he calls the “10/20/30” rule:   

10 slides – this is the optimal number because humans can’t process more than 10 ideas in a single sitting.  Adult learning theory tells us that a single sitting is about an hour.  So, I translate that into no more than 10 slides per lesson or concept that I’m trying to share.  Any more than that is just extra crap that people have to wade through (or read when you are presenting, which means their attention is not focused where it needs to be: on YOU).

20 minutes – the whole pitch should be no more than 20 minutes in length.  If you’re scheduled for an hour, this will give you 40 minutes for questions and discussion.  Think about it:  most presentations are designed to initiate some of type of discussion, whether it is to enforce learning or to make a sale.  Adult learning theory also tells us that adults like to share experiences when learning things; it helps them to process the new information.

30 points – if you have to use any text on your PP, make sure the font, anywhere in the slide deck, is NO smaller than 30 points.  First of all, people in the back of the room need to be able to see it easily.  Secondly, if you make it smaller you’re going to be tempted to just toss your whole presentation onto the slide and just read it.  I swear, other than watching paint dry, there is nothing more boring than watching a presenter read the PowerPoint.  (You know who you are!)   The other thing is that people can read faster than you can talk, which again means they are paying attention to the PP, not to YOU.

I personally don’t respect any speaker who reads his or her PowerPoint.  That’s just lame.  It makes me think you don’t know your stuff.  And, I’m usually right. 

By the way, I also HATE some of the animations PowerPoint has built into its programming.  I personally find it very distracting when people use them and it also makes me wonder what the person is trying to hide (e.g., their lack of knowledge) with all the bells and whistles.  But…I do like using different types of transitions – moving between slides – and at times, I also like using some animation judiciously to help illustrate a point.  The best thing to use though, is your body to emphasize when something  is important.

The bottom line is, what really makes a presentation great?  Being a strong confident speaker, of course, but the tools you use to help prove or supplement your point goes a long way.

After all, as they say, a picture speaks a thousand words.

Here’s the Real Deal Regarding Presentations is a post from: The HR Whisperer

I’ll tell you, I’m a list person.  Can cover a lot of ground with a bulleted list.  Found a great list the other day posted on the fridge at Webster University where I serve as an academic advisor and associate professor entitled, A Passport for Life by Regina Brett.  Thought the idea of it was really cool and of course, went to check it out on web.  Found out that Regina is not 90 years old as the printed article states and her passport has 50 things on it (for turning 50), not 45.

That’s okay.  Still liked the list and thought it would be great to convert it to a passport list for employees.  Employees could use a little direction now and then, don’t cha think?

So here goes for the top 10:

1. Working here isn’t always fair, but it’s still pretty good.
2. Save for your retirement – the 401k won’t do it for you.
3. No one is in charge of your happiness – you are.
4. Everything can change in the blink of an eye; think merger. Have resume ready.
5. If a work relationship has to be secret, you shouldn’t be in it.
6. What other people think of you IS your business; get feedback.
7. Make a friend.
8. When it comes to going after the right things, don’t take no for an answer, but…
9. You don’t have to win every argument; just pick the ones worth fighting for.
10. Show up and make the most of your job!

A Passport for Employees is a post from: The HR Whisperer

What is it with business people and buzzwords?  Good Lord, we seem to get new ones every year – and I hate them, just hate them.  To me buzzwords are just a slick way of getting people to pay attention to things they should have been paying attention to all along.  Back in the 90s, we used to call this phenomena the “flavor of the month.” In other words, if you waited around long enough the buzz word and accompanying fluff around it would go away and be replaced by a new one.  One of the things some consultants do is create a new buzzword about an old idea they are rehashing or trying to refresh.  A lot of times it’s a marketing ploy to draw attention to their business.  I shudder when I think about it – consultants and their buzzwords, that is.

Well, now the new buzzword is transparency. We’re seeing it all over the place.  I’m sure it’s the result of Sarbanes-Oxley and all that other good stuff we have to deal with in light of some questionable leadership ethics or lack thereof.  That’s okay – the concept that is – but what I hate is how the word is so overused and from that the good of the concept abused.

In the business and social context, transparency is supposed to mean open communication and accountability.  That one can “see through” to the real heart of the matter, i.e., the truth.  Full disclosure.  But I can’t help but feel that some who say they are being transparent are really trying to hide something in plain view.

I googled “transparency in business” and had 18,100,000 hits.  That’s a lot of transparency going on. 

Oh hey — did you know that there is a worldwide  organization dedicated to transparency?  Transparency International-USA was founded in 1993 with the mission to “combat corruption and promote transparency and integrity in government, business and development assistance.”

That was one good hit out of 18, 100,000.  The other 17,999,999 seemed to have to do with visibility and disclosure.  But doesn’t visibility and disclosure really mean how people behave in the conduct of business? See, it all goes back to behavior.

What I am trying to do is raise the issue that we shouldn’t be hiding behind the buzzword of the day to behave appropriately.

Some people may believe that transparency is really about putting your business out there, totally unguarded.  I don’t buy it.  I believe that transparency is about being open and honest – but also protective of the organization and the people who run it.  Being open and honest with the financials?  You betcha.  Being prepared to accept and learn from frank customer feedback gleaned from social media? Yes. You can’t fix anything if you don’t know it’s broken. 

But how about when someone uses transparency as an excuse to share information that has the potential to hurt another individual or to make themselves look good?  Not so much.  That’s not transparency ladies and gentleman, that’s politics.

People have been spinning the since the dawn of time.  Look at the headlines.  There’s been a flurry  of articles from the Associated Press about how “Fox News Channel acts like a wing of the Republican Party” according to White House communications director Anita Dunn.  The AP states that the White House believes that Fox News“ operates almost as either the research arm or the communications arm of the Republican Party.” Fox News executive Michael Clemente responded by saying “most viewers know the difference between news and opinion shows. He says attacking the messenger doesn’t work.”

So, who’s being transparent here?  Is this a real debate going on or is it just a political ploy?  There’s probably a fact pattern on both sides – just like there is when we have one employee warring against another about the honesty of a performance appraisal.  Performance appraisals can be notoriously biased, and often are in the guise of being transparent, when they are really being used to craft a particular political climate for supervisors or employees.

I know, instead of calling people out for not being transparent, let’s call them out for not admitting they are using transparency to further their political gain.  You know who you are – that’s because you’re transparent.

When Transparency is Well…Just a Pane is a post from: The HR Whisperer