Richard said:As part of an interview next week, I have to prepare a presentation on how I would 'set up and implement a marketing and communications strategy'.
The actually content is relatively straight forward - I think - but has anyone got any tips on doing presentations in an interview setting, in general?
strongbowholic said:No more than 10 slides.
No more than 5 bullets per slide.
No more than 8 words per bullet.
The slide deck should give an idea of what you ate presenting but should not be verbatim what you read out - more of an aide memoir.
Smile, talk to the back of the room. Plenty of eye contact and as daft as this may sound, keep breathing. The second you pause and stop breathing (natural thing to do) in those situations it is hard to kick start quickly again (if you've presented before you'll know exactly what I mean).
Good luck; I'm sure you'll nail it.
Mugatu said:Do use powerpoint, it at least demonstrates that you can use the kit.
I had to do a presentation a few weeks back to a 3 man panel, it was a boardroom setup with a screen and a laptop at one end but I thought I'd be different by just standing up and talking to the panel to make it more personal and involved. I'd prepared pretty well, I knew my stuff, and it seemed to flow well. The laptop didn't get touched.
After the presentation they asked why I hadn't used powerpoint, I told them that I preferred (in this case, with only 3 people) to engage one to one with them rather than getting them to stare at a screen.
In the feedback they stated that I interviewed well and presented well, but noted that I had not given them a chance to see if I was proficient with standard office technology.
I came second out of 11, I think with a little bit of visual interest / help, I could well have been top.
Speedy said:Some very good tips on here.
For god sake don't have each bullet point flicking up at the touch of the keypad, remote, there's nothing worst, trust me - full slides in one hit. It's rare they will read much so keep them minimal. They're be more interested in you...
Start off with a short intro about yourself and what you know about their company / customer base / objectives / ambitions. Thank them for the opportunity, be precise on what you are presenting to them, factual and as clear as you can be with a glimmer of your personality showing through. Let them know you will open up for questions at the end. This will hopefully command their attention. They will already have a couple of questions anyway.
I actually prefer using visual graphics, photos, simple charts - slides not too busy for you to talk around. Insert their company logo. Helps engage the audience and if confident you can showboat a little (keep it scripted tho). Also if you miss anything out nobody will know. Always have notes just in case. It shows you are prepared but you shouldn't really need them by that stage. Check them now and then though just to demonstrate you rarely miss or leave anything to chance.
Practice being flaunt in the garage / in front of people you know and listen to feedback. Take your time but make sure you don't ramble on and keep well within the allotted time frame.
Once presented ask and be prepared for questions, have a couple of questions of your own... challenges of the position, what they need from it in the immediate future, 12 month business plan etc.
If it's an open book presentation I would recommend using 5 things on how you feel you can help improve their business. A one sheet handout sometimes impresses and compliments the presentation. It also leaves a structured overview of you when they come to reflect when you're gone.
Don't bullshit. If you don't know the answer to any question go into quick research / resolve mode i.e. this is one of the areas I intend on quickly exploring within the company, what can you tell me about that?
Good luck, let us know how you get on.
Ragnarok said:Hey, was it for a job interview or a competition? If its the latter, dont they usually specify that you have to present in powerpoint?
de niro said:Speedy said:Some very good tips on here.
For god sake don't have each bullet point flicking up at the touch of the keypad, remote, there's nothing worst, trust me - full slides in one hit. It's rare they will read much so keep them minimal. They're be more interested in you...
Start off with a short intro about yourself and what you know about their company / customer base / objectives / ambitions. Thank them for the opportunity, be precise on what you are presenting to them, factual and as clear as you can be with a glimmer of your personality showing through. Let them know you will open up for questions at the end. This will hopefully command their attention. They will already have a couple of questions anyway.
I actually prefer using visual graphics, photos, simple charts - slides not too busy for you to talk around. Insert their company logo. Helps engage the audience and if confident you can showboat a little (keep it scripted tho). Also if you miss anything out nobody will know. Always have notes just in case. It shows you are prepared but you shouldn't really need them by that stage. Check them now and then though just to demonstrate you rarely miss or leave anything to chance.
Practice being flaunt in the garage / in front of people you know and listen to feedback. Take your time but make sure you don't ramble on and keep well within the allotted time frame.
Once presented ask and be prepared for questions, have a couple of questions of your own... challenges of the position, what they need from it in the immediate future, 12 month business plan etc.
If it's an open book presentation I would recommend using 5 things on how you feel you can help improve their business. A one sheet handout sometimes impresses and compliments the presentation. It also leaves a structured overview of you when they come to reflect when you're gone.
Don't bullshit. If you don't know the answer to any question go into quick research / resolve mode i.e. this is one of the areas I intend on quickly exploring within the company, what can you tell me about that?
Good luck, let us know how you get on.
hi mate, are you speedy as in speedy speedy?