INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS
New England Chapter

News and Views

In this issue:

"Following Your Storyboard: Key to Effective Presentations"
by Phil Holberton, President, Holberton Group

Breakfast Brainstorms Calendar

This issue
sponsored by

Cap Gemini Ernst & Young
Accelerated Solutions Environment

"Create, Connect, and Evolve... Faster."

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Member Spotlights

Ethel Cook of Corporate Improvement Group was recently quoted in the BostonWorks section of the Boston Globe (April 27, 2003) in an article about how to deal with a difficult boss entitled "Beastly Boss, Tight Market Can Provoke a New Start," by Joyce Pellino Crane.

Carol Bergeron recently co-authored an article that was posted on the web sites of Northeast Human Resources Association and Bergeron Associates. The article is entitled "Capturing the Essence of Your Workforce Strategy." It provides a framework for organizational champions, chartered with leveraging people as a source of enduring competitive advantage, to begin the process of developing a workforce strategy that is connected to the business.

Tom Schinkel of Thomas Schinkel and Associates (TSA) initiated and facilitated all aspects of the acquisition process of Lindegaard, a European manufacturer and distributor of office filing systems with offices in France, the UK, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, and Estonia on behalf of the Smead Manufacturing Company, of Hastings, MN.

Jim Simons of Compensation & Benefit Solutions had his article, "The Web Says I Deserve a Pay Raise" published in the April 20, 2003 issue of the Boston Globe. Jim also had his article, "Memo to HR: You've Been Second Guessed" published in the Mass High Tech Journal, May 5, 2003.

Isn't it your turn to be in the spotlight? Send your name, your business name and 1) recent awards/distinctions/professional certifications you've received; 2) public speaking engagements; and 3) published articles. (Be sure to include key facts, such as when, where and for whom.) You must be an IMC member or affiliate to be featured. them to Ethel Cook, Subject: IMCNE spotlight.

IMCNE would like to bring your attention to "PM Magazine," hosted by Lindsy Parker, Executive Producer and on-air Host. Lindsy has been kind enough to interview Jeff Govendo in the past highlighting IMCNE, and more recently she interviewed Alan Weiss regarding our April Master Class in Selling for Consultants. You can listen to this business management and financial talk radio show on Wednesdays & Thursdays at 5 p.m. on WBNW AM1120 and WPLM AM1390, as well as on the internet at www.moneymattersradio.net and www.1120wbnw.com.

Following Your Storyboard:
Key to Effective Presentations

By Phil Holberton, President, Holberton Group

As consultants, we are frequently asked to make presentations to groups of our clients. We are in a rush and want to get it done quickly. But remember, haste makes waste. Putting our storyboard together is one of the most valuable activities of preparing to give a presentation. Each storyboard should contain the following elements:

• Opening
• Main Points
• Supporting Points
• Details – For Clarity
• Closing

I’m often amazed when I see corporate business plan presentations. They look like the preparer took all the information in his or her head and dumped it into a PowerPoint® presentation. Not only do they seem just a data dump, but also they don’t communicate the necessary information—preventing the audience members from comprehending what is important. Our job as consultants is to convert/translate data into information, adding our interpretation and wisdom to the subject matter.

Many corporate presenters are communicating very complex information—much of it scientifically or technically-based. Sometimes the information is so technical and complex that it is over the heads of audiences. The first activity that every presenter needs to focus on is, "who is our audience?" Understanding the capacity of your audience will help you design your storyboard—the technique to plan your presentation having the above elements. The real challenge comes when the audience capacity is so broad that you have equal risk of speaking down to people as you do of speaking beyond them. One gifted presenter I have the pleasure of knowing and working with will spend time developing a simple primer of the subject to be covered, starting out with simple statements and examples, and escalating the degree of complexity, thereby bringing his audience along. Less skilled presenters will start right in on their subject without any warm-up—and they lose their audience at the very beginning. This is especially common when a presentation builds upon preceding theories. Once you lose your audience, it is difficult to get their attention back.

From the list of storyboard elements, start with the last one, developing your closing first. Always begin with the end in mind. What do you want your audience to take away from this presentation? Is it information? Do you want them to move to action? Knowing this in advance will help you build your presentation—to arrive at that objective. After you are clear about the outcomes, then you can begin to put your main point design into place.

"In the beginning..." Isn’t this a famous saying? Well, in the beginning of your presentation, you need to set the tone of what you intend to cover and lay out the framework of where you are headed. Establishing a bond with your audience is key to gaining their confidence in you as the presenter of the information or ideas meant for action. Look audience members in the eye, use pauses effectively, and open strongly by sharing with them the scope of your subject and what your approach in presenting it will be. At some level, you are "selling" them on listening to you. And, let’s face it, we are all nervous when we begin a presentation, but don’t use jokes to fill an empty space and don’t set expectations that you can’t fulfill. All along, we want a style of presentation that establishes credibility with the audience—not by telling them how good we are, but instead by sharing examples that support our material and demonstrate our expertise. Being perceived as an expert is paramount to delivering an effective presentation. Sometimes this can be quick and for other audience members, it may take some time for them to gain the confidence that you are the expert.

In our presentation, we want to identify the two or three main points that we want our audiences to remember. Two or three main points must be reinforced throughout our presentation. Repetition does not necessarily hurt. Many times, presenters are so enamored with all the material they know about a particular topic that they just carry on with so much detail that it impossible for the audience to absorb all the content. From our storyboard, this data dump as opposed to the communication of relative information adds confusion vs. clarity. Details should add clarity to the subject, not burden the audience with superfluous data.

As presenters of information, you should add your "spin" or "wisdom" to the content. Part of the presentation objective is to communicate content with color and part of the color is your opinion. Just make sure that your opinions are supported by the presented information. Opinion is the value added that we provide as the deliverer of the substance.

Unfortunately, we (me included) often feel so pressed for time, that we bypass the important step of building the storyboard, moving directly to creation of the presentation. Take an hour or so of quiet and map out your presentations. Like most important activities in our lives, if we take the time to plan, we will be happier with the outcomes. Oh, by the way, don’t forget to practice.

Phil Holberton, an adjunct professor of communications at Babson College and former senior executive of General Cinema Theatres, is founder of Holberton Group, Inc., which provides business advisory services, executive coaching, and keynote speeches. www.holberton.com or pholberton@holberton.com.

Breakfast Brainstorms Calendar
Free to IMCNE members and affiliates, $10 for nonmembers

Monday, June 2, 2003
7:45 a.m. - 9:15 a.m.
Sheraton Wayfarer Restaurant, Bedford, NH

Monday, June 9, 2003
7:45 a.m. - 9:15 a.m.
Rebecca's Café, Burlington, MA

Want to host a Breakfast Brainstorm in your area? Contact for details.

The IMCNE web site has a new link that lists our Strategic Partners' events and other events of interest. Click www.imcne.org/spcalendar.html.

Read any good books lately? Book reviews of up to 150 words are needed monthly. Business books and those you found helpful from other genres are of special interest. us - enter Subject: IMCNE book review

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