The Intended Audience for This Presentation is a Group of

Imagine y’all have been assigned to a group for a project requiring a presentation at the end. “At present is the busiest time in my schedule and I practise not have time to fit all these people into it,” the phonation in your head reminds you. So you lot ask the question: “Is there ever a not-busy time for assembling a grouping together for a presentation ?” These thoughts are a part of a group presentation consignment. The combined expertise of several individuals is becoming increasingly necessary in many
vocational
(related to a specific occupation) and
avocational
(outside a specific occupation) presentations.

Group presentations in business organisation may range from a business organization team exchanging sales data; research and development teams discussing business expansion ideas; to annual report presentations by boards of directors. Too, the government, individual, and public sectors have many committees that participate in briefings, conference presentations, and other formal presentations. It is mutual for group presentations to be requested, created, and delivered to bring together the expertise of several people in one presentation. Thus, the job of deciding the most valuable information for audience members has become a coordination task involving several individuals. All group members are responsible for coordinating things such every bit themes, stiff support/prove, and unlike personalities and approaches in a specified time flow.

is defined in the lexicon as harmonious combination or interaction, equally of functions or parts.

This chapter focuses on how the group, the spoken language assignment, the audience, and the presentation design play a role in the harmonious combination of planning, arrangement, and delivery for group presentations.

Preparing All Parts of the Assignment

In group presentations, you are working to coordinate one or 2 outcomes—outcomes related to the content (product outcomes) and/or outcomes related to the grouping skills and participation (process outcomes). Therefore, information technology is important to carefully review and outline the prescribed assignment of the group earlier y’all become large quantities of information, spreadsheets, interview notes, and other research materials.

Types of Grouping Presentations

A fundamental component of a preparation program is the type of group presentation. Not all grouping presentations require a format of continuing in front of an audition and presenting. According to Sprague and Stuart (2005), at that place are four mutual types of group presentations:

• A structured argument in which participants speak for or confronting a pre-appear proffer is called a
  .
  The proffer is worded so that one side has the burden of proof, and that aforementioned side has the do good of speaking beginning and last. Speakers assume an advocacy part and try to persuade the audition, non each other.
• The is essentially a question-and-answer session. One or more than experts may exist questioned by a panel of other experts, journalists, and/or the audience.
• A consists of a group of experts publicly discussing a topic among themselves. Individually prepared speeches, if any, are express to very brief opening statements.
• Finally, the is a series of brusk speeches, usually informative, on various aspects of the same general topic. Audience questions often follow (p. 318).

These iv types of presentations, forth with the traditional group presentation in front end of an audience or on-the-job speaking, typically accept pre-assigned parameters. Therefore, all group members must be clear about the assignment request.

Establishing Clear Objectives

For the grouping to accurately summarize for themselves who is the audience, what is the situation/occasion, and what supporting materials demand to be located and selected, the group should establish clear objectives about both
the procedure
and
the product
being assessed.

Assessment plays a central role in optimizing the quality of group interaction. Thus, information technology is of import to be articulate whether the group is being assessed on the production(s) or consequence(due south) merely or volition the processes within the group—such every bit disinterestedness of contribution, individual interaction with group members, and meeting deadlines—also exist assessed. Kowitz and Knutson (1980) argue that three dimensions for grouping evaluation include (ane)
informational—dealing with the grouping’southward designated tasks; (ii)
procedural—referring to how the group coordinates its activities and communication; and (three)
interpersonal—focusing on the relationships that exist among members while the chore is being accomplished. Groups without a pre-assigned assessment rubric may use the three dimensions to effectively create a group evaluation instrument.

The group should make up one’s mind if the product includes both a written document and an oral presentation. The written certificate and oral presentation format may take been pre-assigned with an expectation behind the requested informative and/or persuasive content. Although the 2 should complement each other, the audience, message, and format for each should be conspicuously outlined. The group may create a production assessment guide (see
Table 1). Additionally, each group member should uniformly write down the purpose of the assignment. You lot may think y’all can keep the purpose in your head without any problem. Nevertheless the goal is for each member to consistently have the aforementioned outcome in front of them. This will bring your enquiry, writing, and thinking back to focus later engaging in a variety of resources or conversations.

In one case the consignment has been coordinated in terms of the product and process objectives, type of presentation, and logistics, it is important for the grouping to clearly write downwards the agreed outcomes. Agreed outcomes nearly the product include a that reflects an agreement with the prescribed assignment (i.e. “at the end of our group presentation the audience will be informed or persuaded most the prescribed assignment”). Information technology as well includes the key message or thesis to be developed through a
, a full-judgement outline of virtually everything the speaker intends to say. The outline allows the speakers to test the structure, the logic, and persuasive appeals in the speech (DiSanza & Legge, 2011, p. 131).

Logistics for Group Members

Equally a grouping, be very clear almost the length of your presentation and its preparation. The length of the presentation refers to your fourth dimension limit, and whether in that location is a question and answer flow involved. Consignment preparation may or may not have a prescribed borderline. If the assignment does not have a deadline, then ready one every bit a grouping. If there is a deadline, then the grouping begins past creating a schedule from the final deadline. As a grouping, create an action timetable explicitly list all processes and outputs, also as communication update points.

Every bit a group, determine the all-time style to exit plenty time in the stop to put all the pieces together and make sure everything is consummate. If at that place is a written document, it should be completed prior to the oral presentation rather than at the aforementioned time. As a group, realize not anybody may piece of work off a physical agenda. Thus, do not hesitate to require each member to write downwardly all deadlines.

Next, the group can strategically add meeting dates, times, and venues to the action timetable. A meeting is a structured conversation amidst a small group of people who gather to attain a specific task (Beebe & Mottet, 2010). For group presentations, meetings do non e’er include the entire grouping. So a schedule of who meets with whom and when is useful for planning work and agendas. In add-on, all meetings practice not serve the same purpose. For instance,
informational meetings
may be called simply to update all group members;
solicitation meetings
are called to solicit opinions or request guidance from group members; group-building meetings are designed to promote unity and cohesiveness amidst group members; and
problem-solving meetings
result in making decisions or recommendations by the time the coming together convenes.

Once the group is unified most the consignment objectives and time frame, information technology is vital to predetermine the type of annotation-taking required of each group member (which may vary) and the variety of information substitution. The more systematic a group is in these two areas, the more unified the procedure and the product. The organisation begins with each group fellow member writing downward the message, specific purpose, and key ideas for the group presentation. If these are still to be determined, then have each grouping member identify the areas of background information needed and basic information gathering. Adjacent, just create a general format for annotation-taking—whether typed or handwritten and what types of details should be included particularly sources. Likewise with the increasing employ of electronic databases be very clear on when related articles should be forwarded to grouping members. The email inbox flooded with PDF files is not always a welcome state of affairs.

The grouping should be clear on the explicit requirements for locating recent, relevant, and audience-appropriate source cloth for the presentation. All of this leads to the foundation of clearly defining the responsibilities of each grouping member. All tasks should be listed, given deadlines, and assigned people. A ways for tracking the progress of each job should be outlined. The group should be articulate on what are individual, joint (involving more than than one group member), and entire group tasks. Throughout the unabridged process, all grouping members should be supportive and helpful but should not offer to do other people’s piece of work.

Organizing for Your Audience

Organizing for your audience relates to how the gathered content can be best bundled for them. According to Patricia Fripp (2011), a Hall of Fame keynote speaker and executive speech bus, any presentation can be intimidating simply the key is to retrieve “your goal is to present the almost valuable information possible to the members of the audition” (p. 16). Now what you retrieve is most valuable and what the audience thinks is nigh valuable must be coordinated because of differences in perception (the process by which we give meaning to our experience). Therefore, organizing for your audience is focused on content, structure, packaging, and human element—not for you, non for the assignment, but for the audition. A customized plan of organization will assist your group in creating relevant messages that satisfy others’ personal needs and goals (Keller, 1983).

Content

Audition members are interested in your expertise that has been developed from solid enquiry and preparation. Audience members may take expectations almost what foundational literature and key sources should be contained within your presentation. Therefore as a group, you demand to get beyond providing a variety of supporting material within your presentation to considering who will be present, levels of expertise, and their expectations. In general, organizing the content should be focused on usage, knowledge levels, and objectives. Commencement,
usage
refers to how audience members expect to employ your presentational content which volition help the group transform ideas into audience-centered speech points. Second,
knowledge level
ways the audience’s knowledge level about the topic within the audience which assists the grouping in developing supporting material for the entire audience. 3rd, the
objectives
are linked to how the content serves the audience’south needs and assists the group in beingness intentional virtually helping the audience see the reason for their involvement and receive value for the time they devoted to attend. Overall, the content is coordinated in a fashion that keeps at the forefront who the decision-makers are and what specifics they demand to know, would be nice to know, and do not demand to know.

Structure

Side by side professionally packaging a presentation for the audience deals with the structure or how you accommodate points. The structure takes into consideration a strong opening, logical order, relevant cardinal points, conciseness, and use of supplementary visual aids. In addition, the linking of points involves conversational language and the appropriate use of acronyms and technical jargon for inclusion or exclusion. The focus is geared to the perception of trustworthiness. Iii strategic questions to reply include:

1. What qualities equally a group will demonstrate your trustworthiness to this audience?
2. What content lodge needs to exist achieved to give a consistent perception of fairness?
3. What content requires repeating and how should that be achieved—through comparisons, examples, illustrations, etc.?

Packaging

The packaging of successful group presentations revolves around the type of relationship with the audience, the division of time, and enthusiasm. An of import dynamic of group presentations is for your group to know if audience members will be required to give an internal presentation or briefing from your presentation. As a group, know if y’all are packaging a one-time presentation, bidding for a long-term relationship, continuing a relationship for offering expertise, or if the presentation is tied to internal pressures to operation appraisals. Such knowledge volition aid your grouping in developing talking points which can exist re-presented with accurateness.

The type of presentation will assistance you lot divide the time for your presentation. The majority of the time is always spent on the body of the oral communication. A typical 30-minute speech might be divided into four minutes for the introduction, ten minutes for the body, and four minutes for the decision. The remaining 12 minutes is for the audience to ask questions, offer objections, or just to become office of the discussion. It is important to exit enough time for the audience to contribute to the intellectual content. Therefore, always design group presentations with the intent not to run out of fourth dimension before the audition tin participate. All group presentations should have enthusiasm. Grouping members should exist enthusiastic most the audience, message, and occasion. Planned enthusiasm should play a office in creating the introduction, conclusion, and body of your presentations. The consequent use of enthusiasm tin be planned throughout the speech outline.

Man Element

At present it is time to focus on compatibility. As a group, consider what volition it take to get this audience to pay attention to your presentation. Answer questions such as:

1. What can your group do to develop an introduction, transitions, and conclusions in a fashion to connect with this audience?
2. What types of stories are mutual or relatable to this audience?
3. What are the attitudes, beliefs, and values of this audience?

Delivering Your Presentation as One

By completing the other levels of coordination, the grouping will accept decided on the cardinal bulletin, thoroughly researched the supporting cloth, developed logical conclusions, and created realistic recommendations. Therefore all that stands between you and success is the actual presentation—the vehicle that carries the facts and the ideas to your audience. Here it is important to recognize that if an assignment required both a written document and an oral presentation then be sure one effectively complements the other. Although you can reference the written document during the oral presentation, the oral presentation should exist planned with the thought in heed that non everyone is given the written certificate. Therefore, the oral presentation may exist the only content they receive. Since y’all will not always know who receives the written certificate, it is best to coordinate the presentation every bit if no one has the full written certificate, which can serve every bit a reference tool for gaining content requiring further explanation or accessibility to detailed information. At the same time, if the entire audition is provided written material go along in mind different decision-makers may be in the audience. For instance, the creative director may be but interested in your artistic concepts, whereas a vice president of finance may exist only interested in figures.

The presentation preparation primarily focuses on your group’s ability to develop a clear program and execution of delivery. A commitment program includes essential elements such as (i) purpose, (2) oral content, (3) dress, (4) room, (5) visuals, (six) delivery, and (vii) rehearsal to ensure that the group presentation is both captivating and useful to your audition, besides equally worth their time.

Purpose

Group members should go on at the forefront of their minds the answer to the question “Was the general purpose—to inform or to persuade—accomplished?” Equally a group, practice keeping the purpose of the presentation explicit for the audience. The purpose should never become hidden during the presentation. Each group member’south awareness of the purpose is important in maintaining the right kind of commitment. It is possible to accept neat content for a presentation and miss the entire purpose of the presentation. For instance, say your group had been asked to do a presentation about Facebook and how it could be used in the financial industry. You could take an informative or persuasive approach. However, if the audience—banking professionals—attends a presentation where the content is focused on Facebook rather than having a focus on its employ in the financial manufacture, and then the purpose was non achieved.

The commitment plan volition help yous evaluate if the purpose of the presentation is clearly aimed at the primary audience. In improver, the group can determine when and how clearly they are articulating the explicit purpose of the presentation. The purpose is complemented by a clear preview, the audience members’ awareness of what decisions are at issue, and the audition’s want to get of import data first.

Oral Content

Upwardly to this point the majority of the group’south engagement with the content has been in terms of reading and writing. It is fourth dimension to orally interact with the selected content to ensure that it has been developed for
this
audience, properly structured, and conspicuously articulated. The commitment plan is a fourth dimension to evaluate word choice, idioms, and antidotes. When working with this content, make sure that it is suited to the purpose, and that the fundamental message is explicit so the audition remembers it well.

The introduction of group members, transitions, and internal summaries are all important elements of the delivery programme. A proper introduction of group members and the content will not happen automatically. Therefore, it is important to practice it to make up one’s mind if introductions fit improve at the first of the presentation, if names need to be emphasized through the wearing of name tags, or if names are improve used as a part of transition content. The use of name but may not be effective in some speaking situations. Therefore, the grouping needs to determine what a proper group member introduction includes across the name. Plus, be consistent; that is, determine if anybody is using showtime name simply or full name, do they need to know your positions, some groundwork, or can yous merely country information technology in a written format such as a team resume. Spoken communication content is not useful if the audience does not accept your brownie.

Dress

Every bit in all presentations, an awareness of your concrete appearance is an important element in complementing the content of your speech. Do non hesitate to talk about and exercise appropriate dress as a group. Information technology is important to look similar a group. Really consider defining a group’s speaking uniform by deciding how formal or breezy the clothes lawmaking is.

As a group, the overall question you want to exist able to respond is:
Did our apparel provide an authentic start impression not distracting from the content? So what kinds of things can be distracting?
The virtually common are colors, decorated patterns, and large or clinking jewelry. As a group make up one’s mind what type of dress is effective in coordinating your group’s credibility. It is of import to take into consideration cultural, occupational, and regional norms. In addition, it is important to think about branding choices. Often groups want to make themselves for the audience. It is not necessary to mimic your audience. For instance, a sales presentation to cranberry association members may entice a group to wear red. However, the cranberry association may not be the just auction your group needs to brand and so you will be forced to ask the question: Will each sales presentation audience determine the color nosotros accent in apparel? In brusque, practice not let the speaking occasion brand you lot. Simply know what is considered professional for this presentation. You take spent a lot of time on preparing the content for this audience and then do non detract from information technology.

Facilities

It is not always feasible to do your delivery in the bodily room where you will deliver your speech communication. However, it is extremely important that you actively plan your delivery for the room by recreating the speaking environment. If prior access to the room is not available, so you will need to practice your planning by request a series of questions of the presentation planner. Some mutual things to discover out include the size of the room; if a projector is available and its location within the room; is there a platform and/or a stationary lectern; is there a sound organisation and how many microphones; where the group will be seated before existence introduced; will the presentation be recorded; what is the availability of the room in advance of the presentation; and what is the number of seats and seating arrangement and so the group tin can plan for the zone of interaction.

Visuals

The term visuals refers to both not-engineering science visual aids (handouts, posters, charts, etc.) and presentation technology. Visuals should not appear every bit though several individuals made them but rather as uniform to the group’s presentation. All visuals should blend smoothly into the oral communication. All grouping members should be clear on what visuals or documents were pre-requested (then you practice non eliminate them as unnecessary during rehearsal). Many times it is better to simply projection or display visuals. At other times, visuals may need to be assembled in a presentation package for all audition members. Bohn & Jabusch (1982) propose that there are several researched-based reasons why visual aids enhance presentations including (a)
enhanced agreement—helps audience encompass what they hear and encounter; (b)
enhanced retentivity—serves as a visual reinforcement; (c) enhanced organisation—visually displays your organizational strategy; (d)
enhanced attending—grabs and maintains audition interest; and (e)
enhanced sequencing—shows rather than describes.

Delivery

The four modes of delivery—memorized, impromptu, manuscript, and ad-lib—are all valuable in grouping presentations. Even so, the almost common style of delivery is extemporaneous. Earlier in the chapter, developing a script was discussed. The pace of transforming the script into a —an abbreviated version of the grooming outline (DiSanza & Legge, 2011)—is a pregnant part of planning delivery. The ultimate goal is to figure out how the group can be confident that the entire presentation stays together and does non simply exist in pieces. The delivery outline may get as far as to stipulate vocal and gesture instructions. The delivery outline is non created to be read from, therefore, the group too should decide how speaker notes will be used. The commitment outline should exist provided to every group member so everyone is familiar with the entire presentation. It is important to fix contingency plans for who will present content if someone is absent on the day of the presentation—the presenter who gets stuck in forenoon traffic or the professional person who had a flight filibuster.

The cardinal is for all group members to remain conversational in their delivery way. This may be best achieved by utilizing constructive commitment strategies such as advisable gestures, movement, and posture; advisable facial expressions including eye contact; and appropriate vocal delivery—joint, dialect, pitch, pronunciation, rate, and volume. Group members should evaluate each other on audibility and fluency.

Rehearsal

Rehearsals are for the final polishing of your presentations. Information technology is a time to solidify logistics of how many grouping members are presenting, where they volition stand up, and the nigh appropriate transitions between each speaker. Group members should grow more than comfortable with each other through rehearsals. A key aspect of polishing involves identifying gaps in content and gaining feedback on content (oral and visual), mode, and delivery. The rehearsals are a good fourth dimension to refine speaker notes and to practise the time limit. The number of scheduled rehearsals is dependent on your grouping and the corporeality of training time provided. The most important element for the grouping is to accommodate their rehearsal timetable based on an honest evaluation of the speaking skills represented within the group.

The only part of a grouping presentation that you may not be able to rehearse is responding to the
actual
audience members’ questions and objections. Nonetheless, you tin can anticipate the types of questions and practice a uncomplicated strategy of how you will reply—repeating the question, stating who from the group will answer, and answering succinctly. Iv of the most mutual types of questions are follow-up questions; action-oriented questions focused on what would you exercise if; hypothetical questions focused on different scenarios; and information-seeking questions. A primary way to do is to recollect of at least three questions you would similar to respond, ready the answer, and practice information technology during rehearsal(s).

Conclusion

The foundation of a group presentation is synthetic from all the guidelines you employ in an individual presentation coupled with additional strategies for working effectively with others. Group presentations primarily entail group communication, planning, organization, and commitment. Effective groups communicate near interaction roles, decision-making, and disharmonize resolution. Such communication helps the group reflect on group dynamics, customize communication for
this
speaking group, and establish a unified delivery and collaborative climate.

References

• Beebe, South.A. & Mottet, T.P. (2010).
  Business and professional communication: Principles and skills for leadership. Allyn & Bacon.
• Bohn, E. & Jabusch, D. (1982). The effect of four methods of teaching on the use of visual aids in speeches.
  Western Journal of Spoken language Communication, 46, 253-265.
• DiSanza, J.R., & Legge, N. J. (2011).
  Business organization and professional advice: Plans, processes, and performance
  (fifth ed.). Pearson.
• Fripp. P. (2011). 9 timely tips for pre-presentation grooming.
  American Salesman, 56, 13- 16.
• Keller, J.M. (1983). Motivational design of instruction. In C.M. Reigeluth (Ed.),
  Instructional design theories: An overview of their current condition
  (pp. 383-434). Lawrence Erlbaum.
• Kowitz, A.C. & Knutson., T.J. (1980).
  Determination making in small
  groups: The search for alternatives. Allyn and Bacon.
• Sprague, J. & Stuart D. (2005).
  The speaker’s handbook
  (7th ed.). Thomson Wadsworth.

Authors & Attribution

This content comes from the introduction, “Preparing All Parts of the Assignment” and “Delivering Your Presentation equally One” written by Jennifer F. Wood, Ph.D., in Affiliate 18 Group Presentations. from the Public Speaking Project. This content is licensed under a CC BY-NC-ND: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License.