Five principles to guide your 
corporate presentation skills training program

by Rob Sherman, Esq.

Business executives realize the value of effective communication at all organizational levels. Whether presenting ideas to an executive team or speaking to the public, corporate representatives must be able to convey their ideas in a persuasive and thought-provoking manner if they want the company to grow and meet its organizational objectives. As a result, progressive companies are implementing presentation skills training programs in order to give their employees the competitive edge they need.

When establishing these programs, one common question is: “What precisely should my company’s presentation skills training consist of?” After all, for some corporate executives, presentation skills training really means sales training in persuasion and negotiation. For others it means presenting and selling ideas to internal stakeholders, such as an executive team. Others still think of presenting as a means to influence external groups, such as targeted members of the public. 

Regardless of your company’s definition, your employees communicate ideas every day, whether it be to one person, to a small group or to hundreds of individuals. And the bottom line is that all of these forms of communication have a basic learning foundation that is identifiable and a critical component of successful training efforts.

If you want to make your presentation skills training program more effective, there are certain elements you must incorporate into it. Follow the guidelines below to make your presentation skills training program one of the best in corporate America.

Bob Danzig, who guides Hearst Management Institute and is the former head of Hearst Newspapers, knows the correlation between leadership and presentation skills.

“Communication awareness causes a person to have critical consciousness of the guidelines that help you become more effective when communicating to individuals and groups,” says Danzig.

He goes on to explain that the more developed your communication skills are, the more people will look to you for guidance and leadership. Danzig incorporates presentation skills training as a part of the company’s leadership program, where 45 members of the senior management team are trained in personal skills enhancement.

Recognizing that there are many facets to “presentation skills” training, Linda Ulrey, senior manager in corporate communications for Procter & Gamble, explains that its corporate training center provides classes on how to “clearly, powerfully, and simply articulate your recommendation and point of view as you attempt to persuade internal stakeholders on the strength of your ideas.” 

Her training, entitled “Managing a Message,” involves both oral and written communication and includes a television interview, which Linda describes as the acid test. She believes that if you can articulate clearly during a TV interview, you can speak anywhere and to anyone.

Even law firms are getting into the presentation skills training act. Vorys, Sater, Seymour, and Pease -- a major law firm based in Ohio -- incorporates presentation skills training into its associate training program. While knowing the law and facts of a case are important, the firm realizes that being able to connect with the jury is equally important. Other firms are following suit, recognizing that communicating effectively to groups of one, two, or 200 is critical to a lawyer’s development as a leader.

Understand that presentation skills training is not an event – it is a life-long process.

All corporate trainers understand that one-shot training programs often do not have a lasting impact. It requires continual follow-up and reinforcement to drive the message home and improve presentation skills. That’s why how you continue the learning process is a key to your program’s effectiveness. When presentation skills training reaches to the core of a company’s business strategy, follow-up is often continuous and a part of the corporate culture. Federated Merchandising Group is a prime example of the application of this philosophy.

Ed Jones, director of training and communication of federated merchandising group, says that presentation skills training is fundamental to the strategic growth of the company.  Federated merchandising group acts as the strategic merchandising arm for Federated Department Stores. The division works directly with the store divisions on the purchase of goods for Federated Department Stores. Instead of the corporate office dictating purchasing decisions, federated merchandising group works in tandem with the store executives. Accordingly, executives with the merchandising group are trained to present and sell their ideas to the store division decision makers.

Jones explains that the one-and-a-half-day Present to Sell training program involves learning how to present persuasively as well as how to effectively manage meetings. A critical component of training is “how to know the audience” so that the needs of the audience members are met—in this case, the store division executives.

After the session, the learning continues. Each participant develops a personal plan of action and receives coaching, feedback and reinforcement from supervisors. As a result, many executives voluntarily request refresher courses, to continue to build their presentation skills to an even higher level. Long-term and short-term business strategies emerge from these intensive presentations among Federated’s division members. Federated’s experience may be unique in the corporate world, but it demonstrates how far some companies go to assure that communications skills training doesn’t end after a one and a half day training event. 

Tie training to results
The only way to judge any program’s effectiveness is to analyze the results the training fosters. Ed Jones sees clear results from Federated’s presentation skills training, namely increased confidence in the participants. He also cites that there are better partnerships within the respective divisions as trust drives all dialogue. Communication is collaborative and not adversarial. Most important, sales goals are achieved as the divisions work to understand the needs of one another.

American Electric Power understands the importance of communications and sees those results as affecting the bottom line. The better their employees are able to interact with the public, the more consumer and investor confidence they’ll gain. That’s why AEP holds training for employees who interact with the public or the media. 

“If good news or bad news is communicated accurately, with clarity, and credibility, it can have an effect on the stock," said director of corporate media relations for American Electric Power Pat Hemlepp. "We have 322 million shares outstanding; if proper communications moves the stock up one dollar, it has a $322 million impact.”

Procter & Gamble’s communication skills program includes extensive training in the area of consumer relations operation. Company representatives are trained in conflict resolution and interpersonal skills so that when consumers call the company’s toll-free number with comments on products, representatives are capable to solve the issues presented. Because of the intensive training, staff members know their products and have the skills to help the consumers. In essence, presentation skills training teaches these staff members the number one tool that speakers must learn – how to handle difficult questions.

Tom Knelter, manager of corporate education and career development for Fifth Third Bancshares, explains that Fifth Third offers communications training to employees who don’t even interact with customers. Why? The company understands that every communication is a presentation – from one-on-one to many.

“Communications is a critical component of success at any level,” says Knelter.

The comments from Fifth Third’s participants are excellent. They frequently state that they wished they had this training in the past. The training makes them realize that they need to make changes to their day-to-day interactions if they want to succeed, and as a result, they do make the changes.

Smart companies implement such training from day one of employment. Cathy Mayne Lyttle, vice president of corporate communications for Worthington Industries, concentrates on sales training where new employees are subjected to six months of extensive communications training. The participants are required to conduct actual sales presentations in front of their peers. She observes, “The best executive speakers were brought up in a sales environment.” Because of this emphasis on training, even those employees who don’t work in sales know the products and the company inside and out. They’re able to communicate effectively to anyone at any level and under any circumstances. That kind of perpetual readiness allows the employees to promote a positive company image each and every day.

“It is one of our best classes for providing value,” she says. “The participants transform after seeing themselves on videotape.”

Most people are shocked after watching themselves on tape and quickly make changes to their speaking presentations. They see nervous habits they never knew they had and hear the erroneous “iller words they routinely use, such as “um,” “ah” and “you know.” After becoming aware of their weak points, they can take the necessary steps to correct them. It’s a vital tool for helping employees strengthen their public speaking skills.

“Video taping corrects people’s self-impressions,” says Hemlepp. 

In order for your company to remain competitive in today’s business climate, your employees need the best presentation skills training possible. When you make presentation skills training an ongoing process, stress leadership development, focus on results, place importance on daily interactions, and give your employees tools for evaluating their own skills training progress, your company will stand out from the competition. 

Above all else, when you implement effective presentation skills training, you not only enable your employees to fine-tune their skills, you also lay the foundation for continued organizational growth. 

Rob Sherman is an attorney, speaker and author of Sherman's 21 Laws of Speaking: How to Inspire Others to Action. You can receive free presentation and negotiation tips twice a month by subscribing to Sherman’s Executive Communicator at www.ShermanLeadership.com. Contact Rob at . 

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