ORAL PRESENTATIONS
Presenting Technical Information Orally
COMMON SPEAKING OCCASIONS
Casual, impromptu short talks to small groups
 More formal speaking to small groups
 Informal, prepared presentations
 Formal presentations
 Group presentations (you are one of a group of
presenters)

CASUAL, IMPROMPTU, AND SHORT
TALKS
You are asked to give a short (30
to 60 second) update on a project
you are working on.
 Prepare yourself by thinking
about it in advance before you go
to the meeting.
 Review what you are working on:
what could you say about each
project?
 A polished, rehearsed
performance is not expected in
these situations.

IN-CLASS EXERCISE 13.1: CREATING
SHORT SOUND BITES (PAGE 303)
Form groups of 4 to 6 people.
 Individually, prepare a short (three-sentence)
overview of the part-time or full-time job you
currently hold and of how the position
contributes to the workplace. If you do not work,
prepare an answer to one of these questions:

What is the most important aspect of technical
communication?
 What is the hardest part of preparing a document?
 What is usability testing?


In front of group members, deliver your prepared
overview.
SMALL GROUP MEETINGS
These meetings are called to get some work done.
 You may be asked to prepare a document or other
materials to present to the group.
 Prepare yourself in advance by making copies of
the document and using it as the basis for your
comments.
 Do not read the document. Instead, focus
listeners’ attention on key aspects of it.

INFORMAL, PREPARED
PRESENTATIONS
You are the focus for a few minutes.
 Your remarks are intended to generate
discussion.
 Even if the meeting is informal, you still need to
prepare your part.
 If you have been asked to speak to an issue at
some length (over 2 or 3 minutes), you should
prepare a more thorough presentation than you
would for a small group meeting.

INFORMAL, PREPARED
PRESENTATIONS (Continued)

Determine what you’ve been asked to do:
Prepare an overview (for example, of a specific
technology)
 Give the background or history of a project
 Present two alternative plans of action
 Summarize a policy or procedure currently in place or
that is being proposed


Check with your supervisor to find out how long
you should talk.
INFORMAL, PREPARED
PRESENTATIONS (Continued)
Find out the time and scope of your presentation.
 Prepare a point-form outline of what you want to
say:

Use presentation software to prepare the outline.
 Distribute copies of the slides as handouts.
 Use the “outline” feature in a word-processing
program.

INFORMAL, PREPARED
PRESENTATIONS (Continued)
Decide on your main points.
 Then decide if your audience needs more detailed
information.
 Consider how much information your audience
needs to know at this point for this meeting and
then provide it.
 You can have additional materials to distribute if
they request more information.

FORMAL PRESENTATIONS
Speaking to a larger group (15 people plus) is
different.
 Larger groups behave differently.
 Not everyone pays attention; some people may
leave (for whatever reason).
 These activities can distract you from what you
are trying to communicate.
 Invitations to speak formally come well in
advance of when you will actually give the
presentation.
 You should have at least a week or more to
prepare for your speech.

FORMAL PRESENTATIONS
(Continued)

Identify the specific details of the engagement:
How many people are expected to attend?
 Who, specifically, will be there? Your supervisor?
Clients?
 Is this a mixed group with varying levels of
background knowledge, or a group whose members
share a common background?
 What is the venue? How large is the room? What
does it look like?

FORMAL PRESENTATIONS
(Continued)
How will the room be set up: rows of
chairs? Tables?
 Can the lighting of the room be controlled
to allow for presentation slides?
 Will you be able to set up whatever
technology you need ahead of time? Can
you use your own technology (laptop)?
 Is this primarily an information session or
a presentation to a decision-making body?


Answers to these questions will help you
decide what materials to use in the
presentation.
FORMAL PRESENTATIONS
(Continued)
If you cannot use your own laptop, consider
storing your presentation on a key drive and
running it from equipment in the room.
 If your audience is a diverse group, you may not
be able to assume that they know much about
your topic.
 You may have to explain terms and concepts that
some of them do not know.

FORMAL PRESENTATIONS FOR
DECISION-MAKING GROUPS
For a decision-making group,
make sure you are well
prepared.
 Provide only the information
they need to know.
 Consider delivering only the
main points of your topic and
preparing a fuller discussion in
handouts that they can read
later.

FORMAL PRESENTATIONS FOR
INFORMING GROUPS
Information-based presentations are less intense
than decision-making presentations.
 Focus is on the subject itself rather than on
finalizing policy changes.
 Decide what kinds of information should be
presented in handouts and what kinds could be
summarized in a presentation slide.
 Do you need to demonstrate anything?

INFORMING GROUPS

Plan your presentation so you
inform your audience in an
interesting way:
Show examples
 Lead demonstrations
 Engage listeners interactively in
a discussion

BASIC GUIDELINES FOR
PREPARING PRESENTATIONS
Decide what information to include in your
presentation slides or outline and what to put
into a handout.
 Determine how much background to present
early in the presentation.
 Organize your presentation so listeners can
follow your thoughts as you move through the
material.
 Create visuals to accompany your verbal
descriptions.

OUTLINE FOR ONE WAY TO
ORGANIZE A PRESENTATION
Interesting opening
 Description of topic
 Definition of any special terms
 Brief description of how information was
gathered
 Presentation of main ideas
 Conclusions
 Questions

GUIDELINES FOR GIVING
PRESENTATIONS
Take advantage of the immediacy
of having live human beings in the
same room with you.
 Stand so that your audience can
see the visuals that you display on
the screen.
 Control the timing of the slides so
that you control when the
presentation moves from one topic
to another.
 Breathe!

PREPARATION IS KEY
Prepare yourself.
 Handouts and interesting slides give your
audience something to look at other than you.
 The care you have taken to prepare will be
obvious, and listeners will respond, encouraging
you to continue.
 Once you begin well, you have a good chance of
finishing well.

IN-CLASS EXERCISE 13.2 :
INTRODUCING YOURSELF (PAGE 303)
Take three or four minutes to prepare a 60second summary of who you are and where you
are in your program of study.
 When everyone in the class is prepared, you will
take turns standing up in front of the whole class
to deliver your summary.
