Presentation Skills for Technical Professionals

I once asked my youngest daughter what she thought I did for work, and she said, "You sit on Zoom and give people your opinion all day." While there's more to my day than that, she's not entirely wrong! As you climb the career ladder, your schedule fills with presentations—some inspiring, others not so much. Here’s how to make sure yours stands out when presenting to senior leaders: 1. Be Specific, Not Overly Detailed: You've probably heard, "Keep it high-level for executives; avoid the weeds." True, but don't swing too far into the abstract. Ground your points with concrete facts and data. For instance, instead of saying, "Some code deployments aren't automated and there are opportunities for improvement," try, "Our analysis shows 25% of code deployments require manual effort, particularly in post-change validations and service restarts." 2. Harness the Power of Storytelling: Transform your presentation into a captivating narrative. Stories make data relatable and memorable. Start with a real-world example, like a customer struggling with your current system, highlight the problem and then move on to your solution. 3. Start with the 'Why': Dive into the heart of your proposal by explaining its significance. Why should your audience care? How does it align with their goals? For example, "By automating these processes, we not only boost efficiency but also advance our strategic goal of enhancing customer satisfaction." 4. Foster a Dialogue, Not a Monologue: Remember, communication is a two-way street. Anticipate your audience's reactions and be ready to engage. Hit your key points swiftly, avoid over-explaining, and focus on insights that empower decision-making. After presenting, ask questions to invite discussion. These strategies can help you tie together facts, emotions, and strategic insights, making your message not just heard, but remembered and acted upon. #presentationtips #careertips #careeradvice

I bombed my first major client presentation. (And it taught me the most important lesson of my career) I walked in confident: • Dashboard was polished • Visuals were clean • Analysis was solid 10 minutes in, the room went quiet. Then came the questions: "Why are we looking at this?" "How does this help us hit our goals?" "What do you want us to 𝘥𝘰 with this?" I had built exactly what I thought they needed. But I never asked what they actually cared about. That's when I learned: 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁. Here's what changed everything for me: 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗽 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗽𝗿𝗲-𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 The meeting shouldn't be where stakeholders first see your work. I now do quick 1:1s before any major presentation: • "Here's what I'm planning to show..." • "Does this answer your questions?" • "What matters most to you?" No surprises = better outcomes. 𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗵𝗼'𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗺 If Finance, Sales, and Operations are all attending? They care about completely different things. Finance wants cost implications. Sales wants pipeline impact. Operations wants process efficiency. One presentation can't serve everyone the same way. 𝗔𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 "𝘀𝗼 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁?" Never leave them wondering what to do next. Weak ending: "Here's what the data shows." Strong ending: "Based on this, we should prioritize X because Y." 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆: Your technical skills got you in the room. Your communication skills keep you there. Data work without stakeholder alignment is just busywork. ♻️ Share this with someone preparing for a high-stakes presentation. Follow me for lessons learned the hard way in analytics consulting.

No one learns by being talked at. Adults learn by doing, reflecting, and trying again. Last week, I had the privilege of leading a presentation skills workshop for the ESCP - European Society of Coloproctology. What stood out? The energy in the room. A small, engaged group of professionals fully invested in leveling up their skills. Within the first 45 minutes, participants were already presenting. Why? Because real growth comes from action. You can’t master communication by sitting back and listening. You have to step in, try, and refine. Here are three techniques we practiced (and you can start using today): → State your one-sentence takeaway *before* showing a slide. This sets the stage for your audience. → Open with a clear promise of value, then guide your audience with a structured agenda. → Use the PRA method for Q&A: Pause. Reframe the question. Answer with 1-2-3 points for clarity. By the end of the day, the progress was visible. Confidence grew. Messages became sharper. And every participant left with tools to amplify their impact. Thank you to Gabrielle van Ramshorst and the ESCP team for creating a space where curiosity and commitment thrived. If your organization or leadership team is ready for practical, hands-on training that delivers measurable improvement, let’s talk. Together, we can build clarity, confidence, and connection.

I have seen it a hundred times... A new hire, full of potential, ready to make their mark. Then, that potential gets squandered by a lack of focused training. I was working with a tech company with an incredibly talented new hire named Michael. He was exceptional with data analysis but fell flat when presenting his findings to stakeholders. His reports were dense with technical data all over the PowerPoint slides and charts, and they were so small that they were nearly unreadable. The leadership kept hurrying Michael through his presentations, seemingly uninterested in his work. Michael, clearly frustrated, confided in me, "Jay, I'm putting in all this work, but the leadership isn't using it." The culprit? A training gap. The leadership felt Michael was "not getting the job" and he was sent to training on how to use the internal systems. As an expert in his field, Michael was frustrated with having to redo remedial courses and felt like the leadership should be taking them instead. In reality, no one had equipped Michael with the skills to translate complex data into clear, actionable stories. So, we shifted his training to focus on presentation skills: 📕 Storytelling: Teaching Michael how to weave a narrative around the data, highlighting key trends and insights. 👁️🗨️ Visual Communication: Equipping him with design principles to create clear and concise charts and graphs. 🎯 Audience Awareness: Tailoring his presentations to his stakeholders' specific needs and knowledge level. The impact was immediate, and Michael's next presentation surprised the leadership team. The stakeholders were engaged, asking questions, and appreciative of the insights. Michael admitted, "I was seriously close to quitting, and if I had to do one more of those systems training, I would have!" This emphasizes the importance of offering the right training. Conducting proper needs analysis and getting to the heart of the issue saved this company from losing a talented employee. Learning is not just about teaching skills; it's about empowering individuals with the right skills to produce the needed business outcomes. Have you ever been required to attend a training that felt like a waste of time? What was that experience like for you? If you think your organization can use some help in bridging the gap between learning and performance, let's talk. #training #dataanalysis #professionaldevelopment #learninganddevelopment #communication #maketrainingmatter

Think about the last presentation you sat through. Do you remember anything from it? Probably not. Most presentations fail because they are: ❌ Overloaded with bullet points ❌ Devoid of emotion ❌ Data dumps with no clear story The good news? You can make your presentation unforgettable with these 7 simple shifts: 1. Start with a Hook, Not an Intro Most presenters begin with "I'm excited to be here today..." and lose the audience immediately. Fix: Grab attention from the start. Example: “Your company is losing $10M a year—and you don’t even know why.” 2. Tell a Story, Not Just Data People remember stories, not statistics. Instead of listing facts, wrap them in a compelling narrative. Fix: Use the “Problem → Struggle → Solution” technique. Example: "Before using our system, Sarah’s team spent 3 hours a day on reports. She tried different tools, but nothing worked—until she found our solution. Now? Just 15 minutes a day." 3. Use Contrast & Surprise The brain is wired for novelty. If your presentation sounds predictable, people will tune out. Fix: Vary your tone, pace, and visuals. Drop in an unexpected question, statistic, or pause to keep them engaged. 4. Say Less, Mean More Too much information overloads the audience. They’ll remember nothing. Fix: Cut the fluff. Stick to one core message per slide, per section, per speech. 5. Make It Visual Bullet points don’t inspire. Images and metaphors do. Fix: Instead of saying “Our product is faster,” show a race car next to a bicycle. 6. End with a Bang, Not a Fizzle Most presentations end with “Thank you” and no real impact. Fix: Leave them with one key idea and a clear next step. Example: “If you only take away one thing today, let it be this…” 7. Master the Pause Most speakers talk too fast and leave no room for ideas to sink in. Fix: Silence is power. Pause after key points to let them land. 💡 A great presentation isn’t about information—it’s about transformation. Make your next one impossible to forget. What’s the most memorable presentation you’ve ever seen? Drop a comment below! ⬇

I have a confession to make. I have been guilty of putting people to sleep during my presentations. Unfortunately, not once, but many times. I could blame it on the complexities of tech topics or the dryness of the subject. I could always console myself by saying that at least it's not as sleep-inducing as financial presentations (sorry, my friends in Finance). Deep down, though, I knew that even the most complicated and dry topics could come alive. As with anything, it's a skill and can be improved upon. Thus, I turned to my friend Christopher Chin, Communication Coach for Tech Professionals, for some much-needed advice. He shared these 5 presentation tips guaranteed to leave a lasting impression: 1/ Speak to Their Needs, Not Your Wants Don’t just say what you like talking about or what your audience wants to hear. Say what your audience needs to hear based on their current priorities and pain points: that sets your presentation up to be maximally engaging 2/ Slides Support, You Lead Slides are not the presentation. You are the presentation. Your slides should support your story and act as visual reinforcement rather than as the main star of the show.  Consider holding off on making slides until you have your story clear. That way, you don’t end up making more slides than you need or making slides more verbose than you need 3/ Start with a Bang, Not a Whisper The beginning of a presentation is one of the most nerve-wracking parts for you as the speaker and one of the most attention-critical parts for your audience. If you don’t nail the beginning, there’s a good chance you lose the majority of people. Consider starting with something that intrigues your audience, surprises them, concerns them, or makes them want to learn more. 4/ Think Conversation, Not Presentation One-way presentations where the speaker just talks “at” the audience lead to dips in attention and poorer reception of the material. Consider integrating interactive elements like polls and Q&A throughout a presentation (rather than just at the very end) to make it feel more like a conversation. 5/ Finish Strong with a Clear CTA We go through all the effort of preparing, creating, and delivering a presentation to cause some change in behavior. End with a powerful call to action that reminds your audience why they were in attendance and what they should do as soon as they leave the room. By integrating these, you won't just present; you'll captivate. Say goodbye to snoozing attendees and hello to a gripped audience. 😴 Repost if you've ever accidentally put someone to sleep with a presentation. We've all been there!

I didn't turn up to my presentation for Deutsche Bank and AnitaB.org. I prepared the slides. I put a lot of thought into why each and every tip was important. Yet at the end of the day, I wasn't there... I was sick 🤢 Still, their loss is your gain, because I've turned everything from that presentation into a blog post for your convenience! 🥳 In it, I cover the core of presenting technical concepts and/or digitalisation proposals to non-technical stakeholders. SPOILER: it's more about listening and watching than it is about convincing! Here's the summary for those not wanting to read the whole thing: 🧐 Speak their language: ask about existing knowledge and establish what 'level' the stakeholder wants to speak at. No need to jump into architecture if they only want to know about personnel requirements. 😳 Cater to the lowest level in the room: Try to modify your explanations so that everyone gets it. Even those with more technical experience can learn from hearing a non-technical explanation. 🤩 Focus on collaboration and co-creation: Don't view it as a pitch, but rather as a chance to design a solution together. Be open to "teach don't preach" if they do look for more details. 👏 Be direct about resistance: Communicate options, and interpret resistance as an opportunity to put their minds at ease or to design a different solution together. 🤫 Practice active listening: 'Listening' sometimes happens with the eyes, not the ears. Look for moments when people tune out, change topics, or fidget more. You're losing your audience! 🚙 Use metaphors: Bridges, factories, post offices, architecture, and housing construction have all been metaphors I have used for explaining software engineering concepts to non-technical stakeholders. 🧙🏻♀️ Incorporate storytelling: Where possible, use real-world stories to illustrate processes, for example on how software engineering teams work using agile approaches, or versioning control. 😎 Be their resource: View these talks as the start of your relationship beyond this specific project. Position yourself to be their 'go to tech person' when they need something clarified. --- What do you think? #engineeringmanagement #technicalcommunication #strategiccommunication #pitching https://lnkd.in/eNQ5stUW