Professional Communication (Course Code: MBB 3443) Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) Professor Dr. Ahmad Bin Othman School of Business and Management.

Professional Communication(Course Code: MBB 3443) Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA)

Professor Dr. Ahmad Bin Othman

School of Business and ManagementUniversity College of Technology Sarawak (UCTS)

96000 Sibu, Sarawak

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Today’s Agenda (Week #7)

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Preparing and delivering presentationsDecide on the general purposeSelect a topicDevelop the specific purpose statementDevelop the main idea statementGather supporting materialResearch the topicApply the information learned from the audience analysisStructure the main ideas in the body of the speechOutline the speechDevelop the introduction and conclusionRehearsal and delivery considerations

There are two general purposes to speaking in business:

To inform – teach, demonstrate, or instruct and audience on

some topic or process. Eg. Corporate training seminars,

technical presentation.

To persuade – induce an audience to accept a belief or

action. Eg. Sales presentations, proposal presentations, crisis

briefings.

Decide on the general purpose

When selecting a topic for presentation, consider personal experience and interest.

Also, the speaker should consider the audience’s expectation about the occasion.

If the presentation is part of serious discussion, a lighthearted, informative presentation is inappropriate.

If audience expects a brief review, an extensive persuasive appeal is also wrong.

Select a topic

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Once the speaker has a topic, the real work of creating the presentation begins.

The next step in the process is the specific purpose statement which focuses

the speech on one aspect of a larger topic.

The specific purpose statement does not specify what the speaker intends to

say, instead, it states the audience outcome that the speaker desires.

The outcome is related to the general purpose of the speech – may include

understanding (if the purpose is to inform) or belief (if the purpose is to

persuade).

Develop the specific purpose statement

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Example:-

.. I want my audience to understand pollution… (the important term is pollution, is

vague. What kind of pollution will the speech cover – surface, water, groundwater,

soil or air pollution?

A better speech…. I want my audience to understand the sources of groundwater

pollution in our town. (this purpose is precise ecause it narrows the subject)

Develop the specific purpose statement

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After the specific purpose has been clarified, it is time to consider the main ideas.

The main idea statement is a precise statement. Eg.

Main idea: in this speech, I will cover the five categories of nuclear waste: high-level, low-

level, transuranic, mill tailings and mixed waste.

The main idea statement serves as a guide for outlining the body of the speech.

Develop the main idea statement

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As you develop and refine the main idea statement, it is appropriate to collect

supporting material. Main ideas need example, statistical support and

quotation from experts for clarity and proof.

EXAMPLES. – Examples are specific instances that illustrate a larger point. An

example can be factual (the instance really happened), or hypothetical (the

instance is a composite of real incidents or speaker’s guess about a future event).

Gather supporting material

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Factual example:-

“the major risk in area 5 involves the large compressors. As many of you recall, 5

years ago a malfunction in one of the large compressors caused it to begin

belching smoke. When an employee entered the building to investigate, the

compressor exploded, causing second-degree burns to 20% of employee’s body

and a fire in the building that shut down the plant for 2 days”

Gather supporting material

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Hypothetical example:-

“what would have happened if you had invested $5000 in a mutual

fund last year, and over that year the fund had risen from a value of

$21 a share to a value of $32? That equals more than a 52% increase

in the value of your stock. A 52% increase on $5000 equals $2600.”

Hypothetical examples are more useful for illustration than persuasion

because they do not prove anything. So, if you have choice, use factual

rather than hypothetical examples

Gather supporting material

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STATISTICS – statistics are a collection of individual examples

delivered as raw number or averages

Example – raw figure

“employers cut a more-than-expected 263,000 jobs in September as

major industries such as manufacturing and construction continued to

shed tens of thousands of workers”

Example – raw numbers are averaged

“despite the latest drop, job losses continue to moderate from earlier this year. An

average of 307,000 jobs were lost monthly May through September, verses

645,000 from Novemver to April”

Gather supporting material

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TESTIMONY – testimony is a direct quotation or paraphrases of

witnesses, experts, or other informed people. Quotation can make

ideas memorable or add credibility to your persuasive appeal.

Gather supporting material

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Research involves collecting supporting material for the specific

purpose and main idea statements.

Typical research tools for professional presentations are the library,

the internet, and the interview.

USING THE LIBRARY – computerized catalog can run book searches

by title, author or subject.

USING THE INTERNET –

CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS – Interviews can be face-to-face,

telephone, or internet conversations with experts.

Research the topic

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After the initial research, it is time to consider audience feedback.

Questions on the audience analysis checklist features relevant to

professional presentations

Apply the information learned from the audience analysis

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Situation Analysis

•Occasion

• Why has the audience gathered to hear this speech? What expectation?

• What level of formality is expected?

• Are other speakers making presentations?

•Organizational culture

• Are there any informal conventions or norms for speakers?

• How will questions be handled?

• Who makes decisions? Will decision makers be present?

Audience analysis checklist

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Situation Analysis

•Environment

• How large is the room?

• What is the layout?

• What visual aids can be used?

•Time

• How long should the speech last?

Audience analysis checklist

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Audience analysis checklist

Listener Analysis

•Demographics

• Are there any relevant demographic features you need to adapt to?

•Captivity

• Is the audience voluntary or captive?

•Predisposition toward the speaker

• Is your credibility high, low or neutral?

• Does the audience believe the speaker is trustworthy?

• Does the audience believe the speaker displays goodwill?

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Audience analysis checklist

Listener Analysis

•Predisposition toward the topic

• You can have a quick survey by distributing survey questions to audience

• Knowledge

• Have you heard about this topic before?

• Briefly discuss what you know about this topic

• Describe any previous experience about this topic

• Meaning

• Describe your basic attitude toward this topic

• What is you opinion of this topic?

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Structure the main ideas in the body of the speech

Speeches are divided into three major parts:-

The introduction

The body

The conclusion

The introduction – should gain attention, justify the topic, clarify the

speaker’s credibility and preview the main points in the body of the

speech.

The body – contains the main ideas

The conclusion – review main ideas and emphasizes the specific purpose

statement.

The most common mistake made in developing presentations is

information overload.

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Structure the main ideas in the body of the speech

There are five patterns for structuring speech content.

CHRONOLOGICAL STRUCTURE – the chronological structure follows a

time pattern that moves from earliest to latest or from first to last.

SPATIAL STRUCTURE – the spatial structure follows a geographic or

directional pattern when someone covers something from top to bottom

or right to left.

CAUSE-EFFECT AND EFFECT-CAUSE STRUCTURE – the cause-effect

structure describes how one events leads to another. This structure is

especially useful in technical presentations.

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Structure the main ideas in the body of the speech

PROBLEM-SOLUTION STRUCTURE – the problem-solution structure

defines a difficulty and suggests a remedy. Extremely popular in proposal

and sales presentations, the problem-solution structure can also be used

in technical and risk communication.

TOPICAL STRUCTURE – the topical structure is used when the speaker

divides a topic into logical categories.

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Outline the speech

Two outlines – one for preparing the speech, and the other one

for delivering the speech.

THE PREPARATION OUTLINE – the preparation outline is a full-sentence

outline of virtually everything the speaker intends to say.

THE DELIVERY OUTLINE – the delivery outline is an abbreviated version

of the preparation outline.

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Develop the introduction and conclusion

The Introduction – the basic introduction should accomplish four

purposes:-

Gain the audience’s attention

Justify the importance of the topic to the particular audience

Build the speaker’s credibility or authority on the subject

Preview the main points in the body of the speech.

The Conclusion – the conclusion puts the speech back together by tying

the end back to the beginning.

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Rehearsal and delivery considerations

The verbal portion of the message accounts for as little as

10% of the total meaning of that message, non-verbal cues

account for the rest (90%).

Therefore, attending to a few vocal and physical cues will

ensure strong delivery.

Observe appropriate volume and rate. – need to be louder

and slower than normal conversation.

ThankThank youyou

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