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Author
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Topic: Strategic Planning Oral Presentation January 2003
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Doug
Proprietor
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posted January 14, 2003 08:03 PM
   
How did it go tonight at the MBA 613 Strategic Planning Training Session?I would like you to evaluate this training session far more thoroughly than you evaluated each others' final presentations for MBA 504. You were so very nice and polite. But tonight is different. As Kevin Martin would say, "Push it up a notch." (Wouldn't you, Kevin?) Yes, it's nice to get warm and fuzzy comments like "Great job!" but they aren't very useful. Useful feedback is something that will cause those fellow students to do things differently next time. Tonight's presenters are seasoned veterans, hardened by the slings and arrows of many, many evaluations. They can take it. Well, all except Sal Schiavone. But the rest of them are tough. This Roundtable topic is designed to go beyond warm and fuzzy. What is most useful is description. To give you a vocabulary, please take a look at the page called Presentations. When giving feedback, describe: > what you learned
> what you saw and heard
> how you felt about it Quantity of response is good because you don't know what the presenters are going to find most useful. It's ok if you don't remember names or exact quotes. Say back in your own words what you heard the presenters trying to do. Point to words or phrases that stick in your mind. Where was your interest the highest? The lowest? Why? What the most persuasive part? Why? What was the funniest thing that happened? What made it so funny? What did you learn about presenting that will cause you to do something different for your next presentation? Maybe presentation isn't strong enough. More than a presentation, this training session was a production, in interactive theatrical production. Go right down the list on the page called Oral Presentations as Theater: director, scriptwriter, actor, stage manager. For example, describe the presenters' voice, posture, attitude, language, etc. Which one did you like the most? to do In response to this message, write at length about the training session presented by the MBA 613 class. I recommend that you compose your message off-line and save it before you copy-and-paste it into the Bistro reply box. Over the course of the next week, add more messages to this discussion by responding to other students' messages. [This message has been edited by Doug (edited January 14, 2003).] |
mdr33
Member
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posted January 15, 2003 10:26 AM
What I really liked about the presentation last night was that it gave me more insight into a subject I knew nothing about. I felt that everyone did a good job and came well prepared. I also felt that everyone had command of the subject and I could sense the passion they had in presenting the case study. I thought everyone put a great amount of time and energy into this presentation. I applaud you for your hard work and dedication.
I have to admit as a presentation goes I did see some major problems. So like Doug stated "let's turn this a notch". So here goes. First of all, I felt like at times the presentation went off course. It drifted from the main objective which was to present a case study for a business plan and ended up as some interactive side show. There was way too much commotion at times. Also, we had people in the audience who felt like they knew more about the subject than they really did. Really people, did anyone read the case study before entering class ? I don't think so and to me it was really evident. I thought it was totally rude and unacceptable for some in the audience to try and BULLY the presenters into accepting your beliefs. I don't blame the presenters for the audiences behavior but what I do blame them for is the several confrontations that took place during the presentation that should have never happened or at the very least should have been defused. After all, again this wasn't meant to be a debate, it was a presentation. I felt that these confrontations allowed all of the presenters to lose control of the class and their presentation. At that point I became totally disgusted with the whole thing and tuned everyone out.
I also thought as a presentation goes it wasn't fluid enough-too much stop and go. There was way too many people standing around doing nothing or talking in the back of the room where my attention became focused on them and not the presentation. Also, at one time Michelle walked right in front of the projector and blocked the whole screen. We also were treated to an email notification displaying during the presentation. I viewed this as unprofessional. I understand that they wanted to get us (class) involved but honestly I felt like a zoo animal when candy was being tossed at me for answering a question correctly. I have never been to a presentation where I have had food or candy thrown my way.
As I stated above I thought the subject matter was good and helpful but as a presentation goes it left a lot to be desired. In fairness to the people who put on the presentation my feelings might have been different had some people allowed them to present the subject matter and not pulled a power play. I would have just made this a presentation and not an interactive project. [This message has been edited by mdr33 (edited January 15, 2003).] [This message has been edited by mdr33 (edited January 15, 2003).] |
LisaD
Junior Member
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posted January 15, 2003 01:45 PM
Way to go Mike! I think you really hit a lot of points on the head!I went to the presentation with hopes of learning something. And yes Mike, at least one of us read the case study ahead of time! The website was designed nicely and you can tell time on research was done. During the presentation I followed along for the most part, so the website was easy to follow. I question if we really needed our pcs, maybe too much of a distraction? I watched the people I could see around me and probably to their credit they weren't clicking along which was the smart thing to do since what you needed was coming from the presenter. I felt the presenters knew their subject and had command of their topic. If not for the commotion in the room, we might have learned more. There was a good transition between speakers at the beginning of the presentation. I agree with Mike that there was too much going on in the room.. people running around.. people walking behind me.. talking behind me.. something beeping behind me.. the screen was blocked.. and why was someone writing on a flip chart in the front of the room? With all the noises in the room that scratching noise was even more annoying! I also agree there was too much confrontation in the room. This was a simple learning exercise that I expected to participate in, but I certainly didn't expect to be arguing the points to be made! My assumption was that this was a 'lecture' that all the research was done and it was being presented.. I was also not expecting a debate! Maybe if everyone had read the case study ahead of time that might have been understood! For the class, I wouldn't take critcism too badly. We learn from our mistakes. I can guess you put your heart and soul into the work to get the presentation together and are now feeling you had an unruly audience! Your subject was fine, your ability to present is fine.. but a little work on controlling the room is something to work on. Decide ahead of time where people are to be and have them stay there, quietly, while your talking. There are techniques for speakers to regain control of the room, of refocusing the audience. I feel the speakers could have done this if there wasn't so much activity in the room. Since there were so many people in the room, a suggestion would have been for the people assigned to a table to have sat down at the table for the entire presentation. As a member of a table, I would have felt more like we were a team than having 2 people controlling what we were doing. I give the class credit for jumping in on a subject that the didn't see covered in the program. Your passion for the topic was evident. As in everything improvements can be made. For the presenters, a little more practice presenting.. for the audience, do the preassignment BEFORE class and come to a 'presentation' to learn! |
Phyllis Jay
Member
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posted January 15, 2003 03:18 PM
I felt the presentation was very informative and that the presenters that were chosen to talk were knowledgable about the subject matter. They seemed as though they spent some quality time on planning the presentation. Their main goal was to keep our interest and have everyone participating.
I thought the topic was very interesting. It is always good to hear of a successful business venture. This company will some day be very large and powerful because they do have an advantage over companies that have a hard time trying to keep up laws, rules and regulations. The biggest fear they face is competition. But, doesn't every company? It is all in the planning and organizational structure of how they will plan to be the top dog in the industry.
I didn't mind the word game but thought that they should elaborate on some of the ideas that were given pertaining to strategic planning. I seen that the one group had 32 words and was curious to know what some of them were.
The candy rewards started to get to be a bit much. After a while, it was just being thrown at you for every time you had input. I know the intention was good but after all, it was a presentation.
I overheard some debate going on with one of the presenters and someone from the audience. That was hard to believe. I immediately thought that the presenter must have had some strong heartfelt opinions on the matter and wanted let it be known. Seeing that it was just an exercise and also a school project, I thought the behavior was inappropriate.
Overall, the audience seemed to maintain a high interest level. I know the presenters put forth some hard work and commend them for getting up and doing what they did. I know hard it is and would hope to have the same level of participation. |
shellbe26
Junior Member
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posted January 16, 2003 05:07 PM
The 613 presentation on Tuesday was very informative and well put together, but I felt like it was more of a learning workshop for SWOT rather than a presentation on PEOs. We were not informed in advance to read the case study and although it didn’t seem like a problem, I think things would have gone more smoothly. I think everyone did a good job at the job they were assigned. It just seemed like Karl and Michelle did most of the work and was really excited about this project. That is not to say that no one else was but again we were unaware of individual roles. I personally like hands on learning and enjoyed the group work. I could tell that a lot of planning and excitement went into this project and it was well worth it. Interacting with another class opened my eyes to what I will encounter in the future. I am really impressed with the whole idea of a class coming together and agreeing on a issue that they find important and be given the opportunity to expand on it, and create a useful tool actually needed out in business world.
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KArndt
Junior Member
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posted January 17, 2003 07:01 PM
The presentation that was made on tues. night I found to be very informative. It was clear to me from the very beginning that the MBA613 class was well prepared. The research that was behind this presentation had to be extensive. The problems that I found during this presentation is that the presentors lost control of the audience. They were organized but they didn't expect audience responses. I agree with Mike that it basically became a debate! The candy throwing became a bit annoying. My personal feeling was that there were too many people in such a small space! Indivual conversations were occuring and it was hard to hear the actual presentors. The noise level in that room became a huge distraction. Most of us didn't read the case and that threw the presentors a curve ball that they weren't prepared for. They tried to fix the problem with a quick solution but it didn't turn out that way. |
LaraJ88
Member
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posted January 18, 2003 06:12 PM
I agree with pretty much everything else that was said. The presenters did know a lot about their topic, and they were willing to answer questions. The activities kept everything moving along fluidly as well. However, I thought that it was more of a workshop than a presentation. It would have helped if we would have known about the whole case study thing so that the group wouldn't have had to back track right at the beginning. Also, I think that maybe if I'd read the case study thoroughly ahead of time, I might have been more into things. It might have helped if they would have told us at the beginning of things that only a couple of people would be doing the main presenting. I didn't quite get what the other people were supposed to be doing until they told us at the end when we questioned it. If I would have known what they were there for, then they might have seemed like less of a distraction. All in all, though, they did a great job. They handled the issue of us not reading the case study well while still keeping things on schedule. As with any presentation, there are always things that could have been done differently, but I think that, given the fact that this is the first time this course has been done this way, it was good. |
KevinX
Junior Member
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posted January 20, 2003 10:12 PM
I thought the strategic planning presentation was good. First and foremost the subject of the presentation was interesting from my perspective. The expectation established when it was announced to class was not met although I still found it informative. The presentation did provide great resources, which I will be able to utilize in my follow-up on the subject matter. The introduction of the speakers and group was OK. I would have liked an overview to establish expectations for the presentation program, and everyone’s role in the presentation.
The voice and the dress of the presenters were appropriate for the situation. Their voices reflected their knowledge of the subject matter which exuded confidence. The visual aids were a mixed bag. I was able to follow the projection on the wall which provided structure to the presentation. The laptops on the desks were a distraction. I find that when people have individual laptops to follow a presentation, you lose a certain amount of control. The audience is looking for certain pages, or scrolling forward and not paying attention to the presenters. The interaction with the audience was a positive. The presentation did include the audience in the program from the beginning. Personally I would have enjoyed it more with less audience and more presentation. The program dragged a bit due to audience interaction. You run the risk that a member of the audience will take over, which occurred to some degree when you interact without strict guidelines. I felt we missed certain items that were planned, by lack of time which was a result of the audience interactions. The Webpage were professional in appearance which established a positive image for the presentation. The contents and links were informative and resourceful. The webpage as a tool is best used before and after the presentation. The presentation would have been better served with a slideshow. One area that was missing was the theatrics. I liked to be informed and entertained. I need beats to establish ambiance. Just a personal preference which I believe could have enhanced the presentation before, during, and after.
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