1. Presentation

Subject title Presentation

Purpose of the activity To introduce the participants with the features of effective presentation and preparation for it.

Duration (together with presentation workshop): 3-4 hours.

Location and tools Paper, writing tools, projector, computers, presentation creation programs (PowerPoint, Photoshop, Illustrator, Canva).

Number of participants 10–20 participants.

Acquaintance/ team building methods Each participant is asked to create a slide about himself/herself. You are encouraged to use creativity for this: the slide can be on paper, on the phone, on a computer or in any other format. After 10 minutes of preparation, each participant introduces himself/herself briefly using this slide he/she has created.

Practical tasks Participants are divided into groups of 3–4 people. The task can also be performed by one person independently. Each group is asked to create a 10 minutes presentation on an indicated topic. The groups can choose the topics independently, or the leader can invite them to draw leaflets with pre-prepared topics and presentation tasks. The presentation should consist of a presentation and a speech. All participants must be involved in all parts of the preparation of the presentation as well as the public presentation itself. 1 hour is given for preparation. At the end of the preparation period, all groups deliver their presentations, and all other groups, together with the leader, provide feedback: identify strengths, areas for improvement and give advice for the future.

End of session reflection methods At the end of the session, each participant shares what they received in person from this session and what will come in handy in the future.

Notes to the leader During the session, it is important for the leader to present the topic in an exemplary manner, using well-designed slides, providing examples of various presentations, inviting the listeners to discuss which presentation variants are good, which are not very suitable and why?

THEORETICAL INFORMATION

Public presentation always requires a lot of both physical and psychological preparation. After all, in many cases, a well-prepared presentation, correctly placed accents and qualitatively conveyed the main message of the idea can become a guarantee of success in building collaborative relationships, concluding deals or positioning oneself. Therefore, it would be important to emphasize the following points during the session: • how to set the purpose of the presentation;

• what the presentation structure looks like and what is its “gold standard”;

• how to organize the content of the presentation and format the presentation.

PURPOSE OF PRESENTATION

The first most important thing on which the basis of the whole presentation is based is its purpose. In order to formulate the purpose as clearly as possible, it is sufficient to answer a few questions indicated below. The structure and essence of the message which is being sent to the audience will depend on them. 1. What do listeners want to receive from this presentation? All of your presentation time (or a major portion of it) will be dedicated to satisfying your audience’s query. In order to respond to a query, it is important to know in advance to which target group the presentation is planned to be given and to clearly understand the goals of the people who came to listen to you. Once the audience is made up of investors, their query will be related to the search for a project which could justify the amount of resources invested and provide a quick financial return. And this means that during the presentation it is important to draw the listeners’ attention to the most attractive parts of the project or business model, the description of the market and its needs, emphasizing why now is the best time to implement the specific project which is being delivered.

2. What do I want to get out of this presentation myself? In answering this question, it is important for the presenter to answer to himself/herself what he/she is specifically aiming for with this presentation and what expectations he/she has for the listening audience. Presentations can be given for information purposes, but in many cases the main purpose is sales (of an idea, a project, a model, a product, etc.) For example, if a presentation is being prepared to attract the attention of investors and receive an offer of their cooperation, the entire focus of the presentation should be on formulating persuasive arguments. After all, the most important thing will be to prove the advantage of the presented idea over others, to highlight the strengths, to demonstrate the results already achieved and the available resources to overcome the challenges. In addition, it is usually important for investors to know what social needs the proposed idea meets and what links it to the common interests.

3. What is the main idea I want to present? In answering this question, the focus shifts to a presentation in which, when the layout is clearly structured, the idea is perfectly viewed from all sides. It is important to tell the story of the idea, why it is precious to you, what components it consists of and what makes the idea unique. It is also important to briefly present the plans for the further development of the idea, describing the target customer group, the required resources, as well as to present the actions already performed and the actions planned to be performed in the near future.

4. What is the main thesis of the idea I am transmitting? This question is particularly important when little time is given for the presentation (1 to 3 minutes). Usually such a condition and a very limited period of time is given in start-up competitions. During the short presentation it is necessary to tell the problem in a very concentrated way, findings related to it, as well as to briefly introduce the developed business model in organizing the implementation of the idea: to express the main thesis, its proof, highlight strengths and possible weaknesses and solutions to potential challenges. It is evident that the purpose of the presentation determines its structure. If we try to formulate a universal set of key components, it will contain the following key questions:

what? to whom? how? how effective? why now? what’s next?

The general elements that could appear in the presentation as the main ones are the following: • the purpose of the project which is being presented • target customer group • problem description

• original and innovative solutions which are being offered

• market characteristics

• competitors’ analysis

• a description of the business model, highlighting its uniqueness

• methods of implementing the idea • dissemination and communication solutions

• implementation plan • narration of actions already taken

• financial calculations

• team presentation The presentation should necessarily end with addressing the audience, inviting them to take action, because it is in this part when the listeners understand why this story was precisely dedicated to them.

THE LAYOUT OF THE PRESENTATION

Many tips for a successful presentation can be narrowed down to a few essential points, which are described below.

1. Firstly, preparation for presentation is based on the collection and analysis of information. It is important to understand how realistic the theses and goals are, as well as to make sure that the language of the presentation will be clear and understandable to the audience for whom it is intended. For example, if a presentation is being prepared for a start-up staff, it would not be worthwhile to present them with information that is intended for investors, as the main highlights and arguments for these two target groups will be completely different. It is important for employees and team members to emphasize their importance and value when participating in the project, as well as the opportunities that this participation in the project opens up for them. 2. Secondly, the presentation should be prepared in advance and it should be checked how different groups of people react to it. Rehearsals can take place in front of a mirror, in front of close friends, family members or colleagues. One of the most important conditions for the success of public presentation is its consistency. It will be difficult for the audience to follow the course of thoughts if they are poorly structured and the theses, instead of complementing each other, will be conflicting and contradictory. It is also important how the presentation is delivered: whether the text is read from a sheet during the presentation, whether the person improvises, or speaks from memory. The best presentations are those that have been prepared in advance but delivered live, without cribs, and the speaker, while well acquainted with the content of the presentation, does not avoid improvising, thus creating a connection with his audience. 3. Presentation slides and language must be grammatically and stylistically correct, not overloaded with complex words and specific concepts. Everything you say must be clearly understood by a person who does not have specific preparation and education in the field of the topic raised.

4. Sincerity and honesty are important when communicating with listeners. The audience doesn’t like lies or hints about veiling. This kind of concealment and evasiveness damages the reputation of the speaker. On the other hand, it is important not to disclose all available information to listeners. If the format of the presentation includes a question and answer session, it will be possible to expand your thoughts during it. However, even in this case, word counts and long responses should not be abused.

5. Special attention should be paid to time management. Each fragment of the presentation should take up approximately the same amount of time. It is important to avoid long stories and descriptions. The format of the presentation should be fully in line with the format of the space and should not exceed the time limit in any way.

6. A great strength of the presentation can become its visualization. It is usually accomplished through slides or illustrations. The tools for creating them can be varied and depend on technical skills and knowledge. You can usually see presentations created using PowerPoint, Photoshop, Illustrator, and Canva. Each of the most important thoughts, theses, arguments, and facts mentioned in the presentation should be accompanied by a separate slide, in which the abbreviated essence of the thought would be expressed visually and in text format, emphasizing several key words. The slide should by no means contain long sentences with many items that will be said exactly as they are written.