Challenge
Presentations played a crucial role in internal communications and decision-making for an SSC, based in Hungary. Due to having more and more employees we had to juggle between standard skills development of a heterogenous group and the support of individual participants (who’s needs differed significantly).
Therefore, while for the junior colleagues the focus was on the content of the presentations (PowerPoint structure and design), for the seniors the personal tone and a convincing leadership style was the number one priority.
We also had to take into consideration that the previous trainings lacked the possibility of a follow-up course or further development opportunities, thus resulting in low practical benefits and applicability.
Solution
In response to these challenges, we developed a unique presentation training package. Based on their field of expertise and experience we were able to provide relevant courses for their needs. These courses were integrated into a 3-steps training program:
– Basic training (8 hours): is about working on fundamental presentation skills (e.g. tempo, stance, eye contact), the use of PowerPoint and the structure of presentations.
– Advanced training (16 hours): had a more personal focus and provided solutions for the participant’s individual challenges. In addition to the fundamental presentation skills we also focused on the conscious use of energy and attitude (style of presentation) just like on the structure of messages. For all participants we provided specific analysis in which we highlighted the most important areas of further development.
– Follow-up training (8 hours) was scheduled a couple of months after the advanced training in order to assess the development of the participants. During the follow-up, we not only examined their communication but also introduced new tools and techniques. In this particular case, the course had a strong storytelling and personal focus.
The participants themselves could decide whether to attend the entire program or just one of the training sessions. Furthermore, the presentations were recorded and the videos were provided to the participants.
There were some employees who during an extended period of time had been filmed more than ten times in a presentation situation.
Thanks to this practical approach the development of each participant could be monitored throughout the whole process.
What did it require?
