The Short Road to Great Presentations

150 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION, VOL. 47, NO. 2, JUNE 2004

Peter Reimold and Cheryl Reimold

The Short Road to Great Presentations

Book Review—Reviewed by

RAYMOND FLOYD, SENIOR MEMBER, IEEE

Index Terms—Electronic presentations, presentations, presentation styles, visuals, web presentations.

A preliminary review of this book reveals severalchallenges:

• the authors have been providing presentationson the material for 20 years;

• the authors are regular contributors to thePCS Newsletter;

• one of the authors is a columnist for the PCSNewsletter;

• the Forward is written by Ron Blicq,recognized by PCS as an outstandingcontributor in technical communicationeducation;

• the book was sponsored by IEEE Press.Such an impressive array of support places one in aposition of Don Quixote de La Mancha jousting withwindmills—the challenge of an impossible dream.How could anything but superlatives be writtenabout the book? However, given the challenge, I haveprovided a review from my perspective.

The book is a softcover text, divided into threesections dealing with the audience, the presentation,and the use of technology. The authors have alsoprovided five appendices with forms and worksheetsto assist readers in the process of learning or to aid indeveloping presentations.

Part 1, “Audience Focused Preparation,” is dividedinto seven chapters, with major emphasis on thedevelopment of presentations—concept, structure,visuals, and presentation. The material is easyto follow and offers many suggestions in a “howto” approach that both students and practitionerscan easily adapt for their use. An excellent helpfrom the authors is the inclusion of TIPS—framedboxes containing specific hints and guidelines tohelp the reader understand some particular point.From my perspective, there were two areas that

Manuscript received December 17, 2003; revised December 28,2003. The reviewer is with Innovative Insights, Inc.,Cody, WY 82414 USA (email: icubed@tritel.net).

IEEE DOI 10.1109/TPC.2004.828214

Book Publisher: New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

might be improved upon. First, for a section withthe title containing the words “audience focus,” myexpectation was much higher on the how to approachto understanding the needs and expectations ofan audience. From personal experience, there isa difference between an audience looking for anafter-dinner speaker and one looking for a stand-upcomic! I believe the first chapter could be expanded tomore fully address audience analysis.

The second area is more difficult in that it dealswith personal preferences. In this case, most of thechapters in the first part deal with the audienceand speech structure. Then, along comes a chapteron visuals—preparation, types, graphics, color, andso forth, followed by a chapter covering notes andhandouts. Both chapters, logically, appear to be abetter fit into the second part of the book coveringspeech delivery.

Part 2, “Persuasive Delivery,” provides excellentsuggestions on developing a winning presentation.From attitude, to body language, vocal variety, andeye contact, the how to approach will assist theneophyte and remind the experienced speaker ofimportant points they may have forgotten. Chapter15, “Handling Questions,” is especially helpful inproviding guidance on how speakers should go abouthandling the question and answer sessions, especiallyin how to handle hostile questions.

Future editions of the book may wish to considera couple of suggestions. First, the coverage ofimpromptu speaking under the general title of“Dealing with Unpleasant Surprises” could bestrengthened. Impromptu speaking is a day-to-dayoccurrence for almost every professional or businessperson. The boss asking for a project status, a peerasking a technical question, etc., are all impromptuquestions we handle on a daily basis and, hopefully,should not be considered unpleasant surprises.Being advised that Jorge is in the hospital and youare leaving tomorrow for South Africa to give hispresentation to the Board of Directors on the latestproduct release schedule slip could fall under theheading of unpleasant surprises!

0361-1434/04$20.00 © 2004 IEEE

IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION, VOL. 47, NO. 2, JUNE 2004 151

The authors also make a passing reference toToastmasters International: “Joining Toastmastersis one great way to do that” (p. 199). It would bemore proper to recognize it by its formal title ofToastmasters International, and, more importantly,since most novice speakers have no idea whoToastmasters are or what they do, a webpagereference would seem appropriate.

Chapter 17, “Moderating a Conference Session,” failsto convince me that it belongs in a part concerningpersuasive delivery. It really doesn’t belong in anyof the three parts developed within the text. Itdoes provide good information for someone who isundertaking the role of a conference chairman for thefirst time; however, it could as easily been includedas an appendix.

In Part 2, the authors first use photographs toillustrate some of their points. For example, Fig. 10-1provides an excellent example of how the speaker can“disappear” from the audience’s view by improper

positioning in the room. Unfortunately, the use ofsuch photographs must be carefully reviewed forboth clarity and content. For example, Fig. 10-2 issupposed to illustrate a “how not to” example, but itis barely legible. Similar problems can be found withFig. 13-1 and Fig. 14-8.

“Part 3—Making the Most of Presentation Technology,”provides good material on topics seldom coveredin other texts. From electronic slide shows to webpresentations, the authors offer insight that will proveinvaluable for the student and practitioner. Followingthe final part are five excellent appendices offeringmore specific guidelines to help in the preparationwork for a given presentation type.

Cover to cover, the authors have provided an excellentreference text for student and practitioner. It canprovide useful hints and directions for that onetime or occasional speaker, and gentle reminders toexperienced speakers who may find themselves fallinginto bad habits. All in all, The Short Road to GreatPresentations is a worthy addition to one’s collection.