The Strategic Advantage of Corporate Presentation Skills Training

We regularly talk to our client sponsors and prospective clients about the complexities of calculating and allocating L&D budgets for corporate presentation skills, and they all agree that it has never been more challenging. Whether you use a percentage of payroll method, a skills gap analysis, benchmarking against industry standards, or set ROI based goals – all of which come with their own set of challenges and benefits – when it comes to allocating funds to specific areas of training, how do you know if you are making the right decisions for your workforce and the business goals of your organisation?

Investing in business presentation skills training for employees has always been important. Not only does it boost employee confidence and their ability to communicate effectively, it also leads to improved client and stakeholder relationships, reduces the likelihood of miscommunication, increases the company’s reputation and fosters leadership development.

However, since the Covid pandemic, L&D professionals tell us that it is becoming increasingly difficult to allocate funds to so-called ‘soft skills’ development like business presentation and communication training. This perhaps isn’t surprising when, according to industry analysts, Fosway, the number of L&D teams who expect to have their overall budget decrease rather than increase has risen from 8% to 21%.

In addition, post the Covid pandemic, many people now do at least part of their job from home. The ONS calculate this to be 26% of the total workforce, but this figure is likely to be much higher when you look at the corporate sector. This means that managers are doing significantly less ‘managing’, and so it is more difficult for them and their L&D partners to accurately assess people’s skills gaps. Moreover, we have seen an increase in the number of organisations that allocate training budgets directly to the employee who is then able to choose from a menu of training options available. But how do you know that they are choosing options that would most benefit the organisation?

So, in this blog, we’ll look at why online and in-person business presentation training is still a key factor in achieving organisational growth and how you can help your managers to assess their team’s performance and training needs.

The Evolution of Corporate Presentation Skills

An analysis of more than 17 million job listings on Indeed.com found that persuasion – the ability to influence others’ thoughts, attitudes, and behaviours through effective and convincing communication – was the third most in-demand skill, followed by presentation skills.

This is corroborated by a recent LinkedIn survey that rated Communication Skills at the top of a list of the 10 most in-demand soft skills in business settings.

An individual’s ability to communicate clearly, convey complex ideas and messages in a compelling and engaging way, and influence and persuade clients and stakeholders, is key for career advancement and company success in the modern workplace. The key word here is individual.

At SecondNature we focus on the personality of the individual and work with them to develop their own unique communication style. But presenting information clearly and concisely is only half the challenge. We also coach participants on how to best structure presentations so that they create a compelling, goal-oriented narrative that aligns with your overall business objectives.

So, while generic, large group presentation skills training programmes – often completed online – might initially seem like a cheaper option and may even boost an employee’s confidence when it comes to standing up in front of an audience, it won’t help them when they come to develop the all-important presentation deck. Whether the goal is to captivate a global audience or engage a small team, never underestimate the power of a well-crafted and convincing presentation.

Here are just some of the benefits and key feedback points of business presentation skills training experienced by our participants over the last 20 years:

• Builds better client relationships, increases trust, and enhances the company’s professional reputation.
• Increases pitch win-rates amongst sales and business development teams.
• Improves effectiveness in conveying complex ideas and producing innovative and engaging narratives.
• Encourages collaboration and improves efficiency both individually and in team situations.

• Improves employee confidence and the ability to adapt messages to different audiences and settings.
• Equips and prepares employees with the skills needed in future roles with increased responsibility.

Strategic Benefits of Presentation Training in Different Departments

One of the greatest advantages of presentation training is that it can benefit every team member, in every department. Let’s take a quick look at exactly how these skills can benefit four key departments:

• Sales – Strong presentation skills can significantly help employees to close sales. Whether they are presenting products and services, or simply engaging with prospective customers, being able to present ideas clearly and persuasively can quickly improve business conversion rates.
• Marketing – Presentation skills allow marketers to deliver tailored messages to their target audience clearly and concisely. Whether they’re trying to land a new client, pitch a campaign idea, or report on success analytics, these skills will improve employee performance and meeting outcomes.
• HR – Presentation skills help HR managers to convey their ideas effectively and leave a lasting impression on their audience. Whether this be presenting results to the Board, or sharing initiatives with the wider workforce, being able to define their objectives clearly and concisely is going to produce better results.
• Executive Leadership – As a leader, executive presentation skills are fundamental for success. Whether updating staff on company changes, inspiring employees to achieve new goals, or when meeting with industry leaders, effective communication skills and the ability to present ideas with gravitas are essential.

Your employees are your company’s intellectual capital. They are the caretakers of your client relationships, and so it is important to equip them with the communication skills that will give your organisation a competitive advantage.

Integrating Presentation Training into Corporate Learning and Development (L&D) Programmes

Incorporating presentation skills training into the L&D framework of one’s organisation is often the result of a skills gap analysis. But this take a lot of time, and hybrid working – which is here to stay for a whole host of reasons, makes it more difficult to effectively evaluate employee performance in this area.

Pre-Covid, almost all regular performance reviews would include an evaluation of each team member’s communication and presentation skills. But since Covid, not only have regular reviews become a bit less regular, they have also become a bit less formal.

So, we have put together a handy 6-point Presenter Skills Assessment checklist that you can share with your managers to help them assess their team’s performance. It’s also a good way of measuring progress at each subsequent review session. This checklist (click on the link for the full document) looks at a range of in-depth evaluation points under the following headings:

1. Ability to analyse an audience effectively and tailor the message accordingly.
Most people would say that a great presentation includes a clear structure, good delivery and impactful slides. While these are all key elements the most fundamental aspect of the presentation – understanding your audience – is frequently overlooked.

2. Ability to develop a clear, well-structured presentation/pitch that is compelling and persuasive.
Being able to create a compelling narrative around clear and concise points of interest is an important part of any presentation and directly impacts the effectiveness of the message.

3. Ability to connect with and maintain the engagement of the audience.
Keeping your audience engaged and connecting with them throughout the presentation can be the difference between giving a great presentation and one that falls flat.

4. Ability to prepare effective slides that support and strengthen the clarity of the message
Presentations that fail to connect with the audience are frequently let down by slides that act as visual prompts rather than information that supports and strengthens the clarity of the message.

5. Ability to appear confident, natural and in control
Nerves and anxiety can undermine a presenter’s credibility and reduce the impact of the message.

6. Ability to summarise and close a presentation to achieve the required/desired outcome.
No matter how well a presentation goes, the closing statement can still make or break it.

The ROI of Presentation Training

Quantifying the financial return on investment of L&D programmes is not always a simple process. So, we regularly ask our client sponsors for feedback, in addition to participants, on how their training with us has impacted on the efficiency, success and capabilities of the team and organisation.

Here’s what two of them had to say:

Client sponsor feedback from a global commercial real estate services firm.

“We started working with SecondNature in 2014 and everyone that has attended their training never fails to mention what an extraordinary learning experience it is.

• While it’s difficult to quantify ROI, what we’ve found is:
  Increased rate of conversion. During a three-year period, our conversation rate increased from around 17% to an astounding 75%.
• Minimised presentation preparation time; what previously took say four hours to assemble prior to the course now takes half an hour.
• Our Business Development teams are more organised, prepared and professional as a result of the training, and I can’t recommend SecondNature highly enough.”

Client sponsor feedback from an international FMCG company

“We have worked with SecondNature for over five years now and during that time have run both Present Inspire! and Present with Confidence … and consistently each year we have a great demand for both programmes.

The difference in presenting capability for our employees is very noticeable both in terms of confidence and ability.

…the vast majority of the feedback comes back as a ten out of ten! This is extremely impressive! “

Ensuring Continuous Improvement and Skill Reinforcement Post-Training

To ensure continuous improvement and skills reinforcement post-training, it is important that the newly acquired skills are put to good use by providing lots of opportunities to present, both in relaxed settings and in more formal environments. This helps to improve confidence and ensures the skills don’t diminish over time.

It’s worth noting that research has shown that as many as 94% of employees say they would stay with their current employer if they invested in their long-term learning.

Once participants have completed their training with us, our relationship and support doesn’t end there. They have access to a wide range of proprietary tools to ensure there is a sustainable difference to both individual AND organisational performance.

Whether you are currently a client of SecondNature or not, you can still provide valuable support to your team by sharing our library of blogs covering a wide range of presentation skills topics and tips, from overcoming nerves right through to how to present with gravitas.

Plenty of studies have shown that when presentation skills are valued and developed, your workforce becomes more effective across all of their day-to-day communications, resulting in significant strategic benefits for your company.

How We Can Help

If you’re looking for business focussed presentation skills training that will provide your team with lifetime-sustainable, career-long skills in presenting that will improve leadership, team communication, cross functional collaboration, and sales results within your organisation, then why not get in touch.

For nearly 20 years we have been known as the Business Presentation Skills Experts, training and coaching thousands of people in an A-Z of global and local organisations. View our presentation skills training and coaching reviews to check out what they say about our programmes.

We have a wide range of customised corporate training solutions, both in-person and online to choose from, each of which can be tailored to your specific business needs.

Written By Belinda Huckle

Co-Founder & Managing Director

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Belinda is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of SecondNature International. With a determination to drive a paradigm shift in the delivery of presentation skills training both In-Person and Online, she is a strong advocate of a more personal and sustainable presentation skills training methodology.

Belinda believes that people don’t have to change who they are to be the presenter they want to be. So she developed a coaching approach that harnesses people’s unique personality to build their own authentic presentation style and personal brand.

She has helped to transform the presentation skills of people around the world in an A-Z of organisations including Amazon, BBC, Brother, BT, CocaCola, DHL, EE, ESRI, IpsosMORI, Heineken, MARS Inc., Moody’s, Moonpig, Nationwide, Pfizer, Publicis Groupe, Roche, Savills, Triumph and Walmart – to name just a few.