Classroom lecturing is a relatively easy task because there are usually several chances to get things right and perhaps more importantly because the audience is very much dependent on the lecturer. Non-academic lectures, especially business lectures and talks, tend to be bimodal. Some are filled with useless acronyms and facts, without any point or focus. Others have such a high threshold for success that even seasoned academic lecturers would find success elusive. In this chapter, we will take a closer look at some of the key issues and common mistakes that are made when presenting in business and professional settings.

THE BUSINESS PRESENTATION

Business presentations share many elements with a typical academic lecture, including the need for clarity, audience understanding, as well as maintaining control over the presentation. Business presentations, however, because of the dynamic and broad nature of the audience, require a more thorough background and have to be more to the point than a regular academic lecture. Furthermore, due to the fact that business presentations are often given to colleagues or bosses (versus lecturing to students who, even if they hate the lecture, must understand the contents in order to prepare for the exam), there are pressures present which would normally not exist in the academic world.