Chapter Fourteen and Fifteen Discussion

IN THIS ORDER, COMPLETE TWO ASSIGNMENTS CHAPTER FOURTEEN AND FIFTEEN.

Chapter Fourteen Discussion #1, #2, #3 | Planning Presentations

PLEASE CHOOSE ONE OF # 1, # 2, # 3 GROUPS THAT SUITS YOU BEST – YOU CAN CHOSE ONE GROUP FROM # 1, # 2, # 3. IT DOESN’T NEED TO COMPLETE ALL OF GROUPS.

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For each Discussion, you are responsible for two parts. Be sure to POST YOUR RESPONSE TO YOUR GROUP DISCUSSION topic, and also, please COMMENT ON ANOTHER STUDENT POST by bringing something new to the conversation (another perspective, disagree, other facts, another concept, different company, etc.). Please avoid posting a simple agreement or compliment, and reply with a well thought out comment.

Group #1 Discussion Topic:

Using Stories for Presentations (LO 14.5)

Read the following quotation from Stephen Denning:

These days, command-and-control approaches are unlikely to generate positive responses in employees, let alone the marketplace. The era when top managers could simply give orders and expect their will to be done has long gone. As a result, leaders have turned to storytelling to overcome barriers to communication. Since time immemorial, human beings have used stories to spread religions, win support for political agendas or launch wars. And as we look around the business world, stories are everywhere. Managers think in stories, they remember in stories, they plan in stories, they express hopes and fears and dreams in stories, and they make decisions in stories. Storytelling is already part of our world.

Moreover, storytelling is not a rare skill possessed by a few people born with the gift of gab. All human beings start spontaneously telling stories at age 2 and go on doing it for the rest of their lives. They tell stories effortlessly in social settings. Leadership storytelling involves taking a capacity that people already have and applying it for constructive purposes. Anyone can master the discipline.34
Based on Denning’s comments and your own experiences, respond to each of the following items:

Why are stories an effective communication tool compared to command-and-control approaches?
What are some steps people can take to become effective storytellers?
What are some of the risks of storytelling?
Group #2 Discussion Topic:

Overcoming “Death by PowerPoint” (LO 14.4)

James E. Rogers of Duke Energy was asked, “What would you like business schools to teach more of, or less of?”

I believe there is such a thing as death by PowerPoint. Because I believe, and this is the storyteller in me and maybe the former newspaper reporter, that I’d much rather have someone write a two-page summary of what they’re thinking. When you’re forced to sit and write it, not only are you getting the subject, verb, predicates right, but you’re tying the sentences together and ideas together. PowerPoints are just bullets, bullets, bullets, and when you actually have to write something, you start to develop a more cohesive logic. I think words really make a difference—what you say, how you say it. A lot of energy needs to go into how you present the idea. And I’m not talking about spin. I’m really talking about making the idea come alive through a story.35

Based on these comments, respond to each of the following items:

1. What are some specific ways in which you think PowerPoint lowers the level of effective business thinking?

2. What are some specific ways that you can alter the design of electronic slide presentations to bring out good business thinking?

3. What do you think is the difference between spin and story in a business presentation?

OR

Avoiding Bad PowerPoint Presentations (LO 14.4)

Read the various comments by business leaders in Figure 14.1. Respond to the following questions with one or two paragraphs each:

1. What are the key points that these leaders make about PowerPoints?

2. For each key theme or key point you’ve identified, make counterpoints. Explain another perspective on the issue and/or explain how to use PowerPoint slides without encountering this problem.

Group #3 Discussion Topic:

Evaluating Learning and Communicator Styles (LO 14.2)

Based on the descriptions of communicator styles (professionals with red, blue, green, and hub MVSs) and learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic) described in the “Analyze Your Audience” section of this chapter, do the following:

Describe your learning and communicator styles (you may consider yourself a combination of various styles).
Discuss how your learning and communicator styles may impact how you prefer to receive presentations.
Discuss how your learning and communicator styles may impact how you plan and deliver presentations.
Explain a few ways you can adapt your presentation style to learning and communicator styles other than your own.

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Chapter Fifteen Discussion↓

Group Discussion #1, #2, and #3 Topic:

Evaluating an Effective Presentation (LO 15.2, LO 15.3, LO 15.4)

Think about a recent presentation you attended (or find/view a presentation online) that you found effective. In two to three paragraphs, describe why it was effective. Include any or all of the following aspects in your analysis, referring to Chapter 14 if necessary for a refresher on preview-view-review:

Description of the presentation.
Key points.
Preview.
View.
Review.
Electronic slides or other visual aids.
Nonverbal behavior.