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Chapter 2

Planning the Delivery

Because ultimately presentations are about the audience, not the speaker.

—Akash Karia

This chapter will address essential elements of group size characteristics, roles, and considerations for planning short- and long-term work through various formats. These ideas will help you plan for the delivery of a quality message.

Planning for Audience Size

Audience size is an important consideration. In fact, the size of the audience will invariably dictate the type of energy in the room, the types of activities possible for interaction, and the way in which a presenter will pace the content and delivery. For example, seasoned speakers often concur that a group of fewer than twenty is one of the most difficult with which to work. The overall energy in this group size is far less than that of larger groups. One negative attitude is more pronounced and permeated. Everyone has to participate, and it is more difficult to get the sound of mass voices into the room. As one of my colleagues once said, “In a small group, everyone has to get the intended humor. Yet in a larger audience, just over half can respond to the humor, and it will feel as if the entire group does” (K. Williams, personal communication, April 29, 2015).

Comparatively, with larger groups (more than fifty-one), there is often a natural energy—almost a buzz. Although it takes longer to conduct active participation, the sound resembles a competition for airtime. Think of when you go dining at a restaurant or shopping at a retail store. Listen carefully—there is music playing. For the masses, silence feels awkward and unnerving. In fact, there is a certain type of music, tempo, and volume level known to create an actual state of attention in the brain (Feinstein, 2006). A discussion of appropriate music use occurs in chapter 3 (page 27), but the point is, sound matters. Music and voices create energy in the room. You want, and need, them both—but how to best utilize them will depend on the size of your audience.

Use figure 2.1 to consider the similarities and differences among various audience sizes. In so doing, think about your group size preference. Does your topic work best when presented to a specific size of audience? If your topic lends itself better to a smaller audience, then suggest that (or even require it) in planning. Often, you may not have control over the audience size. In that case, reference the chart to help you tailor your topic and activities to the size of your audience. For instance, you simply cannot get large groups of over two hundred people up and moving a great deal without thoughtful planning and space. Rather, using a standing meeting conversation with those nearby may be a better option to increase engagement and encourage discussion but not create chaos in the room.

Figure 2.1: Audience size planner.

Visit go.SolutionTree.com/leadership for a free reproducible version of this figure.

Figure 2.2 is a completed audience size planner to reference for comparison. This figure details the features seasoned presenters might suggest.

Figure 2.2: Completed audience size planner.

Using this chart as you plan your presentation helps you acknowledge how group size dynamics play into the way you structure your delivery and processing activities. If you anticipate a very small group, you will want to add in more print or web resources to allow for the small group to explore the topic in depth, whereas with a larger audience you may use more direct instruction and fewer, if any, large group discussions.

Considering Your Presentation Role

Presentations occur in various formats. Sometimes an educational host (principal, district leader, or educational service unit provider) requests a short presentation to inspire and overview a topic—a keynote. Other times, more in-depth training is needed. Yet other times, facilitating a group toward a consensus is warranted. There may even be times to do small-group or personalized coaching. Whatever the role of the presenter, it is imperative to understand the differences between these presentation roles as well as your presenter tendencies. Here, I describe the variations among these roles and responsibilities.

Keynote Speakers

Keynotes are sessions that last typically from forty-five to ninety minutes. They are focused on a single topic and are primarily intended to overview the topic and entertain the audience. Keynotes are often delivered in large ballrooms where it is difficult to get much participant involvement. Thus, keynote speakers need to be engaging in their presence and with their content. A solid keynote speaker most often addresses one or two key ideas, builds an overview of the content, and amuses the audience a bit along the way. Keynote speakers rarely “get into the weeds” by practicing the topic information or providing time for application of the ideas; that is not their purpose. Rather, a keynote address is more of an executive summary regarding a focused subject.

Not everyone can keynote, nor does everyone want to. In many cases, excellent trainers and facilitators cannot effectively move into the keynoter position. Likewise, some keynoters are lousy trainers or facilitators. Diane DiResta (2018) suggests “the best speakers stay in their lane.” This means that presenters should be aware of who they are and capitalize on their strengths of being either more of an entertainer or a content speaker. DiResta (2018) recommends that entertainers opt for the modes of keynoter or emcee, whereas content experts may prefer the role of trainer.

Although certain types of presentations may feel more natural to certain presenters, it is possible to exchange lanes. Entertaining qualities will enhance trainings, and a topic focus will augment a keynote. However, the presenter must be very experienced and skilled. He or she must also know the strengths and limitations about each type of presentation, as well as how to adjust content and processes to fit the new lane appropriately. However, this takes considerable time, reflection, observation, and practice.

Trainers

Training sessions may range from a few hours to full or multiple days with the same audience. The goal of a training is for participants to acquire new information, techniques, or skills, or to transfer learning at a later time (Wild, 1999). Examples might include training about an instructional framework, standards-based grading practices, or behavior management techniques. Great trainers have specific content and processes to teach, and they must be able to communicate the message effectively as well as understand the audience’s specific needs. Trainers are versatile and must command an audience for longer periods of time than keynote speakers. They use a combination of direct instruction, practicing activities, practical examples, video components, and group discussions to maintain their audience’s attention for long periods of time. They must build relationships with audience members in order to obtain and maintain the respect and attentiveness of audience members. Often, trainers possess a deep content knowledge and have many practical experiences and examples to share. They really help audiences understand the topic in depth, and move them into application of key concepts. Trainers are also more in command of the time spent on each component, the types of activities used, the resources necessary, and how the learners will master or obtain the skills being taught. This is where the planning quadrant plays an important role. Thoughtfully applying the quadrant to each major training point ensures variation with intentionality.

Facilitators

Facilitators help groups accomplish a common goal or set of goals that they often could not accomplish alone. Unlike trainers, facilitators require less in-depth knowledge about a topic, but must have masterful people skills. A skilled facilitator helps groups accomplish common goals with synergy and success, helping others face difficult, sometimes less obvious issues with creativity and collaboration. Examples might include school board work sessions or leadership retreats, school- or district-led trainer or facilitator subcommittees, administrative team discussions, K—12 principal events, or even some professional learning communities. The end result is to achieve unanimous, win-win types of solutions. Facilitating an audience may last a few hours to one full day at the shortest, and multiple days or a series of intermittent days to accomplish longer-term goals.

Trainers are less concerned with collective thinking and common, collaboratively generated endpoints, and more about teaching specific content and processes to be used afterward. Trainers know the end result. Facilitators often do not. Instead, they help the group work cohesively toward an end goal. As Hunter (2007) said, “Facilitators are called upon to fill an impartial role in helping groups to become more effective. We act as process guides to create a balance between participation and results” (p. 150).

Facilitators must master the art of questioning—knowing what types of questions to ask and ways to elicit open-ended responses that enable stronger collective dialogue, perspective analysis, and inclusiveness of the group. Although the end result is to achieve unanimous, win-win types of solutions, it is truly the journey that is skillfully facilitated. They lead with phrases like, “Tell me about your thinking,” “Please give a rationale for that perspective,” “Who agrees with that train of thought?” and “I can hear that you are concerned about …” These strategies foster genuine interest in the viewpoints of each group member. It is important that each member feel heard, all the while realizing that the group-think is ultimately more important than the self-think. The journey is truly as important as the result.

Creating and adhering to norms are critical parts of the facilitation process. Consider starting with a short list of suggested ideas and then soliciting input from the group. As you do, define behaviors and hold people accountable to abiding by them. Write these norms down. Be sure your agreed-on norms are visible for all to see, and easy for you and others to reference during a meeting.

If you are relatively new to the facilitation process, start small. Consider mediating groups in limited scope and size, like family meetings, church groups, book clubs, or even friend misunderstandings. The more you practice strategies and questioning tactics, the more competent and confident you become. Gather a variety of group processes to expand conversations and work toward agreement. A variety of such protocols can be found in chapter 12 (page 137), including dot voting, ranking, and idea survivor.

Coaches

A coaching role is personalized, confidential, and somewhat complicated. A great coach recognizes the uniqueness of individuals and situations. Coaching conversations vary in pacing and styles (Wild, 1999). Similar to facilitation, coaching involves asking thoughtful questions and providing examples and direction as needed. A coaching situation is most often one-on-one or with a very small, trusting group of adults. The primary goal is to develop skills and to reflect on and improve individual performance. Sometimes, coaching involves instructional coaches leading coaching conversations with small teams or individuals. It might also include principals leading instructional coaching conversations as part of, or outside of, the formal evaluation process.

All roles are important to the teaching and learning process. None is necessarily better. Yet the objectives and considerations of each are unique. Figure 2.3 (page 22) presents a useful process for helping to identify the nature and characteristics of various delivery modes. Using this figure, consider the various roles and what makes each role exclusive in the training and content delivery. Work through figure 2.3 on your own or with your training partners. Draw on your experiences to discern the differences among the various roles and considerations. Then, compare your thinking to the completed example in figure 2.4 (page 23).

Figure 2.3: Presenter roles and characteristics.

Visit go.SolutionTree.com/leadership for a free reproducible version of this figure.

By better understanding the various presenter roles, you can recognize what type of presentation is warranted and what skill sets will be necessary to meet the outcomes requested of you. Expanding your knowledge may also help you as you grow your repertoire of presenter skills, stretching you to experiment with the variations by crossing into different roles and providing additional services or supports to groups.

Using a Process Observer

To enhance your practices in each of these roles, consider having a process observer. This may be a trusted friend or colleague. Have him or her watch you as you facilitate a group, and provide procedural feedback. Some questions for consideration might include:

• Was I able to treat all participants fairly and equally?

• Did I acknowledge all contributions similarly?

• Was I able to stay on topic?

Figure 2.4: Completed presenter roles and characteristics.

• Did I catch the group members when they went off topic and realign them?

• Was I able to avoid alignment to one side or position? Did my comments give any member of the group the impression that I have a closer relationship or more agreement with him or her than the other group members?

• Was I able to involve participants by focusing on engaging participation, rather than evaluating the quality of the ideas being generated?

• Was I able to stand strong, even in the face of conflict within the group?

• Was I able to maintain neutrality and avoid judging any person or idea in conflict?

Quality feedback on these questions will help you improve your delivery and presentation immeasurably.

Addressing Time Frame Constraints on Content

Skilled presenters know their content well enough to consider variations in what can be accomplished in certain time frames. Typical options range from ninety minutes to multiple days—a considerable range to which the presenter must adjust. Variations in presentation time will invariably affect the depth of the audience’s content understanding and the ease of implementation of ideas. This section will assist you in planning content for both short- and longer-term presentations.

Considerations for Shorter Presentations

What is your primary message? What is the soul of your information or idea? It is imperative for you to identify your core message, because that is what you share in your shortest time frame. Becky Blanton (2009) underscores the importance of selecting a core message, stating, “Convey one strong idea. Take time to focus each idea you want to express, then pick the most compelling, the strongest idea.” That pared-down primary message should fit neatly into a ninety-minute overview. Think of it as applying a keynote perspective to your core message. Done well, this type of communication may actually be your “interview” with the audience members. In other words, this is a chance for others to see what you present and how you present it within that abbreviated time frame. If they like it, they will sign on for more. One method for showcasing this type of presentation might be at a local or statewide educational conference.

Considerations for Longer-Term Presentations

Some schools, districts, or other educational agencies may want (and even require) multiyear projects. When audience members sign on for more, they are embarking on a longer-term learning opportunity. These may range from a few days to a few years. Some topics (like implementing standards-referenced grading) are long-term endeavors that need thoughtful pacing and implementation over time. Such longer-term work requires you to think about the primary, secondary, and tertiary content and process chunks important to your overall topic. Simply put, chunking is the breakdown of your content into significant portions. What chunks come first, second, and so on? As you plan out multiday presenting opportunities, consider how you will organize your information into various time frames. These might include multiple overviews with subgroups. Then, move into deeper training sessions with cohorts (those learning together for a period of time), interspersed with activities and application.

Remember to consider the various perspectives of your audience members. Will you deliver a portion of your message to the leadership team? Although similar to the message you give to the whole staff, your leadership message will have nuances about leading the work. Those actually doing the work must deeply understand your messaging for use over time. Take advantage of the longer-term presenting format to build in follow-up and implementation supports for this group to enhance the learning and application of your message. These may occur face-to-face, via webinar, or even through a phone consultation. As you plan, ensure you consider a brief review of key content prior to adding new information. This will help solidify previous learning and provide the brain with the connected neural networks to which the new content must attach.

To solidify your understanding of the considerations necessary to present to both short- and longer-term audiences, consider how you might present a ninety-minute version, a half-day version, a full-day version, and a two- to three-week version of your content. When you have your ideas for these typical formats solidified, you can easily modify them to fit other, unique presentation time frames. Use figure 2.5 to outline your message points for the variations in time.

Figure 2.5: Message points for different presentation time frames.

Visit go.SolutionTree.com/leadership for a free reproducible version of this figure.

Planning for New and Existing Staff

Remember to consider the needs of various experience levels when designing your presentation plans. Honoring those who may already have some experience, or different experiences from those who may be brand new to the company or entity, is critical. This exemplifies that you know the differences between audience members. It demonstrates that you respect those who bring knowledge and experience into the presentation setting. The following are a few questions you might consider as you make your short- and longer-term plans.

• Who is new within the past year? How might these individuals’ needs differ from the needs of veteran staff regarding your message?

• What do all groups need to hear and learn?

• How might you vary activities for the differences in experiences?

• How will you find out who is in the room? Will you do that ahead of time or during the introduction to the day?

Plan carefully for the diverse audience members within your training. Be certain to address those needs throughout both short- and long-term proposals.

Summary

Throughout this section, I highlighted essential planning elements regarding group size characteristics, presentation roles and formats, and considerations for planning short- and long-term work, as well as the need to think about various audience member experiences. Preparing your content and processes thoughtfully is an important first step in successfully fine-tuning your message. The following chapter delves into the importance of setting the stage for your message delivery.