Second Interview - Presentation - Advice?

Evilsod

Evilsod

Evilsod

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Found out I had a second interview last week, got my presentation topic this morning to do on Wednesday.

Very open ended. Topic is "What makes a good vibration fixture?" and needs to last 10 minutes.

Last time I did a presentation was for my dissertation in uni. I know the basics of making a good presentation and I obviously need to make sure it lasts no longer than 10 minutes, but any advice I can get would be helpful. Also if anyone happens to know any good places to look for information, be it websites (preferably) or books I could find in a library, it would be very helpful.

Been unemployed since I graduated in 2010 and this is the best opportunity I've had since then and I really like the look of the job so I want to make this count.
 
Make sure you go over your presentation with a timer a few times so that you can nail the timing. I find it useful to do split-timing so you can see roughly how long each slide/portion takes, so you can then see if you're over- or under-emphasising any aspects. Also good to go through it with a friend/relative if possible, although this is only really useful if they know the subject area! (unless you just want general grammar checks, body language etc.)
 
Dave said:
Make sure you go over your presentation with a timer a few times so that you can nail the timing. I find it useful to do split-timing so you can see roughly how long each slide/portion takes, so you can then see if you're over- or under-emphasising any aspects. Also good to go through it with a friend/relative if possible, although this is only really useful if they know the subject area! (unless you just want general grammar checks, body language etc.)
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Yeah I was going to do something like that. Time it and send it to the recruiting agency to give it a look over too.

I have a vague idea of what I should be looking for but until I get enough information I can't really look at actually writing the presentation as I've no idea how many sections it'll have and such.
 
I think the golden rule is 1 slide for each min of the presentation HOWEVER, it is better to have two slides and show the information clearly than one slide and have all the information squashed up!

Make you you go over and over and over it time and time again to nail the timings! Don't prepare a speech as such, just have bullet points or key words that you talk about.

Stick to only a few colours (this is based on my opinion... go for a colour scheme and stick to it! When I do my presentations I try and stick to two colours, and three in extreme cases).
 
Dave said:
Make sure you go over your presentation with a timer a few times so that you can nail the timing. I find it useful to do split-timing so you can see roughly how long each slide/portion takes, so you can then see if you're over- or under-emphasising any aspects. Also good to go through it with a friend/relative if possible, although this is only really useful if they know the subject area! (unless you just want general grammar checks, body language etc.)
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Good advice, get the presentation knocked out today if possible so you have all day tomorrow to practise doing it so it rolls off the tongue. The more you practise the less nervous you will be and that could be crucial.

Out of interest, will you be doing many 10 minute presentations as a test engineer?
 
sbi5ar said:
I think the golden rule is 1 slide for each min of the presentation HOWEVER, it is better to have two slides and show the information clearly than one slide and have all the information squashed up!
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I would say no, never heard of that 'Golden Rule', this approach must have lead to the old saying "Death by Powerpoint"

Keep your structure simple:

  • Objective
  • Business Problem
  • How you would overcome
  • Recommedation
  • Q&A
Your slides should be simple / punchy and to the point - your narrative is where you explain matters in detail. Never read from the slides they are there for the audience to ensure that they understand the high level point only.

Good luck !
 
Showboat said:
Good advice, get the presentation knocked out today if possible so you have all day tomorrow to practise doing it so it rolls off the tongue. The more you practise the less nervous you will be and that could be crucial.

Out of interest, will you be doing many 10 minute presentations as a test engineer?
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Aye thats my hope but it depends how much I find out.

As for your question. No I don't think there will be much presenting for the role itself. Agency basically said they've worked with them before for similar roles and that they are more interested in the content and your research under time pressure and preparation and such and that I shouldn't worry too much about not being gods gift to presenting. Good presentation skills obviously won't go amiss.

Anyone have any advice on the topic itself? I've found what looks like a useful e-book on the topic but other sources would be good.
 
Be sure to have a good back knowledge of the subject, make the key points on the slides more like subject headings so you can expand on each of them with your knowledge, this will make you look much smarter than just reading off the slides and will also help when they ask questions.

Only other thing I can think of right now is to ensure you look super smart!
 
Veco said:
Be sure to have a good back knowledge of the subject, make the key points on the slides more like subject headings so you can expand on each of them with your knowledge, this will make you look much smarter than just reading off the slides and will also help when they ask questions.

Only other thing I can think of right now is to ensure you look super smart!
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Yeah I'll definitely try to keep it brief on the slides and obviously bring some cue cards too.

Trying to work out a format for the presentation and I think I've got the page headers sorted at least. Now its just a case of filling the rest of it and finding some images if I need to (not forgetting references).
 
Make sure your powerpoint has images spinning around and the text HAS to have sounds. Nothing is more professional than the header coming on screen with a shwooooosh.

<Not serial>

Come up with a simple structure, knowing your audience is important here. Are you presenting to people with subject matter knowledge or not? In some cases they have a HR bod with no knowledge and a subject matter expert so need to build up from basics to advanced. If they are all subject noobs then spend more time on introduction etc

Introduction
ANSWER THE QUESTION YOU WERE ASKED - easy to fill 10 mins on basics and build up then realise you didnt actually answer the Q!
Summary / your views
etc
 
Last edited:
oli356 said:
On the topic of PowerPoints, if you had to reference an image what's the correct way to do so?
For example on: http://i.imgur.com/7okW2.png would it be best to reference under each image in very small font or at the bottom of the page? Ta :)
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I think it's largely personal preference - I try to match it to the aesthetics of the slide. If I'm using an image from a paper then I tend to put the reference at the bottom of the page as it's longer (authors, journal, year, volume etc) whereas if it's just from a webpage then I include it in a small caption under the image. I welcome someone to come along and definitively say that one is correct and one isn't, however.
 
The Geezer said:
I would say no, never heard of that 'Golden Rule', this approach must have lead to the old saying "Death by Powerpoint"

Keep your structure simple:

  • Objective
  • Business Problem
  • How you would overcome
  • Recommedation
  • Q&A
Your slides should be simple / punchy and to the point - your narrative is where you explain matters in detail. Never read from the slides they are there for the audience to ensure that they understand the high level point only.

Good luck !
Click to expand...

I would agree with this. I try not to use Bullet points unless unavoidable. A diagram you talk around is always better. Your audience retains it more than text.
 
sbi5ar said:
I think the golden rule is 1 slide for each min of the presentation
Click to expand...

That's not a golden rule. I've seen awesome presentations with both longer and shorter lengths per slide. Indeed it's highly variable depending on the slide.

Royal Fleet said:
I would agree with this. I try not to use Bullet points unless unavoidable. A diagram you talk around is always better. Your audience retains it more than text.
Click to expand...

If you are thinking of using bullet points, can you think of an image that summarises that bullet point to crystalise the message and use that instead?

Also, buy this book: http://www.amazon.co.uk/slide-Science-Creating-Presentations-Presentation/dp/0596522347
 
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