STRONGBRANDS    Professor Tim Calkins, Kellogg School of Management

There is a pretty simple way to put an audience to sleep: Just present a collection of random facts and charts. You might start with a page showing sales over the past several years, then move on to margin trends, then a look at sales by region and product line. People might be engaged for […]

Last year Kellogg opened up its new Global Hub, a massive and fabulous building that is now perhaps the top business school facility in the world. The building is full of light and incredible vistas of Lake Michigan, with a mix of meeting spaces and areas for quiet work and reflection. The classrooms are modern and spacious. […]

There is a simple way to dramatically increase the odds that your next presentation will go well: pre-sell it. Before you actually get to the presentation, you should meet with all the key people who will be there. If you do this, you will walk into the room with confidence and the meeting will probably be a success. […]

All too many presentations lack punch. The document becomes a dense collection of facts with a plodding tone and structure. This does not make the recommendation interesting or compelling. It simply doesn’t work well. There are many steps to creating a powerful presentation: be clear on the recommendation, include an executive summary, find the story, […]

My new book on creating and delivering powerful business presentations is now available! It has been a long journey; I’m not entirely sure when I started working on this project, but it was at least four years ago. Why I Wrote It Someone asked me this week why I wrote the book. It is a fair […]

There is a simple way to improve your business presentations: Always have a headline that states the main point at the top of every page. Three Benefits A good headline does three important things. First, it helps your audience figure out the point of the page. There is nothing worse than coming across a page […]

Creating a tight, logical presentation is a serious challenge. There is often an enormous amount of data to analyze and interpret, and crafting the story can be hard. Even gifted presenters find this a demanding task. The basics, however, are not that complicated. Doing even a few easy things can improve your presentations dramatically. Here is some simple […]

Over the next several months, I’ll be releasing weekly tips about business presentations. The recommendations will vary; one might be about finding the story, the next about setting up the room. They will all be practical and easy to apply. If you follow the advice and put it into practice, I’m confident you’ll become a more […]

My new book on creating and delivering powerful business presentations comes out on September 25. I’ve heard from quite a few people, and they all seem to be excited about its release. You can pre-order a copy here. One of the questions that I’ve been getting quite frequently is this: What is with the title? This is […]

I’m happy to announce that my new book on presenting comes out on September 25. The book is titled, How to Wash a Chicken – Mastering the Business Presentation. The book is a practical, entertaining guide to crafting and delivering powerful business presentations. This includes business updates, recommendations and analyses. You can buy a copy here. […]