What is your first task before holding a meeting? Determining your purpose When the purpose of your meeting is to solve an intense problem, what is the recommended number of meeting participants? Five or fewer The number of meeting participants depends on the purpose of the meeting. Intensive problem solving should usually involve five or fewer people. Which of the following is the best practice for a group when it begins a meeting? a. Wait until all participants arrive. b. Give a quick recap to anyone who arrives late. c. Establish ground rules. d. Begin by voting on items sent out in messages prior to the meeting. c. Establish ground rules. Always start meetings on time, but don't give a recap to any latecomer. Open the meeting by identifying the meeting objective(s), providing any background information, and setting any necessary ground rules. T/F: At the conclusion of a meeting, the leader should provide a summary of accomplishments and a review of action items. True. An effective leader ends the meeting with a summary of accomplishments and a review of action items; he or she also follows up by distributing meeting minutes and reminding participants of their assigned tasks. Jeff will be leading a virtual team meeting. What should he do to make certain that the meeting runs smoothly and professionally? b. Ensure that the technology is working for all participants before the meeting starts. When leading or participating in a virtual meeting, follow these tips: ensure that the technology is functional for all participants before the start of the meeting, set the meeting time using Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), interact professionally, establish ground rules, understand and anticipate limitations of virtual technology, take turns speaking, and allow dispersed members to build camaraderie and trust through casual conversation before and after the meeting. T/F: The term "professionalism" refers to desirable workplace behavior. True. The term "professionalism" and its synonyms, such as "business etiquette" or "protocol," "soft skills," "social intelligence," "polish," and "civility" all have one element in common. They describe desirable workplace behavior. Businesses have an interest in employees who get along and deliver positive results that enhance profits and boost the company's image. T/F: Recruiters rank speaking skills as an important "soft skill" desired in employees. True. Effective speaking skills, whether face-to-face or virtual, are essential for success at every career stage. In addition, speaking skills are the most desirable "soft skill" sought in job candidates by employers. In fact, speaking skills rank higher than a strong work ethic, teamwork, analytical skills, and initiative. The most important part of preparing for an oral presentation is determining the purpose. Although creating visual aids, gathering research, and looking professional are important, determining the purpose is the most important part of the preparation for an oral presentation. After determining your purpose for the presentation, what is your next important step? Analyzing the audience After determining your purpose, the second key element in preparation is analyzing your audience to understand key characteristics of the target receivers of your message. This allows you to best adapt your message to your audience to maximize message effectiveness. When analyzing your audience, you should consider the a. educational level of the audience members. b. size of the audience. c. approximate age of the audience members. d. All answer choices are important factors to consider when analyzing an audience. d. All answer choices are important factors to consider when analyzing an audience. When speakers analyze an audience, they should determine the type of audience, along with the age, gender, educational level, experience, and size of the audience. Presentations are given to many types of audiences. According to your text, the four categories of audiences are: hostile, friendly, neutral, and uninterested . An audience may be characterized by its anticipated response. The four general response categories for audiences are hostile, friendly, neutral, and uninterested. Based on the category of audience, you should adapt both your content and delivery style to maximize your results. Irina will make her presentation to a large audience of members whose negative attitudes range from displeased to outraged. What advice should Irina follow in preparing her presentation for this audience? d. Present objective data and expert opinion in a calm, controlled delivery style. Because she faces a hostile audience, Irina should plan to present objective data and expert opinion in a calm and controlled delivery. After you determine your purpose and analyze your audience, your next step is to collect information. After determining your purpose and analyzing the audience, you must collect and organize information. You cannot organize ideas until all the information is collected, and you cannot practice delivery until you organize the content. Finally, you identified the topic when developing your purpose statement. T/F: Intentional repetition is one of the most effective techniques to improve your audience's ability to understand and remember your speech. True. Increase audience comprehension and retention with good organization and intentional repetition using this method: "Tell them what you will tell them. Tell them. Tell them what you told them." Then choose an organizational scheme suited to your purpose and audience, and implement transitional expressions and signposts to help your audience recognize your organization. T/F: Sharing your position or experience with the audience does not establish your credibility in a business presentation and can come across as condescending. False. Establish credibility by describing your knowledge, position, and experience. In business your personal information will not likely impact your audience. You don't want to include more than a max of ____ key points in a 20-minute presentation. four. The body of a short presentation should include a limited number of main points (two to four). Paul is explaining to upper-level management how converting to a four-day workweek can solve their budget woes by decreasing expenses. How will he most likely organize his presentation? Problem/solution Paul is identifying a problem (budget woes) and offering a solution (compressed workweek to decrease costs). In an effective presentation conclusion, you will strive to accomplish three goals (SELECT THREE): 1. Summarize the main themes 2.Review the attention getter 3.Give the audience a memorable take-away 4. Conclude with a statement that allows for a graceful exit 1. Summarize the main themes 2. Give the audience a memorable take-away 3. Conclude with a statement that allows for a graceful exit Your conclusion has three primary tasks: review the main themes of the presentation, leave the audience with a memorable take-away, and include a statement that allows you to exit the podium gracefully.