Library managers, regardless of the sector in which they work, must be competent presenters of information in both live presentations and in their written work. Whether presenting a case to management, a new service or product to clients, or an awareness session for community groups, we must be able to develop an appropriate presentation and deliver it with confidence, authority and clarity – as well as, in the case of live presentations, operate the data projector, the remote control, the whiteboard, the laser pointer and the flip chart while coordinating the video and internet hookups and avoiding tripping over cables and leads and bumping into lecturns and tables – while maintaining eye contact, responding to visual cues and otherwise engaging our audience. Written presentations can often be just as difficult!
Most books on this topic focus on delivery methods and presentation styles – this book takes a step back and provides a model for design, development, delivery and evaluation of presentations. Small and Avone have not written his book specifically for information professionals, but rather for all professionals who finds themselves in a situation where they are required to develop and deliver presentations. The reason that it is highly appropriate for us, is that their model for development is based our existing understanding of information characteristics and focuses on the research, selection, organization and delivery of information to communicate a message to a given audience.
The PACT (purpose, audience, content, technique) model is described by the authors as “not a step‐by‐step model but rather an iterative one in which you must clearly understand the purpose of the presentation and your audience before you develop the content and delivery techniques”. Taking a standard project management approach it provides a structured planning methodology (chapters 1‐2) (P also stands for planning!) that includes audience analysis, defining objectives (to inform, inspire, influence or instruct), variables (timing, location/venue, technology/equipment, audience size) and creating back‐up plans. Subsequent chapters cover content organization, selection and research (chapters 4‐6), techniques for written, oral and multimedia presentations (chapters 7‐9) and evaluating your presentation (chapter 10).
The book itself is presented as a training program with exercises and activities that assist an individual to work through the steps from getting started to evaluation. It incorporates a touch of “interactivity” by providing “flashbacks” and posing questions for you to think about as you work through the chapters. It also incorporates an ongoing case study that examines various scenarios at the end of each chapter and then and provides appropriate solutions based on the model. The final chapter provides five presentation scenarios that require you to apply the concepts presented in preceding chapters.
