Exercises and Other Tips for Group Presentations

The success of any group presentation relies not on individual performance but teamwork. Although each member of the group must work hard for his part, he must also be willing and capable of working together with his teammates to allow the group presentation to proceed smoothly.

Suggested Communication Exercises and Other Tips for Group Presentations

Delegate and assign.
In most cases, a group presentation requires every member to take part in the presentation itself. A leader should be unanimously chosen and he must consequently delegate the appropriate roles and duties for each member.

Create a timetable.
A deadline must set for every small goal for individual members and the entire team. The presentation must be complete at least one week before the groups set to present. This will give them enough time to rehearse their presentation, focus on resolving technical flaws and perfect its execution.

Build harmony and rapport among members.
There are a lot of icebreaker games and communication exercises that will help members to get to know, be comfortable, and understand each other. Fostering and strengthening bonds among members is important because it will allow them to work together more effectively, making them able to identify and understand nonverbal cues coming from other members.

Eliminate stage fright.
Group members should be made comfortable early on with presenting in front of a crowd. You should start with a crowd filled with people your group members are all acquainted with and comfortable with. Gradually work your way to a crowd thats set to challenge your groups equilibrium on stage. In this case, make sure to coach them on what and what not to do.

Make them crack a joke.
Its easier to anger a crowd and make them cry than elicit laughter from them. Humor however is one of the critical success factors for almost all presentations. Unless youre very sure that humor would be frowned upon, it wouldnt hurt to develop the teams ability to incorporate humor with their presentation either deliberately or incidentally. Ask your members to crack a joke individually then as a group. Go over the script for your presentation and hold a brainstorm meeting to identify which parts would best benefit from a little humor.

Get rid of the script.
There will be times that things would veer away from the script. Your group should be ready for this. You can help by making them memorize first what they have to say then asking them later on to paraphrase everything with their own words. Whats important is ensuring that they understand what theyre talking about.

Get them ready to interact with the crowd.
Interaction with the crowd is required even if its not planned and theres no formal Q&A portion scheduled for the group. Thats why its important to prepare them for this early on. Start by questioning them about the presentation one by one then as a group. Make sure you ask them a healthy mix of objective and subjective questions.

Practice the sequence of events.
Teach your members how to engage in small talk with the crowd to introduce or conclude their respective presentations. Teach them how to properly introduce the next speaker as well to ensure a smooth transition from one part of the presentation to another. Sequencing might have nothing to do with the actual content of the presentation but its often what distinguishes good presentations from the best!

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