subject: Perfman HR: Brief Presentation to Employers [print this page] Perfman HR: Brief Presentation to Employers
When you meet a potential employer, the value of a brief, well thought-out presentation is that it captures your experienceand strengths, illustrates your accomplishments, and indicates your intendeddirection; it also quickly establishes your credibility with the other person andmakes it easier for that person to help you.
You may feel awkward presenting to friends. In this case, you can just say, "Maybe I could begin by telling you how I'm describing myself in my campaign and get your comments onhow it sounds." Friends will appreciate your doing this, because they probably won'tknow or remember all the details of your job qualifications and career plans.With people who do not know you well, your lead-in for the brief presentationshould be more along the lines of, "It may help if I began by telling you something aboutmy background, my strengths, and my career objectives."
When the other person gives you the go-ahead, you make the presentation.You should be making a presentation you have practiced several times, so thatyou can deliver it conversationally and confidently. There's no need to memorizethe words thoughyou want to focus on the key points, allowing the words toform around them.
While you are presenting, watch the other person's body language forsigns of interestand respect (head nodding, smiling, taking notes) or puzzlement (headtilting, eyes deflected). If someone seems puzzled ask, "Should I explain that?" or"Do you have a question?" Normally, however, the other person will respondpositively to a well-prepared, brief presentation.In a later section, I will take you through preparing a brief presentation step-by-step.
Main Discussion
The main discussion, which you'll reach about 10 minutes into your meeting,revolves around the principal subjects you have come to talk about. Some topicsthat might be appropriate include:
Transformations in the role or industry you are interested in
Changing needs resulting from those transformations
How your experience might relate to particular jobs
One or more organizations you could target
Professional organizations that the person is a member of and that might be useful resources for you
Research you have done up to this point, some of your preliminaryconclusions, and what further investigation might be valuable
Your campaign strategy and possibly one or more choices you're confronted with You should come prepared with a statement about each of the two or threetopics you wish to introduce, along with two or three key questions about each.
In conducting the discussion, keep it conversational, acknowledge the other person'sideas, and ask follow-up questions. By all means, take notes. At an appropriatetime, use a remark such as, "That sounds really interesting! Who should I talk to to find out more?" to generate a referral.If you disagree with a comment or suggestion, don't argue the point. Instead, try tounderstand it. You might say, "That surprises me somewhat. Can you give me an example?"
The main discussion may last anywhere from 10 minutes to 1 hour or more,depending on the other person's availability, interest, and your skill in conductingthe conversation. Sometimes you will obtain no referrals, but in more excitingmeetings you might receive as many as ten. Even when no referrals are generated,the information, feedback, and ideas you obtain will almost certainly be valuable.
You now have a perfect opportunity to state what you have to offer employers.
The value of a brief, well thought-out presentation is that it captures your experience
and strengths, illustrates your accomplishments, and indicates your intended
direction; it also quickly establishes your credibility with the other person and
makes it easier for that person to help you.
You may feel awkward presenting to friends. In this case, you can just say, "Maybe I
could begin by telling you how I'm describing myself in my campaign and get your comments on
how it sounds." Friends will appreciate your doing this, because they probably won't
know or remember all the details of your job qualifications and career plans.
With people who do not know you well, your lead-in for the brief presentation
should be more along the lines of, "It may help if I began by telling you something about
my background, my strengths, and my career objectives."
When the other person gives you the go-ahead, you make the presentation.
You should be making a presentation you have practiced several times, so that
you can deliver it conversationally and confidently. There's no need to memorize
the words thoughyou want to focus on the key points, allowing the words to
form around them.
While you are presenting, watch the other person's body language for signs of
interest and respect (head nodding, smiling, taking notes) or puzzlement (head
tilting, eyes deflected). If someone seems puzzled ask, "Should I explain that?" or
Sonal Aurora is director and co- founder ofPerfman HR.
