Presentation to Senior Leadership Team.

 Have you reached a point in your career where you are required to present to senior executives/Leadership in your company? If you said 'Yes' to that 'Congratulation', it is awesome. 

Of course, It is a great honor, however, it is a little stressful – because LT

• They are a difficult set of audiences. 
• Impatient because of their hectic schedules
• Not prepared for long presentations 

So, we need to avoid mundane presentations. They want. 

• to get to the point right away 
• want to interrupt you with their questions.  

You need to be ready and uber-prepared to answer them all. 

Let me share my tips and tricks to retain their attention and make them consider what you want to share. 

Know your material inside and out: you need to know the scripts cold - but do not memorize them. You should not have any uncertainty about the material you are going to present. 

Grab their attention: This is known as the hook. How to grab their attention? 

• Tell a short relatable story – talk about the challenge you had and how you overcame it related to the topic. 
• Ask the rhetorical question ‘How do we increase the Campus Recruit’s Utilization from 0% to 75% within less than 6 months? 
• Share a shocking statistic OR start with a Quote/image. 

Understand your audience: You need to know your audience when delivering any presentation. But when presenting to Senior Leadership, you need to organize their thoughts to make it easy for them to understand your proposal. They are always forward-thinking and result oriented. For this, you need to understand their mindset, motivation, and accountability. What are the details they need – obviously the hot buttons which are Linked to Corporative Objectives. First and foremost are money (Budget /Profit), ROI, Productivity, and Utilization - related to Efficiency. So, they can understand your request easily. This is a key point. 

Use time wisely: Executives have very limited time so not a second to be wasted. Get to the point quickly and summarize always with the end in mind. They need to know what your call to action is, and what your solution is. Just use less than half of the time given for meeting in your presentations. Save the balance for Q&A. Drive the key message. 

Be ready for the questions: Your presentation is not a monologue. It needs to be highly interactive. Executives with abundant business acumen will love to ask insightful questions. These are the sections that will make you shine and show how prepared you are. You will get questions that may be random, highly detailed/intense. They wanted to know anything and everything about your proposal - which will help them with their decision-making. They ask questions with current and future context. They want to know what your recommendations or tips are for those scenarios. 

Summary slides: Use the 10% formula. If you plan to Share 30 slides. Have 3 summary slides. Prepare slides that say a lot.... fewer words. Slides should speak headlines. Headlines immediately draw attention to your key points. If they drill down and ask questions, then you can jump into your detailed slides. They want to see data in a compelling format so they can easily comprehend it. They should be able to take away your big idea in just 3 points. 

Manage your nerves and be flexible: you are going to get nervous. Give enough time to prepare. Rehearse Rehearse Rehearse. Do enough research and check what they know, and what they need to know about your proposal. The more you know and understand them, the more effective and persuasive your presentation will be. Do a practice presentation with your manager or friend. Get feedback and correct yourself as needed. 

Points to remember. 

1. Position yourself as a leader - Speak to make an Impact - Do not speak to impress.  

2. Do not take things personally - LT is not concerned about you as a person, they are concerned about the business. 

3. Answer their questions assertively and to the point. 

4. Giving the presentation to leadership elevates our career and LT will become strong promoters for your ideas.

5. Talk with Clarity, Confidence, and conviction - Do not use jargon/Abbreviations - do not ramble.

6. Do not makeup stuff - you are ok to say ‘I do not know - will check and come back after the meeting’ But remember to get back. 

7. Do not present any problem without solutions. Executives want you to share the solutions and not just present challenges.

8. Look at the camera – with post-COVID, virtual meetings are here to stay. Have a good background. Look and dress well. Have enough lighting, a good microphone, and a Web camera.

9. It is common for the executive to ask you to go back and forth in your Presentation. Be Flexible. Cover what they want to focus on. The objective is not to go through all your slides, but the LT to understand the challenge and resolution you are trying to provide. 

10. Do not forget your ‘ASK’ and get their buy-in from them and build trust and familiarity.

Recently had the opportunity to have a meeting with my company’s LT regarding – Campus Recruits Cost Holiday. Was able to use these tips and get the buy-in from them, and I am on the verge of implementing it. 

Thank you and Good Luck!

Cost Holiday

When we do any shopping what is it that we all are looking for?

As a buyer, we look for good quality at negotiable prices.

As a salesperson - he/she will look to maximize the profit margin.

In both situations, in one word both are looking for ‘better value for their money spent.’

And as a buyer, we are more attracted to FREE! FREE! Or any offers like buy 1 get 1 free… Etc etc.

Trying to capitalize on this strategy when trying to place our Campus hires on projects. Give free samples to attract and then budge them to BUY! A cost Holiday is a kind of discount given for 6 weeks of Free Service and a Fee from the 7th week.

  As we all know our Campus Hires come with very minimal or zero work experience. They would have got some 2 to 4 months ‘Internship’ experience. But they come with big aspirations - as an Ops I want to tap that and generate Revenue for the Org/Company. There is a lot of give and take to make this happen. These Campus hires want to work in cutting-edge technology. But the project will be on a different skill set. We need to convince our Campus recruits to learn and deliver on the Job.

We need to target the Sellers/Pursuit Team and make them aware of and know about this. So, when they work on large deals or long-tenured Projects, they will bake in our Campus hires in their Deal Estimate Models.

As soon as they are onboard, give 2 months of ramp-up time to learn the culture/systems/ tools of the company and then introduce to the client for free service for 6 weeks and then make them billable from the 7th week.

 I spilt this project into 3 tasks.

1. Scoping the deal Estimate with Aspires by giving Discounts.
2. Learn on the Job
3. Attach Price Tag

In the first step - when working on the Deal Estimate, identify the roles where we can place our Campus Recruits, let the client know of the ‘OFFER’, and sell it. Have any tools updated to accommodate this role.

2nd Step – ‘Learn on the Job’. The campus hires are placed in a team of size 6 or more. Also, they do get buddy mentors in the project.

 Last is attach the price tag.

 Let us dive deep into each of the TASK.

 

1. Scoping the deal Estimate with Aspires by giving Discounts.

 i) During the Deal discussion, make the Campus Hires or Aspire known to the Client with the Offer that we provide.

ii) As it is a free service for 6 weeks, check any compliance or local labor laws.

iii) Can have a client interaction clinic for them.

iv) Have a Repository of all the Campus hire Profiles.

v) When signed off successfully - PJM can work with the Resource manager and assign them to the projects.

  

2. Learn on the Job

 i) Our Campus hires are like sponges, they are hired after multiple iterations of evaluation. They can learn and deliver any skillsets. Just check only 2 aspects Large Team and Long Term. 

ii)  2 main considerations when assigning to Projects.

1.     Long Term - 4 months +. As we have 6 weeks free and then only, they try to contribute towards the project. If it is short-term, they will be released by the time they start making an impact. Also, then only we will be able to break even the profit margin too!

2.     Team Size 6+ - With this model his /her interaction with the client will be reduced and can learn from all other Team members, including the buddy mentor.

iii) We need to assign 2 mentors for them, 1 in the Project Buddy mentor and 2 outside of the projects. This will help to brainstorm and learn more.

iv) Pre-COVID the Campus Hire learned by shadowing a buddy mentor over the shoulder at the same client site. With most of the work done virtually, it is difficult, but we need to make it happen.

 

3. Attach Price Tag

i) When the campus hire starts delivering value - make him/ her billable.

ii) Track the 6-week free service with any existing/new tool.

iii) In case the client is NOT willing to pay – immediately deallocate from the current project.

This is one of the successful initiatives in most consulting firms. If you have any questions on this initiative, pls reach out to me! 

Informational Interview

Informational Interviews, it has other names like – Informational meetings/coffee chat/networking. It is a conversation where a person seeks insight/ advice about a career from an Experienced person. Generally, is a casual /informal chat between 2 people. But if handled correctly, it can mature into a formal chat when both parties become job seekers and hiring managers. You might have a few assumptions about a job/role/company, but this process of an Informational Interview will test your assumptions. 

It is a win-win situation. 

• Knowledge seeker – gets more details about 1) Industry/company 2) Career path. 
• Knowledge provider – 1) lends a helping hand 2) expands his/her professional network 3) meets prospective employee/business partner. 

It is a forum where both get to know and learn about each other. Let us, deep dive, into this… find answers to  

1. How do I find SME /Experienced person to talk to 
2. Etiquette of Informational Interview 
3. What questions to ask them 
4. Benefits of Informational Interview 

How do I find SME /Experienced person to talk to 

Source to find an SME.  

1. friends, school/college alumni, and fellow members of a community / non-profit organization.  
2. former coworkers, partners, and clients. 
3. Others like recruiters, mentors, and coaches can help to connect with the right POCs. 
4. People you met in networking events/job Fairs can also help you. 
5. Another great source will be LinkedIn – which focuses on connecting people.  

You can cold contact them by calling/emailing them, if they are interested, they will provide a helping hand. Yes, it is a number game, not all will give a green signal for your request. If they decline or ignore you, just do not lose heart and move on with the next person on your list. We need to ameliorate.

 Etiquette of Informational Interview 

1. Consider it as a business appointment and conduct it professionally. 
2. Keep your introduction short. 
3. Dress for the occasion. Regular business attire is recommended - in person or virtual. 
4. Do some research on the person and the company. 
5. Learn the jargon/ lexicon used and try to incorporate them into your questions. 
6. Duration must be 20 to max 30 mins - in case of need, you can have another meeting. 
7. Come prepared with the questions, you will be driving it. Also, listen actively, and ask follow-up /counter questions, based on the details shared /discussed. 
8. Be prepared, the other person will ask questions too. 
9. The main point to focus on is, the interviewee is looking to know how curious you are. 
10. In the end, appreciate the time spent, and send a thank you note.  

Questions to ask: This is a vital part of the Informational Interview. To break the ice, talk about the lighter subject first and then you can fine grain and volley to the particulars. Avoid all the questions that google guru can answer. Do not feel afraid to ask questions. The other person will be flattered to accommodate this Informational Interview - everyone likes to feel important. Masquerade yourself like a reporter/journalist and start firing the questions.  

1. Roles and Responsibilities. Is there a Rhythm of business in a month / in a year? 
2. What are the skillsets /technology needed and what certification clearance is required? 
3. What makes the resume’ more impressive, when applying for this kind of position - What keywords /jargon must be in the resume? 
4. How is the career path /progression defined - Assume getting into a consultant role working on Data and AI. Then you would go to Sr Consultant, Associate architect, Architect, Sr Architect, and Principal Architect…. 
5. What are personal traits/characteristics needed for the role - Eg you want to be in IT Business Operation and then say do not like to do simple math to calculate the Utilization% or growth/profit margin. 
6. Who are the support team you need to interact with? 
7. How is your job measured? What are your KPIs?  

Some questions to drill down with the SME, as you get comfortable, after the warmup…  

1. What aspects of the job is soul satisfying /feel-good work? 
2. Is there any pressure /fire drill work regularly. 
3. Any toughest /challenging exercise in this role / what is more surprising in this role? 
4. Tell me about a new hire you enjoy working with and what key characteristic stands out. 
5. Who are your toughest competitors, and how is your company different? 
6. Is anyone else you recommend talking to, to get more insight into this role - help expand your network? 
7. What changes have you seen in the last 5 years in this area of work? 
8. How do you stay current in your knowledge base / what would you recommend? 
9. Also, what details you did not know about this industry, which you wish you knew / or someone guided you, at the time of starting this job? 
10. Anything that you missed asking them, which is important, and I need to be aware of 

  Benefits of Informational Interview 

1. You get to talk to an SME without pressure. 
2. You are the person in control. 
3. Improves your self-confidence and this experience gained with the tips and advice helps you to prep and handle a real job interview more efficiently. 
4. The SME knows you may refer to demands that are yet to be published too. 
5. Expand your network.  

Quick Recap: Informational interviews are good but at the same time they are a double edge sword. Just go through the dos and Don’ts.  

Don’ts	Dos
Go for the Informational Interview without practicing	Schedule the chat with the Interviewee with the topic, date/time, and duration
Ask for a job - but create a good impression, that you get referred	Do your homework – about the SME /company or industry
If the first experience of the Informational Interview is not fruitful, do not lose hope. Try a few more.	Practice your intro - keep it short, simple at the same time stunning
	Have your questions specific and not too generic. Ask open-end questions. Also, take notes throughout the conversation.
	Have a solid/robust ending thanking them and reiterating a couple of points, so you make an impeccable impression.

 Use these Informational interviews more proficiently. Do not ask for a job. Generally, the SME, if he/she likes you will refer you for any internal demands that are open – making you visible in the hidden job market. It puts you on the shortlist before the job is published/advertised. Take advantage of it.

                                                                Good luck! 

Change of Managers

Last July we had an Org change in my company. I was less than 7 months old in the company. I was surprised, more shocked at the number of changes that happened. I am used to Re-Org in my previous company, when the management changes, there will be some changes including my manager changing. I had been with a manager for 4 months to 8 yrs. Hence this shook me off!

My way of consoling /reassuring myself is to draw a bigger line / bigger problem next to it. In early 2000, when we landed in this country, I was relocated by my company, from state to state with my family on new assignments. Compared to that this is nothing.

I believe “Every change is for good". If things are not under our control, I accept them without any reasoning/logic. But this one. I believe this will happen every Fiscal year here, hence wanted to think out a little and be prepared. When your manager frequently changes at work it is not easy/challenging but we can handle it tactfully. I like to share some of my tips.

1.  Schedule an Intro/ Interview.

a. Block the calendar with the new manager. Consider this first conversation with your new manager as a job interview.

b. You need to share all the highlights of your current job – speak about your accomplishments. Share your rhythm of work, your strength, and your goals.

c. Either the earlier manager left the role voluntarily or involuntarily – we may not know, hence handle it with care.

d. The new manager is there to implement a change as per the leadership directions and support him/her in all the ways possible.

e. In case he/she is new to the Company /Dept - help with the orientation/onboarding formalities as needed.

2.  Discover the new priorities.

a. As mentioned earlier, the earlier manager left either voluntarily or involuntarily, to do a little detective work. Find out why the new boss was appointed.

b. It could be some failure with your previous manager or the company’s directions have changed - ‘shift in the mission’

c. Probe with your network at work - be informed of, educate, and engage yourself accordingly.

d. If needed, if you are comfortable - you can talk to your skip-level boss. Your new manager’s manager. 😊 Get the details top down the right way! I did not do it...

3.  Modify and Adjust / Do not dwell in the past.

a. Adjusting is always tough

b. Do NOT praise the previous regime. Just do not relive the past – it will cause a lack of commitment to the new manager.

c. Study your new manager - work style/mode of communication (IM/mail/text/call) / how detailed he/she is looking in any status updates.

d. We need to adapt and change as quickly as possible.

e. Invest and maintain the relationship – having a good relationship with your boss makes your workday more enjoyable.

f. After a month schedule a call with the new manager – ask for feedback - just 15 mins. 3 questions like the Traffic light

                i)What you should STOP doing 

                ii)What needs to be improvised 

                iii)What you should continue doing (Hearing this, motivates you to do better)

4.  Focus on Learning /Understanding the dynamics

a. Do not rely on your boss for all your development needs. Talk to your mentors /well-wishers, If you want to seek guidance.

b. Try to learn from your new manager – he/she could be a sales whiz, technically sound, or with creative hobbies and ideas.

c. It is a Novel experience, check this new perspective. See the work with a new pair of eyes - take advantage of it.

5.  Check your attitude and Deliver

a. You may or may not like your new boss – but do not dwell on negativity. 

b. This will be reflected in your work.

c. We cannot control this kind of situation. But go with the flow – be a helping contributor.

d. Maintain a healthy relationship in a good way - you may not know what other prospective doors it will open.

e. Never bad mouth both the current and your previous manager.

f. You are expected to deliver the task assigned. Put in whatever time /effort it takes – get it done!

Quick Recap - We all know ‘Changes are inevitable - without which we cannot grow or retain sustainability.

  

#	Don’ts	Do’s
1	Praise the previous regime.	Your first meeting – should be like a job interview
2	Live in the Past - lead to Negativity/annoyance only.	Investigate why the old manager left and why this new boss
3	Bad mouth your current /old manager	Assess, Adapt, and accomplish
4		Focus your energy on improvising the situation
5		See what you could learn from the new manager

With all these learnings, I am having a good and cordial relationship with my manager now and leaning in, learning, and leading, the work assigned to me and at the same time having fun!

                                                                    Good Luck!