Group Greatness: Three Ways to Coordinate Team Presentations

Group presentations are required in most classes I teach. Once, a group of students told me they’d be speaking on “whales” but failed to coordinate their talk. I think they were as surprised as I was when one member discussed whales, the animal; one offered some enlightening information about the country of Wales; and a third provided an overview of the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem.

Thankfully, most group presenters at work coordinate more effectively than students. Intentional planning and collaboration can minimize the potential messiness of team talks, allowing the benefits—diverse perspectives, time efficiency, and teamwork—to shine. When your group aligns its work together early, communication can flow more smoothly, and your presentation will sound more unified rather than a series of disparate talks thrown together under a single heading. 

You don’t have to synchronize every word, of course, but coordinating these three elements will make the most difference in your group presentation.

1) Coordinate on content

Before getting in front of your audience, your group should synchronize on the various elements of the presentation’s content, including goals, depth, roadmap, and tone. Discuss the following before crafting content.

• Goal. What is the objective of your talk? What do you want your audience to know, feel, and do as a result of what you share? Be sure to check in with your group periodically regarding what you’re saying and how you're saying it to avoid overlaps and miscommunications (like my whale/Wales/wail friends).
• Depth. How much detail will you provide, and in which sections? You may decide to have different speakers cover the content at varying levels of specificity, or you may opt to keep everyone at the same level. This is a great time to also agree on joint terminology to use across all sections.

• Roadmap. What information journey will you take your audience on? What role does each presenter play along the way? Each presenter should also know how to set up fellow presenters for success.

• Tone. How formal or informal will your presentation be? Coordinate formality amongst your presenters in terms of appearance (the clothes you wear), language (contractions and cursing), and concision (how long you speak).

2) Perfect speaker transitions 

When you shift from one speaker to the next, you’re technically changing both the presenter and the topic. Too often, presenters will simply say, “And here is Sven…” and hand over the microphone. Instead, offer a more complete transition that allows your audience to mentally shift from one section to the next. For instance, “Now that we understand the significance of the problem, Sven will come up and share our proposed solution.”

Transitions work best with visual cues as well: face the direction of the next presenter, wait for them to take center stage, and then walk off. If you need to pass a remote slide advancer and/or microphone to the new presenter, extend the equipment to them and allow them to take it. Think of it as “passing the baton” in a relay race—the physical exchange will enable you to pass authority and momentum forward symbolically.

3) Q&A from the audience

Effectively shifting from broadcasting information to interacting with your audience through a Q&A session is critical. Questions allow the audience to engage with the presenting team and provide presenters with an opportunity to gauge how well the audience has understood their message. 

Here are three suggestions to make this portion of your presentation a success:

1. Determine in advance who will take which questions. This coordination eliminates the awkward moment when everyone is looking blankly at each other, wondering if they should speak. If you have thoughts to add to a previous answer, do so by connecting your response to theirs (e.g., “In addition to what Juana said, I think…”).
2. Assign an “orchestra conductor” who manages the audience’s questions and hands them off to the appropriate answerer. The “conductor” will also manage time and wrap up the Q&A.
3. Pay attention even when you aren’t answering. Consider yourself in the spotlight even when you aren’t speaking. Look at the audience or whoever is answering (in other words, avoid looking at your phone or chatting with other team members).

Successful group presentations are like scenes in a stage play. Knowing your role, agreeing on timing, paying attention to details (and practicing!) will create a positive experience for your team and enhance your ability to convey your message to your audience effectively. 

Bonus advice for virtual team presentations:

• Test tech beforehand to ensure even sound and lighting across speakers.
• Coordinate virtual backgrounds to provide a sense of cohesion.
• Position team members’ bodies or faces similarly in their frames.

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