Xebec Interactive's new CD training program, Effective Presentations , is designed to give users a comprehensive course in business-presentation skills. As a presentation coach and consultant with more than 10 years of experience, my interest in this program is more than academic. I want to know whether three discs can put me out of a job. Most of the lessons, delivered through on-screen text, voiceovers, and video segments, are reasonable and helpful. For the most part, the lessons are standard Speech 101 fare.
Nothing is terribly new or insightful, but the tips and suggestions are sound.
One area of weakness is the section on managing presentation anxiety. Unfortunately, it doesn't do a lot of good, either. The challenge is to deliver a marketing presentation to a skeptical audience. To prepare, the learner reviews relevant market data, media reports, and the like. He or she then analyzes the audience, structures the presentation, and chooses visual aids.