Effective Mechanical
Engineering Presentations
Denny Coon
Feb. 20, 2002
9 words
Effective Mechanical Engineering
Presentations
• On-line Resources
• Important?
• Characteristics • 10 Commandments
• Summary
• Visuals
• Mechanics
28 words
Why Give an Effective Presentation?
Good Oral Presentation Skills
• Can be learned by anyone
• Will reflect positively on speaker
UW ME Educational Objective
• Solve open ended problems
• Effectively communicate the solution
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Important Presentation Characteristics
• Purpose
• Audience
o Message?
• Approach
• Time Limit
o Agree with message
o Their level and interests
o Make it interesting!
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Important Presentation Characteristics
• Purpose
• Audience
o Message?
• Approach
• Time Limit
o Agree with message
o Their level and interests
o Make it interesting!
34 words
Key Elements of Visuals
• Organization
• Background & Color
• Font
• Amount of Information
• Graphics
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Key Elements of Visuals
Organization
• The rule of Tell’em
o Tell’em what you’re
going to tell’em
o Tell’em
o Tell’em what you just
told’em
• Logical flow
o
o
o
o
Title
Outline & Intro
Details
Summary
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Key Elements of Visuals
Background & Color
Contrasting Colors
• Clear and clean text
• Dark background with light text
• Avoid nauseating combinations
• Avoid pastels – wash out on projection
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Nauseating Combination!
Key Elements of Visuals
Font
• No more than 2 font types
• Use bold and Italic strategically
• Able to read from back row
• Font size proportional to importance
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Key Elements of Visuals
Amount of Information
• KISS
• No more than 7 lines per slide
• No more than 7 words per line
• Bullets and Keywords
• No faster than 1 minute per slide
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•
•
Key Elements of Visuals
Amount of Information
Keep it Simple Stupid! – KISS
• If audience is concentrating too hard on the visuals, they
sometimes miss the message that you are trying to convey
• To many lines in the visual cause the audience to experience
confusion – no more than 7 lines per slide
• Long strings of text can cause visual overload - No more
than 7 words per line
• Generally, text elements can be simplified dramatically. If
you combine verbal discussion with visual elements, this
simplification does not result in loss of message - Bullets
and Keywords
Rapidly progressing through the visuals can result in
delayed processing of your message. It is always
preferred to keep the audience in sync with your
discussion - No faster than 1 minute per slide
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Key Elements of Visuals
Graphics
• Don’t assume the audience understands
graphic
• Explain key elements (symbols, axes, etc.)
• Explain the significance
• PowerPoint effects
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Presentation Mechanics
• Dress
• Mannerisms
• You are the expert!
• Eye Contact
• Avoid Laser Light Shows!
• Learn to mask nerves
o Don’t read slides
o Don’t read notes
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On-Line Resources
Important Design Concepts (Psychology Department –
Columbia University)
 Creating Effective Presentations (University of South
Dakota)
 Effective Presentations (Office of Sponsored Research –
UCLA)
 Guidelines for Presentations (American Water Works
Association)
 Guidelines for Presentations (American Society of
Primatologists)

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On-Line Resources
Presentation Tips (Physics Department – Rice University)
 Effective Oral Presentations (Business Administration –
Northeastern University
 Making Effective Presentations (Western Association for
Art Conservation – Stanford University)
 How to Give a Bad Talk! (Computer Science Department
– University of Wisconsin)

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10 Commandments of a Bad Talk
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
Thou shalt not be neat
Thou shalt not waste space
Thou shalt not covet brevity
Thou shalt cover thy naked slides
Thou shalt not write large
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10 Commandments of a Bad Talk
6) Thou shalt not use color
7) Thou shalt not illustrate
8) Thou shalt not make eye contact
9) Thou shalt not skip slides
10) Thou shalt not practice
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Effective Presentations
Summary
• Importance • Mechanics
• Characteristics • On-line Resources
• 10 Commandments
• Visuals
28 words