How to brief a presentation template designer

The traditional approach is to hand the designer a blank slide and say “we need a fresh PowerPoint template”. You will get a slide back full of supporting graphics, logos, page numbers which shows that the designer added some value.

Presentation design secrets

If you are a layman designer, here is how your guide to an effective presentation:

1. Put your entire existing slide deck with all your backup slides and analysis in an appendix
2. Think what you want the audience to do, and write down…

Sales presentation versus investor presentations

There is an overlap and there are differences.

Overlap. At the core of both an investor and a sales presentation is some story that said what it is you actually do, and why this is such a great solution that you should…

Most presentations are training decks

In the beginning, you know you have your killer slides to get you through the meeting. The…

Logo cropping

This screen shot is typical for many logo pages in presentations:

Deep dive

Three ways to show understanding of an industry in 10 minutes:

1. Construct a 90 minute lecture trying to cover…

Uncovering cosmic patterns

Design is all about uncovering patterns and proportions that are somehow hidden in the cosmos. Architects, music composers, graphics designers, chefs, film directors, painters, authors, each is hoping to uncover a genius composition that has been hiding in plain sight for a few…

Interview questions

Back at McKinsey, doing recruiting interviews was an integral part of a consultant’s job. I interviewed hundreds of candidates, mostly back at my business school (INSEAD). When interviewers ask a question, they are most of the times not trying to figure out whether you can produce the 100%…

“They are not interested in this”

Or maybe: “they understood it”. When you don’t get questions about a certain issue in your…