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Professional Voice News

Listed below are the latest newsletters and press releases from Professional Voice. You can Sign up to our newsletters here.

APRIL 2010 - PRESS RELEASE
Graduate speaking skills... are debatable.

Businesses must provide graduates with key speaking skills if universities won’t, says Professional Voice.

With the first televised election debate between party leaders on-air this week and the popularity of public talks and debates on the rise, you could be forgiven for thinking that the art of public speaking was making a comeback in the UK. Not in universities however.

Despite being an integral part of education right up till the Victorian era, oratory, or in more contemporary terms, the art of persuasion, is no longer considered a key element of education. This is surprising when you look at how much training is being offered to business people to develop communication and presentation skills.

'It would be difficult to think of many professions where having excellent speaking skills would not be a real advantage.' says Marie Lester of Professional Voice. 'Business executives are always interested in learning skills to make them more persuasive, yet most universities provide little more than online resource in oral presentation skills. And who can learn public speaking from a web-page?'

To make up for the lack of undergraduate or secondary education training in this area, many businesses are now starting to incorporate voice and communication training into their graduate development programmes. This would seem an obvious step, yet previously most organisations only offered this kind of training at a more senior level.

'Voice and communication coaching features in all of our clients’ senior leadership development programmes, but many of them are now starting to recognise the benefits of providing it much earlier' according to Lester. 'Investment in this type of training at intake level will quickly reap rewards for businesses through more effective management skills and client interaction.'

One thing is certain. The sooner young executives learn the basics of persuasive communication, the more effective they will be in business and in the world around them. Maybe even as future politicians.

FEBRUARY 2010
2010 - All Change for Communication?

As another year and another decade begins, many of us will inevitably be asking ourselves "what's changed, what's new?" The answer, of course, is everything and nothing.

At the beginning of the millennium many predicted that with advances in technology, face-to-face communication in a business context would become largely unnecessary. It was suggested that email and virtual communication, such as video and teleconferencing, could replace meetings and presentations entirely. But despite the meteoric rise in virtual communication, studies have shown that when the message is critical, face-to-face communication is the most powerful.

Spoken communication will always be an essential element of business success. So as we begin a new decade, we should remind ourselves that the need for clear, effective communication in the workplace remains constant. In 2010, the messages may be getting more optimistic, but the way those messages are delivered will determine how well they are received. So what works?

PRESENTATION TRENDS

Say less, more effectively
A recent survey of 1,000 adults by Lloyds TSB showed that the average attention span has fallen from over 12 minutes a decade ago to just over 5 minutes today. Advertising and the media have transformed over the last decade to deliver smaller bite-size pieces of information in an effort to keep people engaged.

Business presenters take note: shorter well-structured presentations will have the greatest impact.

Focus on your Audience - Make it meaningful
For your message to resonate it needs to be meaningful for the specific audience you are addressing. Ask yourself, what does my audience WANT to know? You will hold their attention more easily if the information presented contains only the relevant detail for them.

Your MEANS of persuasion also relies on understanding that particular audience. What will work best for them? Appealing to logic? To emotion? To ethics or values? Perhaps all three.

What's the story?
Information in the form of facts and figures doesn't provoke thought in the same way that messages do. And is not as memorable. Facts and figures are useful to give your messages back up, but defining your message and structuring a persuasive 'story' is key to creating memorable content - and achieving a result. Using a situation/action/result or what/how/why format will ensure you have all the key elements of the story.

Grab the listener...
In a newspaper article the headline and opening sentence are written to hook the reader into the rest of the article. The same premise applies with any communication strategy. Your opening lines should provoke thought and engage the audience's attention.

Also, make sure the audience knows WHY you are communicating with them. The word "because" is a powerful one. Give your audience a reason for listening by explaining the benefits of a proposal or the rationale behind it.

...and keep them listening
Holding the attention of an audience is all about vocal effectiveness, clarity and impact. Professional Voice runs numerous programmes in this area for its international clients, and participants have increasingly commented on the value of our additional coaching on developing content and story structure for effective vocal delivery.

Get the Picture?
PowerPoint is a great way of conveying business information visually and can be highly effective. Unfortunately, too many presenters overload their PowerPoint slides with text or meaningless images for decoration. Text should be minimised and pared down to create a memorable 'hook', summarising your point. And your images should be relevant.

The way you display the information makes a huge difference to how well it is retained by the audience. Simplicity is crucial. The use of colour, shading, size and position can be used to focus the audience's attention on what you are saying. A well-created visual will make your message more powerful and more memorable.

NOVEMBER 2009
Looking Ahead to 2010

Business is looking healthier then ever for Professional Voice with record advance programme bookings through 2010. We will be providing coaching on top management and leadership development programmes for major clients in Russia, China, Holland, Thailand, Germany, Switzerland, France and the USA.

Many executives working internationally are facing the ever-increasing challenge of communicating successfully to multi-cultural audiences. Our coaching ensures that business messages are delivered with clarity, impact and in the right tone - for both native and non-native English speakers.

PRESS RELEASE - July 2009
Finance Directors Thrust into the Spotlight

Professional Voice reports a three-fold increase in Finance Directors seeking voice and communication coaching.

The Finance Director historically has often taken a back seat in the area of communication. However as more and more companies are hit by the realities of the current economic environment, these key figures have been thrust into the spotlight, often without the necessary skills to deal with the new challenges they face.

Finance Directors have a tendency to apologise more at the beginning of a presentation or briefing and to be more self deprecating than any other functional Directors,” says Simon Cannon, a Director at Professional Voice. This is often due to an unnecessary defensiveness about the number of figures and statistics they are required to discuss.

But now that the FD’s communication role has grown in importance as all eyes and ears turn to him or her, an increasing number are turning to us for coaching on their delivery.”

Professional Voice advises Finances Directors to address three areas – key message, personal impact and vocal delivery. How convincingly you come across is a result of a combination of factors, including your posture, body language, eye contact and voice. To really ‘land’ your key message, the content needs to be well structured but an audience will ultimately assess you by the way you deliver” says senior coach Louise Crowley, and the work we do is very effective.

An FD client recently told us, “On Tuesday of this week, I presented the March results to the main board of the company and the feedback I got was unbelievably positive. The CEO of the Company ion the US knew I had been on a course but he commented towards the end that the presentation was fantastic: clear, concise, to the point. My boss then followed up with further praise the best presentation they had heard out of all the company divisions. As Professional Voice knows, this is a huge turnaround situation!' ”.

JANUARY 2009 NEWSLETTER
Crunch Time to Communication

The past few months have been a challenging time for our political leaders as they struggle to maintain a veneer of confidence in the face of the crumbling global economy and growing public dissatisfaction. And as the financial crisis continues to takes its toll on UK businesses, the communication challenges for business leaders have also multiplied. A delicate balance is required to project an image of success while acknowledging falling share prices, to keep staff motivated while making people redundant, or to be seen to take a firm hand while retaining a sense of collaboration.

This month we thought we’d take a look at some of the ways our voice coaching has been supporting our clients through these communication challenges...

SALES: Pitching In

Against expectations, bookings from clients in the construction industry have doubled in the first quarter of 2009. The reason is simple: the competition in this sector is fierce and with more companies bidding for fewer contracts, it will be those with the sharpest pitching skills who’ll survive. Not only must you have a great offering, you must also present that offering with confidence, authority and flair.

This has been the programme of choice for those wishing to make an impression when pitching for business in 2009.

MANAGEMENT: Who’s The Boss?

Many global companies with liquid assets are taking advantage of the credit crunch to buy up smaller, struggling companies. Some of our clients have suddenly found themselves reporting to a new boss who might be based in the US, Scandinavia or even China. In this situation, the usual communication challenges in the workplace are further complicated by cultural factors. To an American CEO, an English manager may come across as too understated or self-effacing. An Australian MD might find English executives too reserved and formal. On the other hand, when reporting to a Chinese or Japanese board, the direct style of communication favoured in the UK could be seen as abrasive.

We now have a specific Voice Coaching programme that can help identify the key elements of an executive’s personal style that need to be adapted in order to influence different audiences.

BUDGETS: Are you Receiving?

With travel budgets being squeezed ever tighter, the use of teleconferencing and webconferencing for meetings and briefings is on the rise. Communication in this virtual environment is demanding, and executives need a high level of vocal skills to get their message across effectively. Conveying the right tone is crucial, as is keeping the listener engaged and maintaining vocal control and consistency. If a speaker sounds disconnected, bored or aggressive the audience won’t receive the message.

This Voice Coaching Programme addresses the complex communication challenges in this rapidly growing area.

LEADERSHIP: Getting Personal

With staff and salary cutbacks now commonplace, senior executives are finding themselves not only having to deliver more bad news, but also to manage an increasingly insecure workforce. Employees are experiencing personal difficulties like falling house prices and increasing expenditure, and leaders need to reassure and support them in order to keep them motivated.

Strong interpersonal skills are required to deliver bad news well and keep staff engaged in times of adversity. Managers need to connect with their employees, set the right tone and show a more human side.

Professional Voice has seen a marked increase in demand for its one-to-one coaching over the last six months as HR departments recognise that not all managers have the communication skills necessary for these troubled times.

This programme provides voice coaching for a variety of situations, both formal speeches and presentations and informal business speaking including team and management briefings and meetings.

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DECEMBER 2008 NEWSLETTER
Success in Changing Times

Developing staff skills is paramount in a challenging climate

Despite the crisis in the global financial markets, 2008 has been a busy year for Professional Voice with further growth in coaching demand in both the UK and Europe. This year has seen a significant rise in the number of group programmes we have delivered, as clients seem the value in investing in staff to get optimum performance from them in a competitive climate.

The importance of investing in executive development has been the subject of initiatives from the government this year and has had significant press coverage. Research published by Cranfield School of Management last week demonstrated that employee development in times of economic downturn pays dividends in terms of financial performance:

“In today’s climate it is easy to take the short-term view and cut staff and training but this research shows that taking the longer-term views pays off...there is a strong correlation between bottom line performance and investing in staff”, Daily Telegraph, November 13, 2008.

Record advance bookings for 2009 reflect this trend.

Talking Business in a Virtual World
Programme: Voice Coaching and Teleconferencing Skills
With rising fuel costs and companies moving to more sustainable practices, teleconferences, webconferences and webinars are increasingly replacing face-to-face meetings. This year we launched a new programme, Voice Coaching and Teleconferencing Skills, to address the challenges of this environment. We have seen growing interest since launch and have already run several workshops and one-to-one programmes.

Getting what you want
Programme: Voice Coaching and Influencing Skills
In today’s harsh economic climate executives will have to work harder to get projects off the ground and compete for shrinking budgets. The highest level of communication skills will be required in order to influence peers and superiors. Truly excellent influencing skills require a combination of inter-personal, communication, vocal and assertiveness techniques. Another new course designed this year, Voice Coaching and Influencing Skills, focuses on using these communication skills to influence in both formal and informal settings, at meetings and briefings as well as formal presentations.

In Good Voice?
Programme: Voice and Communication Assessment™
With our Voice and Communication Assessment™ Days we are now providing companies with a formal mechanism for evaluating the Voice and Communication skills of their key executives. The objective is to assess their performance in everyday business speaking situations including sales pitches, presentations, teleconferencing, management and team briefings, conference-speaking and media interviews. This service is designed to form part of the Personal Development Plan of any executive with an outward facing role as well as those who are required to influence and motivate teams internally.

The Voice of Tomorrow‘s Leaders
Programme: Developing Business Leadership through Voice
One of the biggest and most exciting developments of 2008 has been the inclusion of our voice coaching in the leadership programmes at several of our European clients’ Corporate Learning Academies.

These academies all have the prestigious CLIP (Corporate Learning Improvement Process) certification, which has only been awarded to 14 corporate programmes in Europe.

The Voice Workout
Programme: Conference Seminar Workshop
After voice coaching a successful one-off conference seminar we decided to develop the Voice and Communication Workshop for other clients.

Part learning experience and part company event, the workshop can be provided for large groups of up to 60 people. It is a stimulating and interactive exploration of how the voice works and how it can be used as an effective business tool. The voice coaching workshop can be tailored to fit a specific event or requirement and was recently provided as part of a series of breakfast seminars for senior management.

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JUNE 2008 NEWSLETTER:
Conference Season is Approaching!

Speaking at a conference is challenging. There will be a large audience who will be expecting to hear something interesting. You’ll be representing your company so will want to make a good impression.

Professional Voice has coached a wide range of senior executives in how to achieve vocal impact and effectiveness in this particularly demanding arena. This month’s newsletter contains some tips to help you prepare and deliver a first-class conference speech. It also details some of the recent work Professional Voice has done to help clients prepare for conference events, both individually and on a team basis.

THE PLANNING STAGE

Mapping out your ideas quickly on a piece of paper first will save you huge amounts of time. Working on slides immediately tends to create more slides and a disorganised presentation with no clear message. Start with your objective. Then map out your structure. Then create your slides.

KEY MESSAGES

Think carefully about the key message of the speech or presentation. You should be able to be summarise it in one sentence which should be stated explicitly at the beginning. Your audience will not remember all the details of your speech.

If they are only going to remember one thing, what do you want it to be?

SETTING THE TONE

Decide on the overall tone of the speech. This will help to add life to your delivery. What are you trying to DO to your audience - inspire, motivate, excite, challenge? Setting out with the intention to excite or convince will give your delivery more drive. Remember to question yourself. For every comment you make, ask yourself, “so what?” What point are you making, what’s in it for your listeners.

Don’t assume they will work it out. If you are scripting your presentation, write for speech. A presentation that has been written with speaking in mind is easier to deliver. It sounds obvious, yet this is where many people go wrong. They write a speech that sounds like a document (or worse still a PowerPoint slide!).

Think about how you tell a good story. Paint a picture in your audience’s mind with words. COMMANDING THE STAGE Stand with your weight balanced, your stomach muscles released and your shoulders relaxed down away from your ears. This will make you look comfortable and you will also be able to breathe more easily giving your voice more resonance and power.

Your opening is critical; it’s when you establish your authority. Make eye contact with the whole room and fill the space vocally.

PREPARING TO SPEAK

Be yourself. If you want to connect with your audience, you need to reveal something of your personality. People connect with people, not facts. Take a full breath before each sentence. It will give you a natural pause and will mean you don’t run out of breath before the end of the sentence.

SPEAKING WITH IMPACT

Use your full range. When making a speech you need to use your voice more dynamically than in normal conversation. Using a lift in pitch on key words, figures, dates and percentages will make them stand out. Build to your main point using a build in pitch. Ever wonder why politicians seem to get a spontaneous round of applause at exactly the right moment? They build to their main point then pause, indicating to the audience that it’s time to clap.

Asking the audience a question is a great way of getting them to engage with your content. This is also a good way to deal with any anticipated objections. Make sure the question sounds like a question though by using a rising inflection at the end.

Using a microphone? Remember that the mic only amplifies what you give it - it doesn’t make you clearer, more energised or more interesting. You still need to project your voice, articulate clearly and speak with energy.

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FEBRUARY 2008 NEWSLETTER:
Professional Voice Celebrates its 10th Anniversary

February 2008 is a milestone for Professional Voice as we celebrate a decade of providing the very best in corporate voice coaching. From humble beginnings in a small office in Northfields with just two full-time staff and a handful of clients, the business has expanded to include a roster of ten voice coaches, three office staff and over 500 clients. Our business now operates across Europe, China, Japan, the US and Australia with a permanent presence in London, Berlin and Sydney. Our services, too, have expanded from our core Voice and Communication programmes to include communication strategy, presentation design and speech writing - although all our programmes still focus on vocal delivery.

TEN YEARS ON… 1998 GREAT PR AT THE BEGINNING

Back in our early days, voice coaching for business people was relatively unheard of and much misunderstood. Because the Financial Times wanted to write an article about our executive voice coaching service. Newly appointed Chief Executive of the Citizen’s Advice Bureau, David Harker, agreed to do a programme and write up the experience. This was published in June 1998 - a fantastic boost for a fledging business. The phone rang literally for months - even 2, 3 and 4 years later we were still getting enquiries as a result of this article.

1999 LEADING TO TOP CLIENTS

The variety of our clients increased: we worked on MBA programmes at business schools including Cranfield School of Management and Henley Business School; we worked with MDs, chairmen, finance directors and PR directors across all sectors of industry. Whatever the type of business there was a requirement. Today we have coached some 300 MDs and chief executives and worked with over 100 FTSE companies. And we have even brushed with royalty!

2000 SENIOR TEAM VOICE COACHING

In the early years we mainly delivered one-to-one programmes. As our clients began to see that this was an area of executive development which hadn’t been addressed, we began to work with entire boards. One Managing Director said, “The improvement in my colleagues’ speaking performance has been really noticeable. They have told me themselves how much they gained from the coaching and have already noticed the benefits. I am very pleased with the outcome and would not hesitate to recommend this programme.”

2001 CONFERENCE REHEARSAL COACHING

What has always made us different is our desire to make what we do relevant to the needs of our clients. In 2000 we began offering conference rehearsal coaching to clients including more specialised areas such as how to sightread using an autocue system. A leading company in the defence sector, asked us to provide coaching to speakers at its annual international conference. Our coaches worked on the spot with English and Italian executives.

2002 VOICE COACHING: AN INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVE

A proportion of our clients have always been international and this has become one of our specialist coaching areas: working with executives who use English in everyday business speaking. A particular areas of emphasis is clarity. Clients work on articulation, syllabic stress and use of the English ‘tune’. Deutsche Bank was the first pioneering client to trial our programmes in Frankfurt. Our internationalisation continues: today we are about to launch a Voice and Communication programme to be delivered in German by our Berlin-based bilingual business voice coach.

2003 DELIVERING WITH IMPACT - ROAD SHOWS

We have found that our clients all face one common issue: they have one opportunity to get their messages across effectively. Using a Voice Coach teaches our clients how to engage their audience and deliver their key messages with impact. One company about to launch a number of new product roadshows wanted their key presenters to shine, they recognised the importance of voice in achieving this. They received group coaching prior to the launch which was a great success.

2004 USING A VOICE COACH TO WIN BUSINESS

All our clients need to pitch for new business. This can be nerve wreaking, especially when there is a lot riding on your presentation. Companies wish to improve their ability to harness the power of voice to enthuse, to convince and to persuade. The process began with senior directors who saw the benefits which could be obtained from our voice coaching service who then got their sales people involved. As well as contributing to the effectiveness of the group, the team building aspect of this type of programme is also very valuable.

2005 DEVELOPING BUSINESS LEADERSHIP THROUGH VOICE COACHING

In 2004 we developed a programme designed for business leaders. The role of voice coaching in leadership has never been disputed. This aspect of our service was covered by the German press and noticed by Novartis, ranked as the leading company for investment and quality of training they provide to their executives. We developed a module for their new Leadership Explorer programme which has been run 3 times a year as locations all round the world since then.

2006 PRESENTATION SKILLS WITH A DIFFERENCE - HIGH IMPACT VOICE AND PRESENTATION SKILLS

In 2006 we were asked to provide voice coaching for 70 top senior executives to optimise their vocal delivery and performance in presentations.

They wanted a programme which covered what you say and how you say it. We were selected to develop this all encompassing 2-day intensive Presentation Skills course.

2007 ASIA PACIFIC LAUNCH

February 2007 saw the launch of our Asia Pacific office based in Sydney, Australia. Senior coach Carol Fairlamb set up the one-woman office in response to a growing demand from our clients in this fast emerging market. Demand for non-native programmes in this region is particularly strong and we have now provided coaching to new and existing clients in Australia and Japan, with programmes for China and Thailand planned later this year.

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JULY 07 NEWSLETTER:
The Financial Value of Voice

Professional Voice was chosen by the executive team of a large nuclear management company, to assist with the preparations for the sale of the company. PV worked with the team over a period of 4 weeks on the business proposition, the creation and delivery of all aspects of the presentations, handling Q & A and a corporate film.

It was successfully sold for more then was expected and the Financial Director was delighted with the input from PV. He said, “ The presentations went very well, each session lasting between 6-7 hours. Material was very well received by all parties, slides looked and sounded very good - the talking heads at the end were particularly popular with all bidders. Many thanks for all the help and input from the Professional Voice team”.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN FLUENCY & COMMUNICATION: BUSINESS ENGLISH

Many international companies have officially adopted English as the language of business and expect senior executives to be fluent enough to conduct meetings, give press interviews and make presentations in it. However fluency does not always guarantee clarity and misunderstandings can occur through incorrect stress, inflection and tone.

Our unique programmes for non-native English speakers with their focus on developing the English tune and clarity, are gaining recognition in Europe. A number of European companies have piloted the non-native programme over recent months in Stuttgart, Berlin and throughout Europe. PV have become the preferred supplier for voice and communication coaching for various companies worldwide.

LEADERSHIP EXPLORER: QUALITY AND CONSISTENCY

When programmes are run repeatedly, the issue of maintaining standards is paramount. The Arizona desert provided an unusual location for a Leadership Explorer programme. Twenty of the company’s current and upcoming leaders from around the world braved soaring temperatures, rattlesnakes and deadly cacti for five days of intensive leadership training, with Voice and Communication Skills by PV being a key module.

This programme, now in its third year, consistently achieves excellent ratings from participants and this one was no exception with an overall rating of 4.9 out of 5. Word-of-mouth recommendations have now generated a long waiting list for future leadership programmes.

HIGH IMPACT VOICE COACHING AND PRESENTATION SKILLS TRAINING

Several companies over the last quarter commissioned the popular ‘HIPS’ programme across their companies, not just to senior executives but also to high potential employees, offering all high potential executives the chance to develop their general communication skills. Our clients are putting several teams of executives through the training to improve their pitching skills. These developments reflect the growing recognition in the corporate sector of the need for good Voice and Communication skills at all levels of the organisation.

NEW COACHES

With the growth in business, on the last 12 months we have brought in two new coaches, both qualified in voice and experienced in working with business executives. They have been trained in the unique Professional Voice methods which focus on effecting a change in the impact of our clients in a short space of time. We are pleased to welcome them to the team.

PRESS

In July, the Mail on Sunday featured Professional Voice in an article which highlighted the role of Voice coaching in career development. Senior coach Louise Crowley discussed the importance of good voice and communication skills for both senior executives and upcoming leaders.

“Increasingly, Voice coaching is being seen as a core element of professional development. As business organisations become flatter, companies need more ‘leaderful’ executives. The capability to inspire confidence, motivate and speak with authority and impact are skills which executives can develop through voice coaching and are paramount for the company which wishes to maintain an edge in today’s competitive market”.

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© Professional Voice 2008