- Create a positive impression when communicating on screen
- Make highly persuasive arguments in the virtual space
- Make a positive first impression on video calls
Overview
Building rapport, establishing competence, and demonstrating a sense of natural authority in a remote working environment involves overcoming a number of challenges. There is (i) the lack of meaningful eye contact that is at the heart of developing trust, (ii) a reduction in the body language cues that demonstrates selfconfidence, and (iii) a potential 'awkwardness' in engaging in both 'small talk' and questions, which develop understanding and engagement.
This virtual programme, for no more than six participants at a time, explores how to connect with people and to demonstrate credibility and gravitas when working remotely.
The training consists of a series of skills modules, comprising:
- Nine, E-learning Modules that people do as pre-work. (This is in the form of a pdf file and each module takes around 20 minutes to complete.)
- Nine, two-hour long, live Zoom Workshops, including Six Content Sessions, where we briefly review the theory covered in the pre-work and then carry out a series of role plays and case studies. A Group Coaching Session to help people apply the tools in the real world of work and deal with any questions for clarification.
A Practice Session where delegates try out their new-found skills on their colleagues and get in-depth feedback on their performance, and Closure Session during which the overall impact of the programme is assessed and additional coaching is provided.
Learning objectives
By attending this highly interactive course you will:
- Understand how to project authority 'on screen'
- Capture people's attention when talking on-line
- Structure presentations and meetings in a logical way
- Develop rapport with the people on video calls
- Discover highly persuasive 'language patterns'
Who should attend?
Senior Managers, Executives and Leaders who want to ensure that they have the capability to grab people's attention and communicate with credibility when working remotely.
Module 1
Core elements of 'remote' Executive Presence
Connecting with people through the screen
Presence in a virtual world involves 'connecting' with people via video apps like Zoom, Slack, Teams, Skype etc. and that involves adopting a specific set of behaviours that demonstrate confidence and authority.
- Making friends with the camera
- Understanding 'production values'
- Strong Statements
- Headline Statements
- Power Gestures and how they are used 'on screen'
- Credibility Statements
- Scripting
- Handling unexpected questions
Pairs exercise: having an 'on screen' impact
Pairs exercise: practising the Headline Statement & Strong Statements
Module 2
The power of 'attention and connection'
Giving someone your undivided attention makes them feel worthwhile and respected as an individual. Paying attention to others is one of the simplest, most powerful and most underappreciated methods for improving presence (both on-line and in real life).
- Staying Present
- The Acceptance Prophecy
- Solve Their Problem
- The power of Small Talk and how to use it on-line
Pairs exercise: staying present
Pairs exercise: solve their problem
Module 3
Persuasive language
Persuasive language is about being able to put your ideas across powerfully in the virtual environment by using:
- Voice Energy
- The Motivation & Gain Pattern
- Storytelling
- Matching & Leading Values
- The Persuasion Pattern
Pairs exercise: trying out the persuasive language tools
Module 4
Rhetorical devices
Rhetoric is the 'art or study of using language effectively and persuasively', and the various techniques used in rhetoric work by helping with 'processing fluency'’ i.e. making information easy to understand and remember.
- Triads
- Rhyme
- Antithesis
- Anaphora
- Hyperbole
- Metaphor & Analogy
Small group exercises: making short speeches using Triads and Anthesis
Module 5
Group coaching
The Group Coaching Session involves participants sharing their experiences of applying the tools from the training in real life situations and in doing so they learn with, and from, each other. It is also an opportunity to get guidance on any thorny issues that have been encountered.
Module 6
Structuring your virtual meetings and PP Decks
It is easy for listeners to be drawn into a meeting/presentation if it has a clear and logical structure that makes it easy for them to follow the main points of the argument. Here we learn how to communicate with clarity and structure by:
- Goals Setting
- Meeting Structure and Agenda Development
- The Behaviour Labelling Technique to control the meeting process
- Capturing the key meeting action points
- Presentation Structure & Slide Design
- Having a strong opening to a talk
- Using a strong call to action – ending a talk with a bang!
Pairs exercise: practising designing an Agenda
Group exercise: practising opening a meeting with Behaviour Labelling
Pairs exercise: practising presentation design
Module 7
Keeping people with you in a video call
Learning the tools and techniques needed to maintain people's interest and attention.
- Using eye contact (through the camera)
- Asking questions to engage with the group
- Rounds and Bringing In to foster participation
- Utilisation
- Signposting – including allowing 'space' for people to respond
- Sequencing multiple responses
Small group exercises: making short virtual speeches to practise the 'keeping people with you' techniques
Small group exercises: making short speeches using Triads and Anthesis
Module 8
Practise presentations
This session is about putting all the skills and techniques together by giving delegates the opportunity to write and deliver a five-minute-long virtual presentation and receive detailed feedback on their use of the impact and presence tools.
Feedback on presentations
Module 9
Closure Session
This session involves participants presenting on the resuts they have achieved in the work place as a result of applying the tools of Remote Executive Presence in real life situations. There is also a micro coaching session, for each of the delegates, on how they can maintain their learning on this topic on an on-going basis. We then summarise the overall results of the programme and the training is formally 'closed'.
Customisation
This programme is delivered in a remote format.
Where appropriate, we conduct interviews and facilitate focus groups to gather information with which to write bespoke case studies that precisely reflect the culture and work environment of the participants.
Feedback
Feedback is based upon peer reviews using Boulden Assessment Checklists. Completing the Boulden Assessment Checklists is not only valuable to the people involved in a given case study, it also helps those completing them to gain an in-depth understanding of skills used by communicators who demonstrate impact and presence.
Follow up Coaching Support (Practise makes perfect)
The workshop can be followed by a 3/4-month-long group coaching activity (using the Action Learning Philosophy). This involves delegates trying out the skills from the workshop in real life situations and getting support and guidance from their peers and the consultant as they do so. If this option is selected there is a Closure Workshop at the end of the coaching phase where delegates present how they have applied the techniques learned on the course into their daily work routine (using the Most Significant Change methodology).
Remote Training
All of our workshops can be delivered as Remote Training via e-learning modules plus Zoom based virtual workshops. Please see our Virtual Training page for more information.
