Blog | Mandel Communications

Conference Room Bullies and How to Present to Them

by Brad Holst

Have you ever encountered an unfriendly meeting participant while presenting? Maybe you know someone who constantly interrupts, asks aggressive questions, or worse, tries to take over your meeting. Believe it or not, you have more control over these conference room bullies than you think. Learn how to recognize these strong personalities, the things you may be doing to trigger their behavior, and what you can do right now to strengthen your command of the room and feel more confident in front of any audience.

by Brad Holst

Briefing Center, Executive Presence, Messaging Skills, Presentation Slides, Training Evaluation

Is Poor Collaboration Putting Your Digital Transformation at Risk?

by Suzanne McLarnon

Digital Transformation (Dx) has made working in IT more challenging than ever. The biggest barrier to Dx success? Culture and collaboration, according to 50% of companies surveyed by Appian. A further 27% say lack of collaboration between IT and LOB is the top roadblock. What prevents effective collaboration? Ineffective communication. Read this week's blog and learn why "soft" skills have become a critical success factor for IT professionals everywhere.

by Suzanne McLarnon

Collaboration Skills, Digital Transformation, Team Building, Teaming, Technical Professionals

The Little-Known Secret to More Productive Meetings

by Brad Holst

How many meetings have you gone to this week? Were they productive, or did they just create the need for more? Now think about how many meetings happen every day in your organization. Companies lose millions of dollars each year on wasted employee time in meetings and, as a result, employees become increasingly stressed and unhappy. Believe it or not, part of the problem is the meeting invitation. Learn how a simple, quick addition to your meeting invites can help you and your organization have consistent meeting success every time.

by Brad Holst

Briefing Center, Collaboration Skills, Communication Skills, Critical Thinking Skills, In-Person Presentations, Messaging Skills, Project Management, SCIPAB

Are You Your Best Self While Presenting?

by Brad Holst

Why is it so difficult to be your best self in front of an audience? And what can you do to change that? Turns out, there is more within your control than you think. This week, experience a personal coaching session with 10 of the most powerful dos and don’ts that you can implement right now to have an immediate impact on your performance. Along with this seasoned advice, discover detailed examples and the science behind what it takes to show your most authentic self.

by Brad Holst

Communication Skills, Event Preparation, Eye Contact, In-Person Presentations, Presentation Skills, SCIPAB, Soft Skills, Vocal Energy

What Virtual Communication Skill Do Most People Lack?

by Heather Muir

What's the one virtual communication skill that nearly everyone struggles with? Hint: um, well, err, still not sure? It's your delivery. This includes things like composure, intonation, energy, pausing, eliminating clutter words, etc. Poor delivery skills get magnified in virtual settings. It's the #1 reason why web meetings and webcasts earn a bad rap. The good news? Anyone can improve their virtual delivery skills by mastering composure and amplifying their energy. Read on to learn how.

by Heather Muir

Communication Skills, Virtual Presentations

Do Salespeople & Technologists Communicate Differently?

by Suzanne McLarnon

Do salespeople and technologists communicate differently? Is one group better at presenting than the other? Can the two ever agree on how to present or what info to share? Corporate Workforce Development expert, high-tech industry veteran, and former Mandel client Suzanne McLarnon shares the secret behind developing both sales and technical professionals into superb communicators.

by Suzanne McLarnon

Briefing Center, Communication Skills, Influencing Skills, Sales Training, Selling Skills, Technical Professionals

3 Data Presentation Tips to Achieve More With Less

by Bob Sherwin

When presenting data, using tables filled with numbers should be your “option of last resort." Why? Because data formatted in tables can make it difficult to compare items being measured. Tabular data can also obscure trends that emerge over time. There are occasions, however, when a table might be the best, or your only, option. If that's the case, here are 3 "less-is-more" tips for effectively using tables in your presentations.

by Bob Sherwin

Briefing Center, Presentation Skills, Slide deck, Technical Professionals

5 TED Talks to Help You Better Communicate & Change the World

by Heather Muir

Strong and engaging public speakers are powerful people who make change happen. Through their words and presence, they can influence people’s thoughts, decisions, and actions for the better. That’s why this week, I thought I’d share 5 of my favorite TED Talks to help you improve your speaking skills. I guarantee you’ll be entertained watching them. But more than that, I hope you’ll feel empowered to become the speaker or change agent you were meant to be.

by Heather Muir

Communication Skills, Influencing Skills, Presentation Skills, Storytelling

Ready For Your Close-Up?

by Brad Holst

Ever wonder how the best speakers fully engage their audience while looking natural and at ease? It starts with expanding your presentation comfort zone and seeing yourself objectively. Video recording, coupled with expert coaching, can take your communication skills to the next level. Find out how the experts do it.

by Brad Holst

Communication Skills, Executive Presence, Eye Contact, In-Person Presentations, Presentation Skills, Soft Skills, Video, Vocal Energy

How Can You Navigate Your Team Toward Success?

by Heather Muir

When team performance sinks, it’s the responsibility of the team’s captain to right the ship. Better yet, a great team captain can prevent their crew from crashing against the rocks or getting stranded in the shallows to begin with. How? Here are 3 things leaders of high-performing teams do extraordinarily well.

by Heather Muir

Collaboration Skills, Project Management, Team Building

Why Do Soft Skills Matter?

by Heather Muir

Communication is the skill most in demand across 100 major US cities, according to LinkedIn research. That may be why more than 2000 talent professionals and executives identified soft skills as their #1 development priority for 2018. But in a world obsessed with data, why do soft skills matter? And how can companies meet demand in the face of such a huge shortage?

by Heather Muir

Business Transformation, Communication Skills, Soft Skills

How to Simply Communicate Complex Ideas

by Heather Muir

Communicating complexity is challenging. For technical teams, presenting data-driven topics engagingly and concisely may be as easy as herding cats. That's because (1) the more specialized your knowledge is, the harder it becomes to present to people not “in the know" and (2) your audience is overwhelmed and overburdened by data already. So how can you simply communicate complex ideas? Try these two proven tactics

by Heather Muir

Briefing Center, Communication Skills, Presentation Skills, Storytelling, Technical Professionals

What’s the secret to wildly productive first-time sales meetings or conversations with executives? Thought-provoking questions. Read the blog to find out why—and how to tell if YOUR questions are thought-provoking enough to make customers want to learn more.

by Diane Burgess-Faber

Conversation Skills, Influencing Skills, Sales Readiness, Selling Skills

How Much Do People Remember From Your Presentations?

by Steve Mandel

Are your presentations memorable? You may be shocked by how little your audience retains over time. Everyone is overwhelmed by information all day long. Emails, messages, texts, phone calls, meetings, to do lists—and it all competes for space in our brains. So how can you make your presentations stick? How do you make your message memorable? Here are 3 simple tips.

by Steve Mandel

Communication Skills, Presentation Skills, Storytelling

Two Important Tips for Better Leadership Communications

by Steve Mandel

Did you know “Communication Skills” was ranked one of the top three (out of 50!) most important skills for good leadership? Great communication is critical to making progress on goals, to job satisfaction, and to avoiding the steep cost of poor communication. Want to move your leadership communication forward? Here are two important tips.

by Steve Mandel

Communication Skills, Leadership, SCIPAB

Relying on Your Dog? Time to Get Another Opinion

by Bob Sherwin

Ann Landers’ advice still holds: “Don’t accept your dog’s admiration as conclusive evidence that you are wonderful.” Imagine it’s the night before your big presentation. You need feedback, but it sounds like your dog is off the list. Where do you go next? Self-assess. Hmm, research shows that may not be the best idea. Read the blog to find out why and learn about a new mobile app that is fast becoming a presenter's best friend.

by Bob Sherwin

Communication Skills, Online Communication Skills Training, Presentation Skills, Training Measurement, Vocal Energy

No Time for Training?

by Karen Bintz

"Too little time" is the number one concern customers raise when it comes to training. Organizations fear that pulling employees away from their jobs, even for a day or two, will negatively impact productivity and performance. To mitigate this perceived risk some opt to drastically shorten training or, worse, skip it altogether. But cutting corners on the one skill every single employee uses every day could cost you in ways you hadn't imagined. Read the blog to learn why and what you can do about it.

by Karen Bintz

Business Transformation, Communication Skills, Online Communication Skills Training, Training Measurement

The Price of Poor Communication May Shock You

by Heather Muir

You’ve no doubt felt the impact of poor communication at some point in your life. What’s less clear is just how much poor communication costs. Specifically, how much does it cost the typical business? According to this first-of-its-kind 2017 report on workplace productivity, the price may shock you. Find out what it is and why getting specific is critical to making the case for training investment.

by Heather Muir

Communication Skills, Soft Skills, Training Measurement

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