Final Presentation
Overview
- Clients are invited (not required to attend).
- Teams will be placed in one of two groups. Attendance is required for students for all presentations in their group. Student teams will be evaluating all presentations, along with the advisors. See evaluation criteria in sidebar (you will provide your evaluations through a web survey).
- Dress is business professional.
- Each presentation should be 20 minutes in length. There will be 1-2 minutes for Q&A between presentations.
- There will be 2-3 minutes between talks to switch from one team to the next (be ready!)
- Overall, your talk should be about 1/3 problem statement (possibly a bit less), 1/3 problem design and implementation, 1/3 demonstration and results. Multimedia presentations can be useful, particularly in the problem statement and/or demonstration sections. BUT, do not substitute style for content. We want to be INFORMED, not just entertained.
- There will be prizes for the presentations voted most engaging and best technical detail.
- DO NOT just do bullets. Include diagrams, pictures, etc. Speak up, show enthusiasm!
Final presentation content:
OUTLINE:
For a presentation of this length, you will most likely need an outline so the audience knows what to expect.
PROBLEM STATEMENT:
Make sure your introduction to the problem engages the whole audience. You should definitely explain and motivate your problem in a very understandable manner in the first 2-3 minutes. This portion of the talk should be well understood by anyone in the audience. Use pictures, diagrams and/or other visuals to fully illustrate your problem and to really engage your audience. Use multi-media presentations if appropriate. We have the technology. Remember, this is your opening to the audience, so it MUST SELL YOUR PROJECT.
TECHNICAL ASPECTS:
After engaging the audience, you should present the design and implementation specifics. This part of your talk should be technical. You should spend about 5 minutes on this portion of the talk. Your goal here is to illustrate the plan or design and any implementation issues that are interesting. Do NOT try to discuss all aspects of the project at this stage in the talk, but DO explain in detail at least one or two aspects of the project. DO NOT HESITATE TO INCLUDE TECHNICAL DETAILS. Even small samples of code may be relevant, if there's a clear purpose for showing them to your audience. A side benefit of the final presentations is that we should all learn something.
LESSONS LEARNED:
Present a few "lessons learned" from your project. These should be precise and interesting, e.g., not just "we learned that planning is a good thing" but "using wireframes to plan your GUI is a good way to get customer feedback before creating the actual program."
DEMONSTRATION OR RESULTS:
Finally, demonstrate and/or give the results of your project. This part can be a multi-media presentation with music, pictures, running programs, etc. Use whatever media gives your talk a complete and finished feel. If a demo isn't appropriate use other techniques to get your point across. Finish with a clear conclusion. You may include what remains to be done or further exploration here.
QUESTIONS
Plan on 1-2 minutes for discussion, questions and answers (after your 20 minute presentation).
Evaluation
Your presentations will be evaluated by your peers as well as by faculty advisors. The evaluation criteria cover delivery, clarity and organization, content, graphics, and timing.
General tips:
- Rooms are posted on the schedule. Be familiar with your presentation room. Try out any systems you wish to use there.
- Consider the lighting. Try to get the faces of your group members illuminated.
- Demos should run smoothly. You may want to have one person running the demo while another person speaks.
- Pay attention to the feedback from the practice talks.
- PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE (especially if you get nervous!).
