Tips on presenting to CXOs:

  1. Your ask from leadership should be clear by the end of the meeting; work backward from that ask.
  2. Don’t ask for a dozen things. Ask for the most important thing.
  3. Presentation should cover what execs care about the most.
  4. Any meeting with execs is a sales call. There are no update meetings. Be clear what you are selling. Ask why should the execs care? If you had to ask for a 5 million dollars budget for this new initiative, will you get it through this meeting?
  5. What are the numbers that execs care about? Show the metrics they care about and not what you are interested in.
  6. Pre meetings are fine. We generally meet multiple times to polish the presentation before an exec presentation.
  7. Numbers should pop. Use few, don’t dump all metrics on the presentation.
  8. Ask: What is the larger narrative here?
  9. Tie it to the mission.
  10. Course correct if meeting not going as planned instead of hoping for another meeting.
  11. Think about the 3 numbers that you want execs to take away.
  12. Focus on: what you want (your goal from the meeting), what is the obstacle that you want to highlight, and end with your proposal.
  13. Play to emotion.
  14. Use specific examples.
  15. Make it visual.
  16. Use clear linear time sequencing.
  17. Read the room.