“We know this is the right recommendation… so why won’t anyone approve it?”
After 27 years helping professionals communicate with greater confidence and influence, I’ve discovered something interesting. The people with the best ideas don’t always get the best outcomes – the people who explain those ideas most persuasively do!
I’ve worked with engineers, scientists, lawyers, finance teams, IT professionals, project managers and technical experts from almost every industry you can imagine. They all share something in common with Workforce Planners. They’re exceptionally good at analysing complex information. The challenge can be getting your stakeholder to understand it, trust it and act on it. That’s because (as you well know) brilliant analysis doesn’t automatically lead to brilliant decisions.
What is it that can bridge the gap?
Persuasion bridges the gap!
Here are seven persuasion techniques you can add to the expertise you already have to help your recommendations gain even greater influence.
1. Your icebreaker isn't a game. It's your first opportunity to earn attention
Mention the word icebreaker and most people think of awkward activities involving spirit animals, Lego bricks or sharing one interesting fact about yourself.
That’s not what I mean.
A business icebreaker has one job – to hook your audience’s attention.
Think about the start of your next executive meeting.
People are arriving from other meetings. Someone is checking emails. Someone else is thinking about the next agenda item. They haven’t stopped listening because they’re rude. They’re simply busy.
One of my favourite techniques is to stack compelling facts or statistics that naturally build curiosity and urgency.
Imagine opening with something like this:
“Last month, customer enquiries during peak periods exceeded our available staffing by 18%. Overtime increased by 12%. And it now takes us an average of 47 days to fill critical roles. Today’s recommendation is designed to help us get ahead of those three trends before they become bigger problems.”
Before you’ve shown a graph, you’ve established relevance.
– People look up.
– The laptops slowly close.
– The room is ready.
That’s what a business icebreaker should do. Why not give this a try in your next meeting?
2. Stop asking, "What am I going to say?"
Ask a much better question! Before every important presentation, ask yourself three critical questions.
1. What do I want my audience to THINK?
2.What do I want them to FEEL?
3. What do I want them to DO?
Notice that none of those questions are about you! They’re all about your audience.
I recently worked with a technical expert who was going around in circles trying to finalise down her slides. Her message was a mess! Once she answered these questions she was able to say what she needed to say in less words, with less slides and get to the outcome.
You want every chart, every example and every word to drive towards your purpose.
In this way you’re no longer presenting information, you’re designing a decision!
3. Different executives are silently asking different questions
This is one of the biggest persuasion secrets I teach.
Most presenters assume everyone in the room wants the same information.
And of course when you think deeply about that – it can’t be true!
One executive is wondering: “Why are we changing?”
Another wants to know: “What exactly are you recommending?”
Someone else is thinking: “How will this work?”
And another is already asking: “What if demand changes again?”
That’s why I encourage my clients to structure every important recommendation around four questions:
1. Why?
2. What?
3. How?
4. What If?
When you deliberately answer all four questions, everyone in the room feels like you’ve anticipated the question they were about to ask. That’s not luck – it’s persuasive design!
4. Frame every recommendation using three powerful words
You may heard that some people are motived by the carrot and others by the stick? So whenever you’re recommending a change be sure to tell your stakeholders what it will reduce (that’s the stick), maintain and improve (that’s the carrot).
Imagine the difference between saying,
“We’re recommending a revised rostering model.”
and
“Our recommendation will reduce overtime costs, maintain service levels and improve employee wellbeing.”
Same recommendation. Completely different impact. Those three words immediately help leaders understand why your recommendation matters.
5. Make every meeting answer one question
Your audience doesn’t need less information, they need clearer information.
One of the simplest techniques I teach is the 10-second rule.
If someone can’t understand your slide within ten seconds, redesign it.
Rather than asking,
“What else can I fit on this slide?”
ask,
“What’s the one thing I want my audience to remember?”
Highlight that! Your expertise isn’t demonstrated by how much data you can display, it’s demonstrated by how clearly you can explain it.
6. Tell people where you're going before you take them there
Technical experts often present in the order they completed their analysis. Whereas persuasive presenters present in the order their audience needs to hear it.
May I suggest that you:
1. Start with your recommendation.
2. Then explain why.
3. Then provide the evidence.
4. Explain how you’ll implement it.
5. Then wrap it up.
For example:
“We know we’ve got issues in our call centre that need immediate action. Today I’m recommending a number of changes to the way we forecast demand and schedule our people because I believe they’ll reduce labour costs, improve service levels and create a better experience for both our customers and our employees. Let me explain why I’m making these recommendations, share the evidence behind them, outline how we’ll implement the changes and finish with the results we can expect.”
Now your audience knows exactly where you’re heading. Everything that follows becomes evidence rather than explanation.
7. Never waste your final minute
Most presentations finish with,
“Any questions?”
I think your final minute is one of the most persuasive moments in the entire presentation. Please use it better than that!
Here’s what to do instead:
1. Summarise your recommendation.
2. Remind people why it matters.
3. State the decision or action you’re seeking.
4. Invite questions.
5. Then in your last 20 seconds remind them about the positive and negative consequences of action or inaction, then close with a closing statement that links to your opening and has everyone feeling satisfied this was a great meeting – even if it was bad news!
Final thoughts
Workforce planners influence some of the biggest decisions organisations make. You help leaders prepare for uncertainty, allocate resources wisely and make better business decisions. Your expertise deserves to be understood. And more importantly, it deserves to influence action.
At the Workforce Optimisation Conference this October, I’ll be sharing even more practical techniques that help technical experts communicate with greater confidence, explain complex ideas more simply and gain stronger support for their recommendations. I’d love you to join me!
Bring your next big workforce planning challenge and I’ll show you some more practical, immediately usable persuasion techniques to help your expertise have the influence it deserves.
Let’s work together to help your stakeholders better prepare for their future!
About Michelle Bowden
Michelle Bowden CSP is an award-winning keynote speaker, presentation skills trainer and best-selling author who has helped more than 13,500 professionals communicate with greater confidence and influence. Over the past 27 years, she has delivered her renowned Persuasive Presentation Skills Masterclass 1,077 times, helping leaders, technical experts and business professionals transform complex ideas into compelling recommendations that inspire action. Michelle is the author of How to Present: The Ultimate Guide to Presenting Live and Online and How to Persuade: The Skills You Need to Get What You Want. To learn more about Michelle’s keynote presentations, presentation skills training and public masterclasses, visit www.michellebowden.com.au.