Thursday 29 April 2010

Make a stand.

Finally war as been declared on PowerPoint - the word-spinning fantasy of a generation of managerial nitwits. And the scourge of their employees who are forced to make their presentations with it - the Powerpoint Rangers
It has taken a US Army general to remind us that not everything is bulletizable. Or bulletable as I might have said. (He is American after all). Too much tirme writing bullets and not enough time shooting them, implied the General.
I remember spurning Powerpoint during a presentation to all the Vice-Presidents in a previous international company I worked for.
The brief was to prepare a presentation in Powerpoint. Thinking then as I do now that there are better ways of getting a message over. That there were ways of communication before Microsoft gave us Powerpoint, I of course refused and gave the talk Cameron-style sans notes.

My department VP could not attend and then asked for everyone's Powerpoint presentation so he could review it (to see what we had said about him presumably). I rolled out my objections again for his entertainment.

So.
Dump powerpoint and spurn those who don't.
Raise an eyebrow when you see it.
Don't forgive the speaker.

The people who resort to this method of presentation alone should be in the audience not on the stage.

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