ECG
  Specialists in presentation skills training and business communication strategy

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

How often are your programs offered? When is the next one?
We offer several programs as regularly scheduled seminars open to the public. We also offer in-house programs at your location for groups of four or more. We can design and schedule these programs to meet your needs. To learn more about our in-house programs, please click here. If you are interested in attending one of our seminars open to the public, please click on the appropriate link below: Where are your public programs held?
Currently, all the programs we offer to the public take place in New York City. We also conduct in-house programs for organizations at locations around the world. If you are interested in scheduling a program at your location, please click here. For more information on our public programs, please choose a seminar and click on the link below: Are you available for one-on-one coaching?
Yes. We do extensive work coaching individuals (and groups) to prepare for specific activities and events as well as addressing developmental goals. I saw the phrase "Best Natural Stylesm" in your literature. What does that mean?
Every speaker has a unique set of personal strengths and personality characteristics. To develop a speaker to peak performance requires finding the particular skills and techniques that maximize these strengths. Through this approach, each speaker will strive to define and work toward a unique style that brings forth the strengths for maximum communication impact with an audience. During Executive Presentations, every participant completes the Personal Asset Inventorysm to build a list of strengths and focus the rest of the program to define the ideal set of skills and techniques that will comprise the Best Natural Style.

What is the difference between Executive Presentations and Executive Persuasion?
There is a sequence in our programs. Executive Presentations is a prerequisite for Executive Persuasion because participants need to learn specific techniques and concepts in order to move on to the advanced program. Executive Presentations uses hands-on videotaped exercises, the program helps participants raise their impact as communicators, focusing on their own unique strengths and introducing them to the PREP Process Modelsm. The next step is Executive Persuasion. This is an advanced program that builds on the techniques and concepts in Executive Presentations, developing skills in advanced communication strategy and interaction. Executive Persuasion is the ideal program for anyone who needs to handle questions, respond to verbal challenges, lead interactive presentations, handle difficult audiences, deal with strategic circumstances, or think rapidly on their feet.

I am preparing for a television interview about my company. Can you help me prepare?
We offer media skills training for individuals and groups along with specific consulting and coaching to prepare for media events. We help companies prepare for crisis communications, press briefings, quarterly reports, analyst meetings, press events, and news releases. What is the maximum class size for your programs?
To provide personal attention to each participant, our presentation skills seminars have a maximum of 5 participants per instructor. Most of these programs have two instructors with a maximum of ten participants. We can run workshops for larger groups; these are typically brief workshops that clients include as part of another event. Aside from our presentation skills programs, we offer other seminars and workshops. The size of these programs varies. For more information, please contact us or click on a link to a specific program in our navigation menu at the upper left of this page.For more information, you can What is the participant to instructor ratio in your programs?
While we can adjust the ratio to meet client needs, to provide the most personal attention to each participant, our presentation skills seminars typically have a maximum of 5 participants per instructor. Most of these are two-day programs and have two instructors with a maximum of ten participants. Aside from our presentation skills programs, we offer other custom seminars and workshops. The size of these programs varies based on client needs. For more information, you can I have taken other presentations skills programs before but have been unhappy with the results. How are your programs different?
Our programs target your needs, not some preordained cookie-cutter model of presenting. Before you attend Executive Presentations, you complete a Pre-Program Questionnaire to help us understand your goals in advance. At the program, we will work with you to refine your goals based on an assessment of your current technique in the context of your unique set of personal strengths. We will work with you to define your Best Natural Style, using the Personal Asset Inventory exercise. As you progress through the program, you will look at yourself on videotape with the resulting list of strengths in mind. Throughout the first day, you will work on specific communication skills. By the afternoon of the second day, you will complete a Personal Development Plan that documents which skills are most important to your development, both for the rest of the day and for the coming weeks and months. The program leaders will then push you to achieve what you can on site, making certain that you also know what you need to do on your own, when you get back from the program. We will then follow-up by sending you a copy of the Personal Development Plan you wrote with additional guidance from your instructors.

To deliver this sort of highly personal, high-impact training, we rely on small group sizes along with highly trained instructors. Our programs are not canned products with pre-made slides or scripts. Each program relies on the ability of the instructors to deliver content tailored to the needs of the individuals in the room. Our program leaders are not just trainers; they work as consultants, working with individual clients on real-world presentations. As a result, they know how to quickly adapt to the different needs of individuals and to understand the unique circumstances of each participant. They can apply tools from their consulting work to the challenges of the program participants. For example, the T-Barsm presentation-planning tool we introduce in the program comes directly from our PREP Process Model that we use in our consulting work. At every program, we bring to bear the experience and skills of our consultants to address the needs of each participant. The result is a uniquely personal and powerful experience. We guarantee it.

What follow-up services do you offer with your programs?
Every program has a combination of complimentary and add-on follow-up. People who attend any of our full-length programs gain access to our free helplines, our client newsletter, and client-only portions of our web site. Any client can retain us for a strategy consultation or private coaching as a follow-up to a program. In addition, each of our programs has specific follow-up opportunities. For example, in addition to the follow-up already described, participants in Executive Presentations will receive a follow-up mailing of their Personal Development Plan they completed during the program. They will also be eligible to attend Executive Persuasion for which Executive Presentations is a prerequisite.

Are you available to conduct a presentation skills program at my location?
Yes. We conduct training programs at locations around the world. You can schedule a program either at your location or at a facility of your choosing. We would be pleased to discuss this with you in more detail. In addition to the programs listed on this site, we can create custom programs tailored to the needs of your group and the specific goals they need to achieve. Can I bring your programs in house?
Yes. We conduct training programs at locations around the world. You can schedule a program either at your location or at a facility of your choosing. We would be pleased to discuss this with you in more detail. In addition to the programs listed on this site, we can create custom programs tailored to the needs of your group and the specific goals they need to achieve. Who are your clients?
Our clients span a broad range of industries and functional groups. We work with pharmaceutical researchers, manufacturing CEOs, consumer product marketers, chemical company executives, high-tech engineers, corporate attorneys, bank vice presidents, religious leaders, government project managers, venture capitalists, communications directors, services salespeople, start-up founders, and lots of other people who need to communicate effectively to do their jobs. I'd like to speak with one of your instructors/consultants about my needs. Are they available?
Our consultants would be pleased to speak with you about your needs. Because they are often on assignment, sometimes in different time zones, it may take a while for an instructor to respond personally to your inquiry. If you need a rapid response, our in-house personnel can address many issues for you right away. They may also be able to arrange for you to speak with a consultant who is on assignment.
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  • Call us at 1.800.874.8278 (in US), 1.201.894.8200 (outside US), 9-5 Eastern Time (M-F)
Who are your instructors/consultants and what makes them experts?
Our program leaders and consultants have a wide range of backgrounds and experience, including education and training in business, science, theater, finance, communications, management, technology, marketing, and healthcare. What they have in common is a track record of success in helping clients achieve goals through communication. The three principals of the firm have collectively over 50 years of experience with literally thousands of clients in hundreds of companies and industries. What is the profile of the typical participant (experience etc.)?
Participants in our programs range across broad spectrum of industries and functional groups. While many of our clients come from large multinational corporations, particularly in the pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, and high-tech, we also have clients in construction, religion, professional services, government, law, banking, biotech, finance, venture capital, and communications. There is no one profile that describes the individuals within each industry. Many of the people we work with are highly experienced, have at least one advanced degree, and have had prior communication skills training; however, some of our clients fit none of these criteria. The only thing that they all have in a common is the opportunity to extend their success through communication.

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