Our Services
We help clients succeed in their critical meetings and presentations.
Our expertise is coaching people to use their most persuasive words, as effectively as they can, as consistently as possible.
Financial Presentations
M&A transactions
Coaching maWe nagement teams to present to both strategic buyers and financial sponsors.
IPOs, Company Results and Investor Days
Coaching management teams from a wide range of sectors to present to market.
Private Equity and Asset Management Investor Days
Showcasing fund managers and portfolio companies.
Presenting to a financial audience can be extremely challenging. Typically, you can expect short attention spans, existing contrary viewpoints, and frequently a vested interest to challenge what you say. Finding the right tone for any persuasive financial communication is crucial. At one end of the spectrum, pushing ‘sales messages’ can seem clumsy, and alienate potential investors. At the other end, simply describing a business or fund and narrating the financial statement fails to control how people see the figures in context.
It is also vital for any management team to be seen as relaxed, confident, and credible. They must use their own words, and be comfortable telling their story – even whilst they are guided by those who know what investors are looking for.
Selected Clients:
Presentation Coaching
Effective Presenting
We coach and advise clients on effective presentation skills – so that they can consistently perform at their best – with their own natural style. We often work towards a specific event, but leave clients with tools for ‘repeatability’.
Speeches
We have coached high-profile clients and edited their speeches for venues such as political party conferences, The Davos World Economic Forum, The World Bank, and the Oxford University Union. We have a special expertise on speeches that are required to be fully scripted, should it be required.
Board Level Communications:Â
We advise senior corporate officers presenting at board level. Effective communications skills are critical to facilitate the free flow of information, time efficiency, and therefore informed, considered, decision making.
Media Training:Â
Preparation for video interviews for televsion or internet. The coaching is done in conjunction with highly experienced former broadcast journalists.
Selected Clients:
Pitch Coaching
Pitch Coaching
We aim to increase your ‘win’ rate over time – whether formal pitches, or informal marketing. We look at your story, how you deliver it, and your visuals. At the end of the coaching, you should have a better understanding of your own conversational style, a high-impact story you are excited to tell, and visual aids (such as pitch-books) that support the story. You should also have a thought-process to optimize your pitching strategy.
Pitch Advisory
We help you to win a specific pitch. We help you plan, rehearse, and make sure you execute on the day. We will guide you in discussing your strategy, messages, and performance – both as individuals and as a team. If time allows, we would guide you on an almost forensic analysis of your client, and competitive situation.
We define ‘pitching’ as anything from an informal lunch with a key client, to a formal ‘beauty contest’. Whenever you are in front of clients, it’s an opportunity to present your ideas, and it pays to make them as persuasive as possible. However, while we’re clear about the importance of pitching excellence, the best ‘pitches’ do not seem like pitches at all – more like a conversation that is centred around solving the client’s problem.
Alas, it’s not a simple as opening up the conversation to the client and taking their order. Most industries have moved from the ‘talking about yourself’ model to the ‘talking about the client’ model. Often this can mean a ‘relationship building’ phase, in which information discovery questions are asked, and then a ‘pitch phase’, which involves presenting the solution. It’s much more comfortable for the seller, but frequently is boring for the buyer: everyone he meets takes him through the questions/ solutions model. He learns nothing new.
A pitch must be a balance of active listening and questions, but also having planned something to say that leaves a strong message with the client. In short, we give clients a thought-process that will help them plan to achieve excellence in both these areas.
Selected Clients:
