Proposal for Improving Communication

Submitted by: Conner Tippetts

Salt Lake Community College
Communications 1010-702
July 26, 2014



Spontaneity, no matter what your wife says, is not always the best choice. Especially
when giving an oral report, organization of your presentation is key to a good performance.
Clarity in an oral report is a hard skill to master, and also one I would like to work on. Pre-
organization is key to the clarity of a report. I feel like I tend to not prepare as much as I should
before giving oral presentations. I need to work on organizing my oral reports more clearly.


Description of the Problem:
Organizing before can feel like a hassle. I tell myself organizing beforehand will be a
wasted effort. Organizing before may be the best way to give the most clear message. A
substantial body of research indicates that organizing your remarks clearly can make your
messages more understandable, keep your audience happy, and boost your image as a speaker.
(Communicating at work, pg. 261) Ill preparation can lead to getting ideas mixed up, leaving out
important material, and even including irrelevant material.

Resources and Constraints:
There are quite a few resources at my disposal. The biggest being my book. It is packed
with tips and information on improving organization of an oral report, especially when it comes
to increasing clarity. Another source I could to boost my organization skills is someone who I
consider a master of public speaking or, in other words, oral reports. Constraints might
encompass the amount of time I have to prepare or even the audience I must present to.

Recommendations:
To accomplish my goal of improving the clarity of my oral reports through pre-
organization, I first need to choose the best organizational pattern (Communicating at Work, pg.
264). The chronological pattern is best at keeping the audience in the know. Steps that are
followed in order let the audience anticipate future items and therefore increases clarity.
Although depending on the subject, a combination of patterns works the best.
The spatial pattern of organization can help if describing a situation or even an event.
Using this pattern lets the audience experience a physical aspect to the presentation, a device that
might impress upon the audience. If, as an example, I were to describe a particular house to
potential clients, I would want to describe the physical attributes in spatial terms. The main
floors open floor plan allows a view from the kitchen to virtually all rooms on the middle floor.
Spatial terms such as, open and view almost give the audience an almost physical
experience. One downfall to the spatial pattern is it can only be used in specific situations.
The comparative advantages pattern can also be an effective tool, especially when
describing potential situations for their possible good or bad outcomes. Obviously, the primary
goal is to shine the benefits over any possible downfalls. For example, if I were trying to
persuade the audience in favor of a new hospital being built in a small town, the comparative
advantages pattern will give the audience the information to come up with an opinion on their
own, but influenced just enough to cloud over any disputations. The hospital will take up space
that could be used to build the orchard, but we believe the contributions to people of the
community in lives saved will outweigh any potential competition. This pattern is probably one
of the most commonly used when giving clear oral presentations because it works. The illusion
of giving the receiver an autonomously achieved solution keeps everyone happy and serves as an
effective tool.
After the organization of the report, I need to solidify the presentation aspect to fully
master this skill of delivering a clear and organized message. Capturing the listeners attention
from the beginning is crucial to the overall success of the report. If the two-way communication
is clouded with noise, I cannot expect to successfully and clearly give my presentation. I must
minimize distractions whether they be in my control or not. The environment can play a huge
part in the overall response to my message. Depending on the situation, I might have a little
control over the surroundings by choosing quiet, comfortable surroundings conducive to a
learning environment. This is not the case for the most part. I will most likely have very little
control of the setting in which I give the oral presentation, and I will be forced to adapt.
Another strategy I must focus on is holding the audiences attention. I have to find ways
to spark interest in a topic by linking it to the audience. Understanding the audience is one of the
key aspects of communication. For example, if I am presenting to a group of people superior in
rank, I would spark their attention by leading a topic with a statement that it will increase
productivity (Communicating at Work, pg. 273).
Finally to close, I can emphasize and summarize the key points and ideas of the
presentation. If possible, one way to promote audience interaction is to appeal for action. Asking
the audience to follow up obviously involves them, but a challenge gives them a reason to follow
up. If you require the audience to take an active listening role in to presentation, the likelihood of
transparency of the message increases. Closing remarks have to leave some sort of impression on
the audience for the presentation to be deemed successful.

Summary:
The aspect of communication I am trying to improve on is clarity of an oral presentation
via pre-organization. Using a combination of pre-organization patterns such as the chronological,
spatial, or comparative advantages based patterns, the report will be tethered more specifically
with the audience. The message must be centered around the audience. During the presentation,
audience interaction is the best way to promote clarity. This lets the audience feel they are
partially responsible for the outcome of the report and will hopefully leave an impression on
them. I hope to implement these steps as I prepare to give an oral presentation in class.

Works Cited:

Adler, R & Elmhorst, J.(2013). Communicating at work: SLCC custom text (2nd
ed). Boston: McGraw Hill.