McCombs Alumni Network News

Read our sneak preview of the upcoming Texas magazine story, “Ask the Expert,” with a profiles of Suzanne Mahoney, MBA ’99, who shares her experience working with the Presidential inauguration, and Tim Washer, MBA ’96, who gives tips for making Power Point presentations “less boring.”. Keep an eye on your mailbox for the 2009 Spring/Summer issue of Texas, where you’ll hear from more alumni experts.

How do you put on a Presidential inauguration?
By Suzanne Mahoney, MBA ’99

We originally met up with Barack Obama’s team during the Democratic National Campaign Primaries in Texas. The Obama For America campaign then turned to us to produce their Election Night Rally in Chicago’s Grant Park—a site we know well since it plays annual host to our music festival, Lollapalooza.

Fast-forward to November 29, 2008. C3 was approached to help produce another history-making event in a matter of weeks—the inaugural ceremonies in Washington D.C. We led event-production services for the We Are One Inaugural Concert at the Lincoln Memorial, the Inaugural Swearing-In Ceremony on the National Mall, and the Inaugural Parade.

You don’t expect a once-in-a-lifetime event to be simple, and it wasn’t. Our primary client for this gig was the Presidential Inauguration Committee. We also worked directly with the U.S. Secret Service (on overall safety and security), the National Park Service on all site-build decisions (the majority of inauguration events took place on national parkland), the District of Columbia, the U.S. Armed Forces Committee (they organized the parade) and HBO’s production teams (on the live concert broadcast). 

Here’s a snapshot of some of the numbers: It took 170 stagehands to build the Lincoln Memorial concert stage, 89 rock stars and 750 chorus members to put on the show, 286 production staffers to manage everything on site (from bleacher installation to artist logistics to media coordination), 27 Jumbotron video screens to broadcast the happenings to 1.8 million people on site, 4,500 port-o-johns and one bald eagle named Challenger.

An opening concert of this nature had never been done before. To add further complexity, the stage was being built on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, a national landmark. With only a few weeks to prep for the inaugural events, we quickly embraced adaptive behavior. This intentional flexibility helped when unexpected hiccups—like freezing cold temperatures, sudden road closures, public protests and a drop-in from the First Family—pushed the already tight schedule. Sometimes “make it up as you go along” is the best strategy. 

The themes of President Obama’s campaign were accessibility and inclusiveness, and that set the tone for the inaugural events. Everyone was in it together. There wasn’t one element or person that mattered more than anyone or anything else. Truly what we did was a sum-of-the-parts effort—bringing together thousands of people to pull off something spectacular.

Suzanne Mahoney, MBA ’99, is the creative services director for event-production company C3 Presents, which co-produced Barack Obama’s Election Night Rally in Chicago’s Grant Park and spearheaded event production services for the 2009 inaugural ceremonies in Washington, D.C., including the We Are One Inaugural Concert at the Lincoln Memorial, Inaugural Swearing-In Ceremony on the National Mall and the Inaugural Parade. C3 also produces Lollapalooza and the Austin City Limits Music Festival.

How do you make a PowerPoint presentation less boring?
By Tim Washer, MBA ’96

My father always told me “redundancy is a sign of ignorance.” If he said it once, he said it a thousand times. It’s one of the most frequent mistakes I see in PowerPoint presentations, and it can turn your audience off quickly. A few ideas for a better show:

Do your homework: Reach out to a handful of people before your presentation and ask what is the most important question on this topic that they would like answered. Not only will your material be more relevant, but you’ve let a few audience members know their opinion counts. It will have a positive influence on the energy in the room.

Less is more. One executive I’ve worked with used to introduce cluttered slides with the useless disclaimer, “I know not everyone in the room can read this….” He failed to discern subtle nonverbal cues like people squinting—or leaving.

The most influential slides I’ve seen deliver their message with only three to eight words. It allows for an easy-to-read slide and keeps the focus on you. I never use a font smaller than 30-point, unless I’m presenting to a very small group (e.g., a negotiation with my wife).

A picture is worth a thousand words. Although my English literature professor assured me this ratio doesn’t apply for a midterm essay, it holds true for PowerPoint. Since our minds absorb visual information faster, it’s a much more powerful way to convey your point. Impress your audience with a classic from Corbis.com, ShutterStock.com or even Flickr.com. My friend Charlie made the exchange and still had a few words left over.

Tell stories. Everyone loves a good story. Use client examples, or find a relevant reference through WSJ.com, NYTimes.com or an industry trade publication. Simplify the tale with the narrative formula: a) problem, b) solution, c) results. For a good story, those are the only elements you need. And possibly a dragon.

Schedule 20 minutes, and finish early. People love to get time back.

And finally, the most important rule bears repeating: always avoid redundancy.  

Tim Washer, MBA ’96, has appeared on “Saturday Night Live” and “Late Night with Conan O’Brien” and has written for “The Late Show with David Letterman.” As a corporate speechwriter and humor coach, he’s worked with senior executives at IBM, Pepsi and Cisco. To view his corporate comedy videos visit www.timwasher.com

Have an idea for a future Ask the Expert segment? Let us know at publications@mccombs.utexas.edu.