Executive Presentation Skills: Building Executive Presence through Communication

IN-PERSON AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA CAMPUS
APRIL 1, 2025

Discounts available for group enrollments, UA faculty/staff, UA Alumni, and Chamber members. Reach out to stephanie.lowe@ua.edu for more information.

Elevate your influence and leave a lasting impression with every speaking opportunity

Whether delivering a project update, leading a meeting, or presenting to key-stakeholders, any opportunity to speak is an opportunity to influence and impact others.

Join us for this fast-paced and interactive course where you will learn to construct and deliver messages tailored to your speaking occasion’s purpose and your audience’s motivations and interests. You will gain confidence as we explore aspects of delivery and executive presence, including the use of body language, voice, and visual aids. Each participant will receive individualized feedback from our expert instructors aimed at helping them to emerge a more self-assured speaker!

topics

Owning the Space
Defining Your Purpose
Audience Analysis
Organizing an Informative Brief or Persuasive Pitch
Powerful Introductions and Conclusions
Develop an outline for an upcoming presentation
Nonverbal Communication
How to deliver and receive feedback

Program OVERVIEW

Designed for:

Professionals seeking to craft and deliver messages with confidence
Those seeking to strengthen their ability to gain influence and create buy-in
Professionals who deliver project updates or presentations in the workplace or to external audiences
Professionals seeking to rise to higher levels of leadership and impact
Or anyone who wants to enhance their public speaking skills in a business setting

Participants will learn:

How to analyze opportunities of impact
Strategies for crafting an informative brief and persuasive pitch
Elements of executive presence displayed through body language, and voice
Tactics for delivering face-to-face or virtual presentations
How to receive and deliver constructive feedback
Tips for managing public speaking anxiety
Earn 6.2 hours of CPE in the field of study ‘Other/Communications’ for CPAs

Format:

The program will be hosted on campus at The University of Alabama in the Culverhouse College of Business.

Plan to be on campus from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm (Exact times will be sent with a finalized schedule).
Light breakfast, lunch, snacks and coffee will be provided

Participants will receive a physical certificate of completion as well as a digital badge from Credly. The digital badge can be displayed on a participant’s LinkedIn and email signature.

This program is not eligible for federal financial aid. No academic credit will be awarded.

The executive presence and public speaking course was transformative. It provided practical techniques to command a room, engage audiences, and convey complex ideas with confidence and clarity. The hands-on coaching and feedback were invaluable, leading to immediate improvements in both my presentation skills and overall executive presence. I highly recommend this course to anyone looking to elevate their communication and leadership abilities.

The Executive Presentation Skills program was highly effective in enhancing our presentation skills tailored to any audience. The structure of the program was clear, focused and well-paced, providing a good balance of learning and participating. Dr. Chilcutt and Dr. Brooks were very knowledgeable, engaging and provided practical insights into executive presenting. I would highly recommend this class to anyone that is interested. It is well worth your time.

This program was a game-changer. It pushed me out of my comfort zone and reshaped how I present. I gained skills that apply not only to my current job but any future role. The interactive format, safe space for questions and personalized feedback set it apart. You’ll learn how to craft impactful messages, master body language and gain confidence in public speaking. Whether presenting to key stakeholders or leading a meeting, the skills taught here will elevate your presence and influence. Overall, I highly recommend this course for any professional who wants to enhance their public speaking skills. The hands-on approach, expert guidance, and welcoming environment made this one of the most enriching experiences I’ve had.

As a communications leader, what I say and how I say it has real impacts. And when it comes to in-person communications, in front of an audience, I knew that there were some ways I could improve my poise, articulation, and projected confidence. The Executive Presence session with Drs. Brooks and Chilcutt provided a positive environment to address those factors, giving me tools that I could draw upon to be a better public speaker who speaks clearly, with purpose and a plan.

Dr. Brooks is amazing and really gave effective feedback. I love the enthusiasm and I love how he built my confidence in being able to speak in front of a crowd. I cannot say enough of how thought-out the course was. I was able to leave with the basics of building a speech.

Dr. Adam Brooks

Dr. Adam J. Brooks is a national award-winning speaker and communication expert focused on helping people communicate their ideas. Dr. Brooks is an associate professor of communication studies in the College of Communication and Information Sciences. He is most known for his efforts in creating the Speaking Studio, a presentation lab and communication center that provides all UA students, faculty and staff with coaching, mentoring and guidance to excel at presentations and public speaking. As the director of the public speaking program, Brooks has improved the communication abilities of close to 5,000 students at UA while mentoring hundreds of graduate teaching assistants. He is the author of Engineered to Speak: Helping You Create and Deliver Technical Presentations from Wiley Press.

Outside of UA he has provided workshops and training programs to help engineering and technical professionals present with clarity and confidence. Brooks has been recognized multiple times for his commitment to students as the recipient of the 2023 Judy Bonner Presidential Medallion, a UA Premier Award, the Board of Visitors Award for Teaching Excellence and other awards including the Program of Excellence Award from the National Communication Association and the Excellence in Academic Advising Award.

Dr. Alexa Chilcutt

With an MA in Public Relations and PhD in Communication and Information Sciences, Dr. Alexa Chilcutt is the faculty lead for the Executive Business Communication and co-lead for the Academy of Women in Leadership programs at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School.

Additionally, Alexa provides training for TCU Neeley Business School’s Executive Education program and The University of Alabama Executive Education and EMBA programs. Topics include business communication, executive presence, and executive presentation skills.

Corporate clients have included Exelon Corporation, Constellation Energy, Hoya Corporation, Prometric, Brinker International, Allstate, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alabama, German-based company igus, and Johns Hopkins International Medicine Concierge Services.

Publications include “Engineered to Speak: Helping You Create and Deliver Engaging Technical Presentations” published by Wiley IEEE PCS Professional Engineering Communication Series with Dr. Adam Brooks, and articles featured in Workplace Health & Safety, MedEdPORTAL, Journal of American Dental Association (JADA), Association of General Dentist’s “Impact” magazine, Public Relations Journal, and Georgia Academy of General Dentistry’s Explorer magazine.

Stephanie Lowe

Looking for more program options?

WE CAN CUSTOMIZE PROGRAMS FOR YOUR ORGANIZATION.

Virtual

On-site

Hybrid