Fill the presentation with people from your side that have relationships with people from their side. Relationships mean knowing this person well, having worked with this person favorably in the past, etc. There has got to be a professional bond, meaning this person trust the work will be done well and s/he will win professionally also.
Relationships are more important than expertise at the presentation. Stack your team accordingly - at least for the presentation. However, the person with the relationship must have good knowledge of the project - something that can be accomplished with some prepping.
For critical aspects or major components only, have an expert if there is no one with relationships strong enough to explain the details. For example, if it’s a highway bridge project, somebody really good at structures needs to be there. The people that will talk about traffic flow, drainage, and safety can be far less expert, but have solid relationships with audience members.
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I like to say "Trust Trumps Treats & Tricks."
Posted by: Wes Schaeffer | May 10, 2009 at 04:16 PM