Why executives tune you out (and how to fix it)

"Considering I had to go to the very end of my deck to get to what I'm actually asking for... probably not."

That was my client's honest answer when I asked if her presentation, a high-stakes pitch to request budget and headcount for her team, was clear and compelling to her leader. 

She had built a beautiful and thorough deck with revenue charts, growth graphs, staffing history, and supporting data. Buried somewhere behind the back of all the data and growth charts was the one thing she actually wanted - additional money for technology and headcount to grow her team.

A key shift leaders must make as they advance at work and present to higher level audiences is to tighten and elevate their message. When I coach leaders inside organizations, the number one piece of feedback I hear from their executives is this, "They come to meetings with PowerPoints full of data. We just want the key points, the highlights, otherwise we start tuning out." At the executive level, the time shortens and the stakes rise. You might have 15 or 20 minutes to change hearts and minds. 

However, many leaders prepare for executive presentations by gathering every piece of data they can find. They build slides packed with context, background, and evidence because they want to feel ready for any question. 

I get how vulnerable this feels. I still present to executive teams and am tempted to overprepare and overcommunicate to eliminate the fear of being exposed as a fraud, or of “ruining” my expertise by not knowing an answer, or stumbling awkwardly and looking like I don't belong in that room. 

While gathering abundant details and proof points feel like a good approach to help you feel prepared and thorough, what actually happens is that the executive gets a data dump instead of clear decision criteria. They tune you out.

So I walked my client through the methodology I use with every leader preparing to present to senior executives. It starts with one question that has nothing to do with your slides.

What transformation do you want this person to make?

The goal with any executive meeting (and even your emails) is to move people from their current state to some desired future state. We often overlook the logical and emotional transformation we are seeking and approach these encounters from our own perspective, trying to jam in as much detail and information as we know. 

The whole presentation exists to move someone from point A to point B. Once you know those two points, notice how your energy shifts from trying to impress to intentionally connecting with the right story to compel others to action. 

🔥 The next time you present to a senior leader, before you open PowerPoint, ask yourself, What's their point A right now, and what's the point B I need them to reach by the time I'm done? Keep reading for how to build the rest from there.

PUT THIS IDEA INTO ACTION

Want to uplevel your next executive presentation so you actually get the resources you're asking for? Here is the framework I use with my clients:

1: Name the transformation first, then build backward.

• Start with point A (where they are now) and point B (where you need them to be).

• Everything in your deck either moves them along that journey or it goes in the appendix.

• I often ask myself before any high-stakes conversation, What's the one shift I need this person to make, and what's the bravest, most direct way to ask for it?

2: Pick the two or three things they need to know. No more.

• Senior leaders cannot hold ten problems or major data points in their heads. Choose the two or three that make your case.

• For my client, it was simple and powerful - the business has grown, the team has not, and the team's scope has quietly expanded into twenty other things.

• One problem per slide. The brain can handle that. A strong headline that states the problem in plain words does more than a wall of text ever will.

3: Make a clear, specific ask.

• This is where so many of us fall down. We present all the problems and then never actually say what we want.

• Don't make them guess. Say it, "I'm asking for two additional team members and the budget to start a global branch of our team."

• Don't bury the lead! Open with the ask, walk them through the problems, and close by restating exactly what you need.

4: Quantify the cost of doing nothing.

• A generic phrase like, "There will be some support gaps" does not move hearts and minds, specific scenarios will. Imagine this, if you sat down a year from now and nothing had changed, what would that cost the business? For example, spell out the consequences. 

  • If nothing changes, how many requests go unanswered each week? What happens to client satisfaction, to risk, to your best people a year from now?

  • Tie your ask to what they actually lose sleep over - revenue gain/los, innovation, client risk, etc. That's how a request for "money and bodies" becomes a strategic business case.

TRY THIS NEXT: Look at your next executive presentation and find the slide where you finally make your ask. How far back is it? Move it to the front, say it out loud at the start, and remind them of it at the close. 

Kelli Thompson is an award-winning author, keynote speaker, and executive coach who specializes in helping high achievers advance to influential leaders in their organizations. She is the author of the critically acclaimed book, Closing The Confidence Gap: Boost Your Peace, Your Potential & Your Paycheck.

Learn more about: Executive Coaching | Speaking & Training | Group Programs