By Keith Shields, CEO at Designli, a digital product studio that helps entrepreneurs and startup-minded enterprises launch transformative apps and web apps.
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Tech is no longer a siloed department, tucked away in their own corner of the building and hidden from the rest of the company. As IT and programming departments are moving to the front and center of business strategies, it means the developers and engineers are now faced with the task of conveying complex technical ideas to people without a technical background.
The communication skills necessary to present knowledge-specific information to “non-techies” is growing in necessity. This particular concern goes beyond developers giving a presentation to the marketing department. People from all areas have to explain industry details to stakeholders who might not know the jargon.
For instance, this communication tactic is applicable for an entrepreneur making pitches to startup investors, a business owner explaining work to a board of directors and even an accountant relaying how company finances are forecasted to HR.
Instead of alienating your listeners the next time you have to talk technical, use these methods to shape your discussion so it’s easy for anyone to understand.
Understand the relevancy of information.
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Before you give your presentation, go through each point you intend to make and ask yourself, “What does this give the listener?” A topic is more digestible when the audience understands how it is relevant to their lives.
For example, fellow employees likely won’t understand the intricacies of coding changes that allowed a new payment feature to be integrated into the current system. What they will comprehend is a simple statement explaining that users will be able to request refunds more easily, alleviating stress on the accounting department.
If a listener can’t take away something helpful from a piece of information, then it’s a sign to zoom out and focus on the bigger picture.
Give context and impact.
Avoid getting too deep into a technical hole where no one else is tracking by focusing less on the how and more on the why. The how is the detailed, technical specifics where an average listener could get confused. The why is the broader context and impact of the information being shared.
Think of it like reading an architect’s blueprints. Most people don’t know how to interpret all the lines, angles and numbers, so it would be a waste of time for an architect to get into the details about how they measured the spacing. What the recipient of these blueprints cares about is the context (that the remodel design will allow more people to fit in the same office space) and the impact (the company saves money by not having to lease a second building).
Meet them where they are.
We’ve all heard the golden rule: to treat others the way you want to be treated. Well, instead of asking people to meet your standards, follow the platinum rule and adjust to their comfort zone.
Think about where your audience is coming from before you craft your technical presentation. Do they have a collegiate background? Are they in a creative field? How much IT exposure have they had? It will help give you a home base for direction, so if you start to sway too deep into a topic, you can pull yourself back and cater to the needs of the listener.
Use visuals.
Some concepts are just hard to explain in words. You can either spend half a meeting going over the heads of the audience as you try to describe the functional differences between your company’s iOS app and web app versions, or you can put some pictures up on the screen to easily illustrate your point.
Consider as well that your peers will likely have various preferences in learning styles. Some might be auditory and better able to keep up with the conversation. Visual learners hearing something technical and new could find it tough to grasp the concept. Adding images and illustrations can clarify details that might otherwise be lost.
Don’t make assumptions.
It’s difficult to predict someone’s literacy on a topic that is outside their field of expertise. Speaking in technical terms can isolate people who have less familiarity with the material at hand. Instead of throwing in specialized words, choose an easier synonym, offer a definition before someone has to ask and include analogies to illustrate topics.
In conclusion, using any one of these tips will help keep in mind the average non-technical listener. Using a few of them can elevate any industry-specific topic and make it accessible for the general population. You’ll find your conversations with coworkers in other departments flow easier as ideas are shared simply and fluidly. This can improve efficiency, as well as make people feel more integrated into the overall business direction. You might even get a few surprising “thank yous” for it.
