TABLE OF CONTENTS Whereas Einstein tried to grasp a hidden essence by disregarding anything he thought irrelevant, Bohr insisted that nothing be left out. [1]
Edward MacKinnon
The success of a presentation hinges on its structure. In a presentation, structure comprises the organization of the major points, the transitions between those points, the depth that the presenter achieves, and the emphasis of details. Although many aspects of the structure of a presentation are similar to that of a document, [2] three aspects are not. One difference is the necessity of the speaker to begin at a depth that orients the entire audience. In a document, if the author mistakenly begins at a level of understanding that is too deep for the readers, the readers have the opportunity to look up background information and still comprehend the document. In a presentation, though, this opportunity does not exist.
Another structural difference between presentations and documents is the importance of the speaker mapping the presentation for the audience. Granted, mapping is important in a document, but in a presentation, mapping is crucial. While readers of a document have the chance to scan ahead to see the upcoming sections and to see how long the sections are, the audience of a presentation does not.
Yet a third structural difference between presentations and documents is the importance of the speaker signaling transitions between major parts of a presentation. In a document, the audience can anticipate transitions to new topics from the headings, subheadings, and paragraph breaks.
