Pitch Perfect – VOX coaching

An international company needed its IT specialists to be able to pitch business proposals to clients with greater success. VOX’s role was to equip them with practical techniques for engaging audiences – including difficult and critical ones.

Challenge

A leading global supplier of financial software with 700 staff, offices in ten countries and annual sales of around $125 million wanted its many IT specialists to raise their game when pitching to clients. There was no doubt about their mastery of computer programming, but they needed to be able to connect on a human level with decision-makers who were less technically minded. They tended to rely too heavily on their subject knowledge, leaving lay people floundering or bored, and they were sometimes flummoxed by questions that fell outside their area of expertise.

The company recognised that content is not always king – that clients need to be engaged, not merely informed, and that ‘soft’ communication skills can make a difference that will ultimately show in the bottom line. To the client, the person making the pitch is the bearer of the brand; if the client isn’t impressed, his or her perception of the brand will be damaged.

Solution

VOX was asked to work with groups of IT specialists over several sessions and help them discover a more compelling way of communicating– one that would enable them to interact more successfully with clients and increase the chances of their ideas and proposals gaining traction.

The course that was tailor-made for the company was aimed at turning lacklustre or average presenters into outstanding ones who were adept at winning hearts, minds and business. VOX’s intensive coaching enabled them to:

Recognise their own personality traits
Believe they could communicate in far more powerful ways
Relish the prospect of really engaging audiences
Refine their overall communication style
Develop specific practical skills that would increase their impact

Results

Feedback from the participants was 100% positive. The group training and individual feedback they received left them feeling more confident about pitching and keen to apply the straightforward communication techniques they had discovered and rehearsed.

The company was delighted with the effect of the coaching and felt it had given the firm a sharper edge in a highly competitive market. Now it had IT teams that were not only in command of the relevant information but also able to express it powerfully and to forge connections with professionals from disciplines other than their own. They were proper brand ambassadors.

What our clients say

I have been pleased to work with VOX Coaching since 2007 … Pete Bailie and his colleagues work very professionally and have engaged wholeheartedly in meeting our needs and designing material to our briefs.

Researcher Development Officer

[The] interpretation of the brief, tailoring of content and varied delivery made for a productive and enjoyable event … I wouldn’t hesitate to use Pete or VOX again.

Director for Careers and Employability

… an inspiring coach who makes an enduring difference to the way people communicate, lead and manage.

Communications and Marketing Director

Participants find the sessions great fun, and at the same time are amazed at how blind they might have been to their own and others’ behaviours, be it in a meeting, or relationships with junior or senior colleagues.

Assistant Director, Researchers and Research Culture

On the day of the interview I was barely nervous (which is very unusual for me), very confident and performed very well…in fact I would say ended up enjoying it. They have awarded me a fellowship, so it must have worked!

One Health Policy Lead and Statistics Adviser Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

I had a fantastic experience with VOX Coaching … in preparation for interviews for large grants from research councils. In simple words, without [their] help, it would have been very challenging to perform well at the interview.

EPSRC Research Fellow & Professor of Coatings and Surface Engineering University of Nottingham

I attended a one-day group session … in preparation for a funding interview. Pete has a great understanding of the academic funding landscape, which helped demystify the process for me and my fellow attendees. I would highly recommend.

Lecturer in flight dynamics and control University of Bristol

Transformational, inspiring and fun … Liberating that inner voice, being able to ‘read’ body language and vary styles of communication are the secrets this course unlocked for me.

Marketing Officer UWE

… the single best presentation & communication skills trainer I have ever worked with. Deeply knowledgeable, personable, adaptable, and infectiously enthusiastic about his subject.

Associate Professor of Innovation and Entrepreneurship University of Bristol

Six months after my last coaching session with Pete I am still applying what I learnt. Pete is a creative coach with an inspiring array of tools and experience to call upon when coaching clients. Our sessions were focussed, creative and challenging, helping me to target those areas of my professional life I want to develop further.

Head of Corporate Programme Office NHS

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