The document discusses executive presence, defining it as the ability to convey clarity, poise, and confidence effectively. It emphasizes the importance of developing this skill for career advancement and offers practical methods for improvement, such as active listening and thoughtful questioning. Additionally, it outlines key qualities of executive presence and encourages practice through team assignments.

1. Tepper School of Business
Developing Executive Presence
Vishwa Kolla, Tepper MBA ‘09

2. SABA – Exec Presence
Topics For Review
1 What is Executive Presence?
2 Why is Executive Presence Important?
3 How can one develop / refine Executive Presence
4 Practice
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3. SABA – Exec Presence 1 The What
Executive Presence is all about making things simple
How can I make things simple?
1. Clear Crisp Concise
2. Walk the Walk
3. Listen, Learn, Improvise
4. Command & Control
5. 2 Reasons
6. 3 Aspects
7. 1 Primary driver, and 3 Levers
8. Ability & Agility
9. Impact & Influence
10. W5H (What, Why, Where, When, Who, How)
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4. SABA – Exec Presence 1 The What
Examples of how Executives Look / Think / Communicate
1. What are some of the key messages from the video
2. Why do you think the messages were effectively made?
Video 1 Video 2 Video 3
Time: 1:14 Time: 1:05 Time: 21:23
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5. SABA – Exec Presence 1 The What
One can recognize Executive Presence through 9 expressed qualities
What you bring to the table? How you bring to the table?
Poise - the look of sophistication (through
background and experience)
Clarity – the ability to tell a story in a
Passion – the expression of
clear, concise and a compelling way
commitment, motivation, and the drive that
shows people you really believe in what you do
Candor – the appearance of honesty, through
Warmth – The appearance of being accessible the willingness and skill to constructively tell
to others and being interested in them about things as they are
Thoughtfulness – the projection of thinking or
Sincerity – the conviction of believing in and
having thought through something before
meaning what you say
responding
Self Confidence – the air of assurance, such
Openness – the appearance of not
that others know you have the required strength
prejudging, of being willing to consider another
and resolve
point of view.
5 Source: AJC.com

6. SABA – Exec Presence 2 The Why
The level of Executive Presence determines which trajectory you are on
CEO
Executive
Level in
the organization
Director
Tepper
MBA
Grad
2010 2011/12 2021/12
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7. SABA – Exec Presence 3 The How
People are not born with Executive Presence ; It is an acquired skill
Level of
Executive
Presence
1. Am I taking on leadership
roles?
Act 2. Am I working on making
myself get noticed?
1. Am I not paying attention to the details?
Practice 2. Am I not speaking up enough?
Practice 3. Am I not asking questions (at least a few
Practice thoughtful questions every class / meeting)
1. What is the choice of words someone is using?
Listen 2. How can I say this better?
Observe 3. What do I use as a means to think on my feet – paper /
Learn whiteboard, people, technology?
4. How much attention am I paying when someone is talking?
1. Where am I?
Become 2. What are my core skill sets? People / Processes / Technology / Data?
Self-Aware 3. What do I absolutely enjoy doing something continuously for 15 hrs a day?
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8. SABA – Exec Presence 3 The How
Open Vs Closed Questions
Closed questions keep control of the Open questions give control to the
questioning respondent
Characteristics Characteristics
1. They give you facts 1. They ask the respondent to think and reflect
2. They are easy to answer and 2. They will give you opinions and feelings
3. Have short responses 3. The deliberately seek longer responses
Examples Examples
1. Isn’t the weather great? 1. How was your holiday? I hope the weather
God cooperated.
2. Where do you live? How are you?
2. Why is this so important to you?
3. Are you happy with your current supplier?
3. Can you elaborate more on this topic. I would
4. Will you sign the deal if I can get you this
like both of us to be on the same page.
paperwork by tomorrow?
4. You are looking down. What’s up?
5. How can we help make this even better.
6. I wonder what would happen if your
customers complained even more.
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9. SABA – Exec Presence 3 The How
Some additional ways of asking questions
Speculative 1. Why do you think this happens?
Hypothesizing 1. What if the situation was not the effect, but the cause
Analysis 1. What are some of the key drivers and/or contributing factors and why?
Reflection 1. What do you think we can learn from this situation?
Evaluation 1. How would you compare approach A with that of B
Consequence 1. How would you compare approach A with that of B
Pay Off 1. How would it benefit you if you could?
Additional Help : Blooms Taxonomy
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10. SABA – Exec Presence 3 The How
Some Good Ways to Speak
1. It would be a remiss, if I did not ... 21. Aha moment.
2. This is why I am convinced ... 22. Table stakes.
3. Business opportunities. 23. My personal bias is towards
4. Pain points. 24. Take a step back, remove the curtain.
5. The net of this. 25. Based on your experience
6. There is another part to this. 26. Word choice
7. For example. 27. What got you here won't get you there?
8. Which I believe deserves special mention. 28. I have an obligation/commitment that I cannot break.
9. Shouldn't be a surprise. 29. Add insult to injury
10. In my honest opinion … 30. Fit for purpose
11. I know we differ on this point, but can we agree on … 31. The good news is that
12. My challenge / worry / concern / issue … 32. Anything that you guys think (myself included) ...
13. Putting money where the mouth is ... 33. Between now and then.
14. Follow the Dollar … 34. "yes and" and not "but"
15. Build and they will come - Field of Dreams … 35. Yeoman's effort.
16. A Barometer - for directional purposes … 36. No skin in our game.
17. Advice clients … 37. You stuck a chord in my brain here.
18. Let me turn it back to ... for a closing. 38. Narrow the aperture.
19. Start from the ground floor and work my way up. 39. Just so you know ...
20. Project will collapse under its own weight. 40. The net of that research was that ...
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11. SABA – Exec Presence 3 The How
Some Good Ways to Speak
41. That information is available if anyone is interested ... 61. Yes and,
42. Growing at a double/triple digit growth. 62. Way 62
43. There is much work to be done on ...
44. Any questions or comments so far ...
45. Client economics standpoint ...
46. To address your request / concern / worry ...
47. Appreciate the efforts to rationalize this ...
48. Horse's mouth understanding ...
49. Resounding yes ...
50. Use data skills as an enhancer to other skills ...
51. Assemble the roster ...
52. A good head on the shoulder ...
53. Take a step back and take a broader view ...
54. The thinking behind this approach ...
55. Get a handle on ...
56. Rick did a nice piece of work using ...
57. Slide 4 reinforces ...
58. We picked some of the obvious ones ...
59. Chatted up.
60. Listening, Learning, Improvising ...
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12. SABA – Exec Presence 3 The How
Some thoughts / comments – there is no right answer
 Executive Presence can be felt only in person
 It is better to stay quiet and not to ask a dumb question
 Giving a response in a timely manner is much more important than taking all the
time in the world to give the correct response
 When you don’t know the answer, a thoughtful question to a question is better
than keeping quiet
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13. SABA – Exec Presence 3 The How
Some Tools that personally helped me
WSJ Videos
iTunes / Podcasts Notes, Notes, Notes
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14. SABA – Exec Presence
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15. SABA – Exec Presence
Topics For Review
1 What is Executive Presence?
2 Why is Executive Presence Important?
3 How can one develop / refine Executive Presence
4 Practice
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16. SABA – Exec Presence 4 Practice
Teams Tasks
Team 1 - Team 2 -
1. Name 1 1. Name 1
1. 3 Words to describe our
group
2. 2 of the 9 qualities that we
constantly struggle with and
what we plan to do to work
on them
3. Describe 1 recent project /
Team 3 - Team 4 - assignment that I / we have
1. Name 1 1. Name 1 worked on
Headline
$$$
Elevator pitch
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