The Elevator Speech

Your aim is to give a 3-minute Elevator Speech on your project (with a minute or two left for questions and comments).

• What is an Elevator Speech?
  The Elevator Speech is essentially a standard answer, crafted in advance, to the "Who are you and what do you do?" question. The name comes from the idea that you need something ready to say when you have a chance encounter with someone you need to connect with on an elevator, and have just 15 to 45 seconds to deliver your message. Typically, it begins with a brief description of what you do and the organization you work for, and often includes points or examples of special aspects of your offerings - how you uniquely provide value to clients or customers. It typically closes with a mechanism that provides a link to future contacts. They need to be sufficiently flexible to permit on-the-fly adjustment to the person you are talking to.

• What should be included in an Elevator Speech on your project?
  You should describe the objectives of your project, the steps you have completed, and any conclusions or outcomes you have reached.

• How do I prepare an Elevator Speech?
  Collect and organize your thoughts and key points. Ruthlessly edit to get your content down to a size that can be delivered in the time you are aiming for. Write down sentences as a script to follow, but don't memorize word for word. Rehearse by yourself and with others. When you give the elevator speech, don't worry about literally following your script. Be spontaneous, confident and natural.

(These notes on Elevator Speeches are taken from Charles Tu's class on Principles of Team Engineering.)

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