How to Introduce an Employee at a Meeting With a Speech
The opportunity to introduce an employee at a company or organization meeting is a terrific chance to lavish praise upon the person in question. If the employee invites you to make the introductory speech, consider yourself honored. If you elect to introduce a new or highly valued employee at a department or company meeting, choose language carefully to aptly praise the employee without creating an atmosphere of favoritism within the company or department. You also want to take care to avoid embarrassing an employee with excessive praise or bizarre anecdotes.
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Instructions
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Plan your remarks carefully. Introducing an employee is no time to ad-lib. A well-prepared speech helps eliminate nerves and ensures you will be just complimentary enough to suit the occasion without alienating other employees or guests. Consider which work or personal traits you want to highlight or underscore in your speech. Choosing two to three factors is a good rule of thumb. Find language that is positive but neutral enough to quell suspicions of favoritism.
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Inform the employee of the content of your speech. Sure, it reduces the element of surprise, but delicacy is critical. Employees may be sensitive in surprising ways. Springing unexpected jokes or anecdotes on a hapless employee can spell disaster to your future working relationship. Accuracy in personal speeches is also important. Let the employee review at least the gist of what you plan to say and to give her the chance to correct or insert biographical facts, such as graduation year or company start date.
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Ask the employee how best to introduce her. For some, the act of simply standing for an acknowledgment of their work can induce paroxysms of fear. For such an individual, simply pointing her out in the conference room, banquet room or auditorium may prove less unsettling. If you are introducing an employee who is making a speech of her own in suite, trust that the company will understand who she is as she approaches the podium or stage.
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Practice and time the speech. Find out how long it takes to deliver and cut it to suit the allotted time, if necessary.
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Stick to your planned speech. Tempting though it may be to extemporize with seemingly clever tales about the awkwardness of her initial interview, for example, take pains to stick to your planned comments. The employee -- as well as the event timekeeper -- will thank you. Keep your facial expression and vocal tone upbeat and positive as you deliver the speech to avoid sending mixed messages. In sum, create and deliver the speech in such a way as to fill the employee with warm, fuzzy feelings while inviting the audience to gain insight into the employee's positive qualities.
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