Speaker Coach

Posted: May 25, 2023

Now, if you’re anything like the writer of this blog, speaking in front of others and giving presentations, is not your idea of a fun day. It’s not that you don’t know the material you’re presenting on, maybe you are just uncomfortable in large groups, or get nervous/anxious when presenting. Whatever the reason may be, Speaker Coach built into PowerPoint may help!

What does Speaker Coach Do?

Speaker Coach allows you to record yourself presenting, and provides feedback on a variety of elements:

Pace
Pitch
Use of filler words (like: like; and, um; ahhh, ok…)
Informal speech/profanity
Euphemisms
Using too many words
Reading word for word off the slide

How does Speaker Coach Work?

In order to use Speaker Coach, you need an internet connected device, with a microphone, Microsoft Edge version 15 or later (Chrome or Firefox version 52 or later), and a Microsoft account (your academic email counts!). Essentially you record yourself giving your presentation, and through Microsoft’s Speech Services, you are given both real-time feedback, and a summary report.
Note: in using this feature, your speech utterances will be sent to Microsoft.

How do I Access Speaker Coach?

Open your PowerPoint presentation in PowerPoint for the web (you can access all Office 365 applications, including PowerPoint, through HUB)
Click on the “Slide Show” tab, and then select “Rehearse with Coach”
(When you are ready to start presenting/recording) select “Get Started”
Give your presentation

Speaker Coach had Suggestions… What Now?

Suggestions from Speaker Coach don’t have to be scary! Your summary report will provide you with information on what areas you may work on to improve your presentation. Better yet, Microsoft has a whole page dedicated to explaining why different recommendations are made, and providing suggestions on how to fix them.