Thursday, May, 14, 2015, CFA Association Russia held its intensive seminar dedicated to the development of investor presentation skills. The workshop took place at Hyundai MotorStudio, Novy Arbat Str., Moscow. It was the first event in the series of short evening trainings on soft skills improvement scheduled for this year. 

The most effective way of learning for adults is not by sitting in a classroom, Neil Withers, CFA, President of CFA Association Russia noticed taking the role of the headline speaker. 'Adults learn best by either doing things or by learning something they really need', he pointed out. So the main purpose of the seminar was to provide both possibilities to its guests.

According to Neil Withers' opinion, presentation is much more about connecting with the person on the other side of the table than putting words into PowerPoint. The speaker expressed confidence that enthusiasm in the conversation was a point that was really necessary. ‘And you should try to make your presentation shorter than you think it should be’, Neil Withers noticed.

The speaker focused guests’ attention on different types of presentation, their audience and steps in building a relationship between business owners and potential investors. ‘A successful IPO is a minimum 3-year project, and any investment is not an instant decision’, concluded Neil Withers.

A lot of time during the workshop was dedicated to answering guests’ questions, when Neil Withers tried to clarify specific issues of investor presentation process. Some guests could try themselves in the role of business-for-sale owners as well, and this part of the event became probably the most interesting and useful for its participants.

Soft skills improvement is becoming increasingly important to investment professionals, so CFA Association Russia is going to pay significant attention to this aspect of their professional growth.