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Public speaking and presentation training

Training and coaching that helps leaders and professionals speak with presence, clarity and conviction, and look forward to doing it. Based in London and Dubai, delivered worldwide in many languages.

Who you are when you speak

The skills of public speaking can be learned, and we teach them thoroughly: body language, voice, structure, storytelling and handling questions. Skills are the foundation. What makes the difference is who you are when you use them, and how you show up in front of the people you are speaking to. Two speakers with the same technique can have very different effects on a room, and audiences trust the one who feels real. So we do not train people towards a single model of a good speaker. We build the most effective version of each person, with their own style, personality and even their quirks.

How we teach public speaking

Evidence-based

Our method draws on psychology, neuroscience and nervous system self-regulation, the performance psychology of sport, and the voice work of theatre: disciplines with real science behind them, applied to how people show up and speak. We say plainly which popular tips do not hold up, and we never teach them.

A business skill

We are a specialist communication company, so we teach public speaking in service of your organisation: its messages, its reputation and its goals. The content side of every course draws on our work in corporate communication and the media.

Practice with playback

Short, frequent practice runs are filmed and replayed with a coach. The first is an easy, friendly baseline; later runs go where each person needs them most, and difficulty rises gently through the day.

Your own material

Participants work on talks they will actually give, so they leave with a stronger version of a real presentation as well as stronger skills.

What you learn

Body language and presence

What good body language looks like, why it matters to an audience and how to get there naturally.

Voice and language

A voice that carries and a way of speaking that sounds like you on a good day.

Preparation and nerves

Rehearsal that works, and practical routines athletes and performers use before they go on.

Connecting with your audience

Speaking with the room, reading it and adapting as you go.

Content and structure

The change you want, the one message your audience should leave with, and the structure, stories and proof that carry it.

Handling questions

A full toolkit for difficult questions, shared with our media training.

Storytelling

Choosing stories that serve your message and telling them well.

Slides and visual support

Principles for visuals that support the speaker and keep the audience with you.

Ways to train with us

Open course

Public Speaking and Presentation Skills. Two days in a small group, face to face in London and Dubai or live online. For individuals and small groups.

In-house training

A course designed for your team, in your offices or online, anywhere in the world. One or two days, with advanced and specialist modules added to suit your people.

One-to-one coaching

Coaching for a leader with a keynote, a major presentation or a bigger role ahead, with all the time spent on what matters to that person.

We also run Advanced Public Speaking, Storytelling for Professional Impact and Overcoming Fear of Public Speaking.

Your coaches

Our coaches have spent their careers at the top of broadcasting, communication and performance, and they coach from inside the profession.

All our trainers are director-level professionals, active in the field, with at least 15 years’ experience.

Will Hardie
Will Hardie

Communication strategist and executive coach, Oxford psychologist and former Reuters foreign correspondent, with more than 25 years’ experience in 50 countries.

Sarah Cocker
Sarah Cocker

Former CNBC anchor and economist who coaches chief executives and ministers.

Caitlin Shannon
Caitlin Shannon

Communication strategist, playwright and keynote speaker; clients include the European Central Bank and Novartis.

Eva Di Pierro
Eva Di Pierro

Executive presence coach with more than 15 years’ experience across Europe, the United States and Asia.

Adam Kirtley
Adam Kirtley

BBC broadcast journalist and presenter, who trains chief executives to speak with impact.

Izabela Hamilton
Izabela Hamilton

ICF-certified executive coach with more than 20 years’ international communication experience.

Aranka Pieters
Aranka Pieters

Senior executive coach (ICF PCC) specialising in executive presence, with more than 15 years’ experience.

What you leave with

Every participant leaves with their own pre-speaking routine, built from the tools we practise together, and with structures that make planning a talk quicker and easier. Most of all, people leave looking forward to speaking. They enjoy it more than they did, and they welcome the next challenge.

“I loved the practical part of the course and how we learnt by doing. Making our own presentation and then watching the recordings had a higher impact on what are the do’s and don’ts.”
Corina Coman, Veeam
“The trainer was so professional, patient and gives attention to each member of the training. There was a lot of practical engagement, and the small group allowed more interaction.”
Nathalie Jaber
“Engaging, fun and most interesting, educated me on all the relevant areas and listened to my concerns.”
A.N.

Why ISOC

Trusted at the top

We have coached prime ministers, ministers, royals and hundreds of CEOs and directors to speak in public.

Senior coaches

Our coaches have spent their careers at the top of communication, and they coach from inside the profession.

Specialists for 25 years

We have done one thing, communication skills, and it shows in the room and in the results.

Evidence-based

Our method draws on psychology, neuroscience and the performance psychology of sport, and we say plainly which popular tips do not hold up.

Measured results

Every participant is assessed before and after against a best-practice framework, with a report for the individual and one for management.

Coached as individuals

We build the most effective version of each person, and people leave looking forward to speaking.

Trusted by governments, institutions and global brands

Talk to us about public speaking training

Tell us who you want to train and what is coming up for them. We will suggest a course or a programme and send a proposal.