Changing Paradigms: Pentagon Leader Bans the use of PowerPoint. What do you think?

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 11:18:41 -0500

Carter summons U.S. military commanders, diplomats to Kuwait

The new Pentagon chief wants an intensive strategy discussion about Islamic State; no PowerPoint allowed.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 23 at 2015 11:20 AM

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 11:20:24 -0500

Interesting

Response by SGT Jim Z. made Feb 23 at 2015 11:22 AM

SGT Jim Z. — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 11:22:21 -0500

They won't know how to brief Secretary Carter.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 23 at 2015 11:39 AM

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 11:39:33 -0500

So this will force them to focus on the "so what" instead of data generation and display.
Many historic operations were fought with less then 15 pages of OPORD and 1 graphic (map with relevant overlay. In an effort to do the easy mental part leaders ask for more products instead of focusing on the qulaity ones that make them make decsions.

Response by SGT Tyler G. made Feb 23 at 2015 12:20 PM

SGT Tyler G. — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 12:20:41 -0500

The problem isn't with PowerPoint. It is in fact a powerful and excellent briefing tool. The issue is that people don't know how to properly utilize it and end up putting walls of text that they then read off of. It was always intended as a supplement to your brief, not the main focus. Using it for graphs, maps, pictures, etc. with a few bullet points or things you don't want to actually say in your brief but your audience might find nice.

We shouldn't get rid of PowerPoint, people should learn how to use it.

Response by Col Joseph Lenertz made Feb 23 at 2015 12:21 PM

Col Joseph Lenertz — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 12:21:27 -0500

Powerpoint is just a tool, but we often use it as a crutch. Worst cases are when the briefer gets their subordinates to develop the powerpoint while the briefer does "more important things" without learning the topic or preparing to brief. That's when you know it's a crutch. I hope Carter keeps briefers on their toes with selective "no ppt" briefs.

Response by SGM Mikel Dawson made Feb 23 at 2015 12:31 PM

SGM Mikel Dawson — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 12:31:19 -0500

Boy, I'm sure glad I got my Power Point Ranger Tab while the getting was good.

I've seen so many good Officers get slid under the carpet because they couldn't power point, yet they could brief. I think briefing skills need developed and tools (power point) put in their place.

I'll never forget the first time I had to brief the DCG as a SSG. I'd never used power point before, so didn't have all the bells and whistles in my briefing, just had the facts. When my slides came up, there was this blinding white light with bold black letters presenting my facts. I gave my brief, just the facts. General Yates asked me a couple questions along with the DCG and that was that. After the briefing I was stormed by officers telling me how bad my brief was, and I had to "stay after school" to get my briefing in order. So I spent the next couple hours getting all the pretty nicey nice stuff on my brief.

I think this the problem, too much bells and whistles and every one has forgotten BLUF!!

Response by TSgt Joshua Copeland made Feb 23 at 2015 12:34 PM

TSgt Joshua Copeland — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 12:34:39 -0500

Maybe having a course on how to actually brief and use PowerPoint appropriately would be in order.

Response by CPT Aaron Kletzing made Feb 23 at 2015 12:37 PM

CPT Aaron Kletzing — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 12:37:03 -0500

This takes a page out of the book of Amazon's CEO, Jeff Bezos -- Amazon forbids Powerpoint decks as formal correspondence.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 23 at 2015 1:11 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 13:11:58 -0500

What?? No Powerpoint? What else are staff officers supposed to do with their time from now on?

Response by SFC Mark Merino made Feb 23 at 2015 1:32 PM

SFC Mark Merino — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 13:32:56 -0500

Did they grandfather the Powerpoint Ranger Tab or do we have to take them off now? Further research is required. I propose a powerpoint presentation regarding the feasibility of powerpoint presentation removal from the military.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 23 at 2015 1:40 PM

CPT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 13:40:05 -0500

My platoon back in bolc didn't like PowerPoints either. This was our platoon t-shirt. It was so good and funny that other platoons bought our t-shirt.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 23 at 2015 2:07 PM

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 14:07:50 -0500

This could be a step in a very good direction. However, hopefully the SECDEF understands that there is a generation of officers who only know this process for briefing. It will be a learning curve for that GO's staff to produce a non-PP product.

Response by SSG Claude Pinner made Feb 23 at 2015 2:58 PM

SSG Claude Pinner — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 14:58:40 -0500

Although I feel it is a frivolous move, I love the idea behind it. PowerPoint is overused by the military. When done properly, it presents key points of a presentation in easy-to-see fashion; however, most use it as a cue card to read from. No one learns anything that way. When you are the presenter of material, you should also be the SME on that material...not Vanna White turning pages and reciting lines.

Death to Death By PowerPoint!

Response by MSgt Jim Pollock made Feb 23 at 2015 3:12 PM

MSgt Jim Pollock — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 15:12:03 -0500

Sigh...don't ban PowerPoint; ban bad PowerPoint use. Good PowerPoint isn't tough to understand. Treat your briefing like a verbal scholarly paper. Your spoken words are the text and your slides are the figures. Simple.

Self-check: If your slides are an acceptable substitute for attending your briefing, you're doing it wrong.

Response by CW5 Jim Steddum made Feb 23 at 2015 3:38 PM

CW5 Jim Steddum — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 15:38:17 -0500

Powerpoint is effect when used as a presentation tool. All to often it is used as a sole source of information for a decision--and cannot effectively describe the situation for an effect decision to be made.

Additionally, as a teaching aid... it is effective... as long as it is an aid and not "the material."

Response by PO2 Richard Keeler made Feb 23 at 2015 4:01 PM

PO2 Richard Keeler — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 16:01:18 -0500

The title is misleading. He banned powerpoints for the summit, which may indicate he wants a more down to earth discussion, not a political one.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 23 at 2015 4:35 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 16:35:33 -0500

How can anything function in the military without PowerPoint? Will they have some PFC holding up the slides instead of on a screen? Visual media aids can be quite helpful. To outright ban the usage of them in his meeting in Kuwait would severely diminish the effectiveness of the meetings in my opinion.
You shouldn't use the PP as the heart of your presentation but as a supplement to the presentation. It does you no good to have your entire presentation on the slide and you stand there and read it aloud while everyone else reads it.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 23 at 2015 4:40 PM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 16:40:26 -0500

Here is what usually happens, subject matter expert(s) get together and prepare a briefing for a Principle who is really just a politician. The Principle used the Power Point presentation to cover up his lack of expertise in the subject matter. By telling the Principle he can't use PowerPoint, you may manage to remove some of the distortion between the SME and recipient of the briefing, however the end effect is that the Principle is likely to understand the subject matter even less than before because he can no longer give the briefing.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 23 at 2015 4:41 PM

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 16:41:37 -0500

I took a hit on an OER as a Sr LT/Jr Captain because I wasn't good with powerpoint though it does say that. I went to Ranger School so I could lead killers but my lack of skills with powerpoint costed me. I never had a proper powerpoint course but it was a meteric.

Response by LTC Hillary Luton made Feb 23 at 2015 4:57 PM

LTC Hillary Luton — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 16:57:37 -0500

This is an overused crutch that tends to detract from actual conversation. It's ok if used correctly, but most of the time it is overused, and used ineffectively. Use it to show only that information that cannot be relayed through actual conversation and then keep it brief, to the point, with few words.

Sounds to me like Carter wants to sit down and have a conversation. I can see how PP would totally detract from that. Good for him.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 23 at 2015 5:19 PM

CPT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 17:19:49 -0500

It is the plan and not the presentation. There is way to much glitz out there. It doesn't matter if the plan works as long as it looks good. It is the classic "if you can't dazzle them with brilliance then you baffle them with bull****." I have seen this down sour. I have seen doctrine get so perverted it with a presentation that if you were to brief it as a stand alone product without a projector it would make no sense. They just want it to look pretty and make it work where it shouldn't.

The plan should be solid. It isn't the powerpoint that should validate the plan. It is the back brief that should.

Response by Maj Chris Nelson made Feb 23 at 2015 5:30 PM

Maj Chris Nelson — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 17:30:18 -0500

I think that Power Point has its place. It should provide some key points, but the person briefing the information should know everything on the slides forwards, backwards, and upside down....and a bit more! Should be able to field anything on the slide and qualify/quantify any answer that is only partly covered by the slides.

Response by SGM Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 23 at 2015 8:11 PM

SGM Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 20:11:56 -0500

Power point will still be used through out the rest of the military as a way of teaching and presenting as it is an easily attained and easy to use tool. The problem is not the presentation themselves but the presenters. Reading the bullet comments on the slide and not presenting comments is the problem. The issue that needs to be addressed is how to utilize the tool.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 23 at 2015 10:29 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 22:29:14 -0500

PowerPoint, can be a necessary evil. The problem is, some people think that they need to get "very detailed" with PowerPoint. I once attended a briefing to a COL with over 380 slides!...

I've also attended briefings to a GEN with just 30 slides... If a section needed more than two slides to get the point across the GEN would refuse to take their briefings...

The Russians used to have a saying: "While America is presenting their PowerPoint Briefings, we'll be rolling across the Fulda Gap" - or something along that line...

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 24 at 2015 2:46 AM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 24 Feb 2015 02:46:54 -0500

PPT doesn't have to be boring. I've seen some mixed / funny / dirty / laughable / surprise slide in every boxed presentation. Never critique without alternatives so, I might suggest these substitutes. Remember, when presenting alternatives to a Physicist, always run your fingernails down the "chalkboard" first - they like it.

1. No
2. No
3. OK! On sale too!

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 24 at 2015 2:54 AM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 24 Feb 2015 02:54:55 -0500

$10.00 says E-8 & E-9 voted the last two.

Response by COL Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 24 at 2015 10:01 AM

COL Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 24 Feb 2015 10:01:39 -0500

Concur with most of what has been said about it being a good briefing tool. The other problem is understanding how organizations communicate. You can't come into the DOD and just say, "No more Powerpoint." That would be like walking into the State Department and telling them they spend too much time writing correspondence on long winded memorandums. It's how they communicate. They write. We present. The discussion is good, as long as you have the right people there. The problem becomes properly conveying your intent without the use of PPT. Often, higher ranking personnel know enough about a subject to go over the highlights at a strategic level, which is fine unless someone asks some detailed questions. Then you have to have the people that actually did the work there briefing or discussing. That's when you get a LTC or a MAJ talking to the secretary of defense...and that just ain't likely to happen. No one sees the Wizard of Oz.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 24 at 2015 10:28 AM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 24 Feb 2015 10:28:59 -0500

This question is misleading. If you read the article, Carter is simply trying to get the heads to think outside the box. Once you get too accustomed to one way of conducting business, it hinders critical thinking. I believe he is just trying to see how creative everyone can be in their strategy and way of thinking.

Response by LTC Stephen C. made Feb 24 at 2015 12:14 PM

LTC Stephen C. — Tue, 24 Feb 2015 12:14:19 -0500

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member, there will always be something, whether it's PowerPoint or something else. In the mid-eighties, our unit would support VII U.S. Corps in the FRG for CPXs/FTXs. There would be two briefings a day, twelve hours apart. Naturally, computers were not as they are now, and PP didn't exist. The briefers literally spent the twelve hours following one briefing preparing for the next briefing!
There will always be something; it's simply a matter of necessity.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 24 at 2015 8:51 PM

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Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 25 at 2015 2:07 AM

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 25 Feb 2015 02:07:26 -0500

One of the refreshing advantages to operating in the InterAgency is that, apart from DoD, most USG agencies do not rely on Powerpoint to transmit information. Briefing notes, decision memos, position papers, strategy papers, read-ahead packets, policy papers--all not done on powerpoint. If SECDEF directed that DoD immediately stopped using Powerpoint, after a short period of transition and learning, DoD would likely easily transition to written products like the ones above, supplemented, of course, by the formal, five paragraph operations order and associated graphics. Contrary to the apparent beliefs of many, those in DoD who make the most powerpoint slides (staff officers), if given the time and opportunity to write, could write papers just as dazzling and brilliant as the powerpoint slides they work so hard to perfect. Also, a powerpoint-free DoD would probably realize that the millions/billions of dollars of digital C2 equipment it has actually works wonders, and might be useful in transmitting information.

Response by CSM Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 25 at 2015 3:03 AM

CSM Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 25 Feb 2015 03:03:53 -0500

Just wait, something will eventually take PowerPoint's place that will be even worse!

Response by TSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 25 at 2015 8:18 PM

TSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 25 Feb 2015 20:18:02 -0500

I always followed the bullet point rule.

1. Russians have 200 tanks.(Then say the who, what, where and who they are going try to kill)
2. Russians have 10 SS-20 launchers(Then say the who, what, where and who they are going try to kill)

Couple of pictures. Closing slide. I saw no point in map, and them 12 slides of pictures, followed by 8 maps then some pretty graphics toss in some more filler.

I always enjoyed asking lots of questions of people who had pretty power point presentations. Because they normally could not brief or did not know the material.

Response by SSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 25 at 2015 8:20 PM

SSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 25 Feb 2015 20:20:37 -0500

Geez.... Carter is off to a fast start.. first, transgender issues and a discussion that concludes that there is no Islamic terrorists.... lol From Obama's talking points to Carter's ears.. you will say what I believe, I am the king of the world.

Response by CPT Richard Riley made Feb 25 at 2015 8:24 PM

CPT Richard Riley — Wed, 25 Feb 2015 20:24:16 -0500

Used properly as a tool, PowerPoint is a good way to disperse information. Packaged poorly, it creates a worse situation that what was started with. Only time will tell if this will have any effect at all.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Mar 2 at 2015 7:27 AM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 02 Mar 2015 07:27:19 -0500

People praise the idea of using it better, but once that's done, they will continue to beat the dead horse known as Power Point and not stop beating until they're satisfied.

Response by PO1 Glenn Boucher made Mar 6 at 2015 9:11 PM

PO1 Glenn Boucher — Fri, 06 Mar 2015 21:11:29 -0500

The problem with PowerPoint is that people get the slides and then they just read off the slides. They fail to use the slides as a tool and it becomes a crutch. I have seen far too many people use PowerPoint and never say a word that wasn't on the slide.
If we want our audience to read what is on the slides then print enough copies and hand them out, no need to speak.
A good lecturer will use PowerPoint to their advantage by using it properly.
A bad lecturer will just show the slides and read from them, thus boring the audience.