Question 1:

How will you align your Speech to our Vision & Strategy?
Whatever the Keynote Speaker is going to talk about it must be aligned to your organisational Vision, Strategy, and Culture. Indeed, the success of a Keynote Speech can be defined as its relevance to who you are. No matter how well presented the content of the Speech is, unless the Speaker relates it to the context of your organisation it will not have the impact you are looking for.

Start by asking the Speaker, “How will you align your Speech to our Vision & Strategy?” to see how well they are aligned to who you are, where your organisation is currently, and where it is going to.

Question 2:

What could go wrong?
Risk management is a central dynamic in every business activity, including events, to prepare for the unexpected and avoid obvious risks to optimise your activities. So, it is important that the Keynote Speaker is not only aware of possible risks but that they are also willing to help you solve any potential problems; use their extensive experience to elevate your event.

Next ask the Speaker, “What could go wrong? And what can we do to reduce this risk?” to see how experienced they are in dealing with possible risks and their ability to work with you to anticipate risks.

Question 3:

How is this speech different from your last?
While there can be themes that repeat in all Keynote Speeches, how and what to apply is always unique to each context and to each organisation. The uniqueness of your event needs to be reflected in the uniqueness of a tailor-made Speech. Experienced Speakers will always tailor their Speech to the unique context of your organisation.

Now ask the Speaker, “How is this speech different from your last? How will this speech be tailor-made?” to see how willing they are to create a tailor-made Speech.

Question 4:

How will you help us keep the learnings after your speech?
No matter how amazing a Keynote Speech is, to maintain what is learnt we need to be reminded repeatedly of the key points and to integrate the lessons into daily practice we need to be supported across time. Experienced Speakers will anticipate this and offer material, content, documents, webinars, etc, as support after their Speech. And remember sharing the ‘slides’ from their presentation is not enough; slides are not designed to be read afterwards, instead of these need to be translated into a Summary Document.
For more insights on this, check out our article: How to keep Learnings after a Keynote Speech?

Finally ask the Speaker, “How will you help us keep and apply the learnings after your speech? What materials will you leave with us after your speech?” to see how prepared they are to increase the impact of their Speech and help you integrate the learnings into daily habits.

To learn more about how Paul Hughes’ Keynote Speeches can help your organisation grow Request a Quote.