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Campus Review
August 15, 2014
Getting Attention Quickly…
Louis Jourdan and the Elevator Pitch
by John Shiffert
Getting someone’s attention in the busi-
ness world is really very simple, says
Clayton State University Professor of
Management Dr. Louis Jourdan. Like
almost everything else in modern commu-
nications, from Twitter to texting, it’s a
matter of being brief and concise.
“Today, because everyone is so busy,
bombarded by people and ideas every day,
it is important to get people’s attention
quickly in order to get another meeting to
explain your idea in more detail,” he
notes.
One way to get attention quickly is what’s
known as an “elevator pitch.” That is, a
talk that quickly presents key information
about a business idea regarding a product
or service, a presentation that can be given
during the course of an elevator ride. The
intent of an elevator pitch is to encourage
a potential investor to further pursue an
opportunity, says Jourdan. “An elevator
pitch is a tool to help people with a busi-
ness idea, or to help an existing business
to get to the next meeting with investors,”
he adds.
In the present fast-moving business cli-
mate, the ability to make an effective ele-
vator pitch has become a much-desired
skill. Recognizing their importance, ele-
vator pitch competitions have multiplied
at universities throughout the region, with
Clayton State among them.
“More and more universities are going to
this type of competition, either in addition
to, or instead of, a business plan competi-
tion,” he explains. “In an elevator pitch,
they have to know the same information
that is in a business plan, but they have to
present it quickly.”
Clayton State’s first elevator pitch compe-
tition, sponsored by Mitch Johnson with
Primerica Financial Services, drew stu-
dents from, in addition to the host univer-
sity, Albany State University, Mercer
University, and Kennesaw State
University. Ty Woods from Kennesaw
won the competition, followed by
Candace Eldridge from Mercer, Jasmine
Andrews from Albany State and Danny
Hardawar from Clayton State. However,
Jourdan points out that all the competitors
benefitted from the competition.
“Such a competition helps people to think
and respond on their feet,” he says. “Also,
the same techniques are used to sell your-
self to an employer; just the content of the
pitch changes.”
Moving forward, Johnson has already
agreed to sponsor next year’s competition,
as well as to sponsor a personal elevator
pitch competition at Clayton State this
fall, giving participants the chance to
pitch themselves.
Whatever form elevator pitch competi-
tions may take, and Jourdan has studied
other competitions extensively, he thinks
they are an empowering experience for
the students.
“To me, elevator pitches are a refreshing
change,” he says. “From my experience,
academics typically teach people to make
long presentations and write long papers.
Business people
don’t work this way
when
first
approached. In my
MBA class, I have
my students do ele-
vator pitches.
“When I was plan-
ning this competi-
tion, I researched elevator pitch competi-
tions from across the country, and I didn’t
limit it to just Georgia. Typically differ-
ences are the length of the pitch, the con-
tent of their pitch, and in some cases, they
only have people who have existing busi-
nesses. In our competition, we asked that
they include some financial projections,
which some competitions do and some do
not.”
The bottom line is that elevator pitch compe-
titions are a valuable learning tool.
“It teaches people to communicate their idea
or concept effectively and persuasively in an
interesting manner,” says Jourdan.
“Everyone, at one time or another, has tried
to persuade another person about an idea.
“Investors, in particular, spend very little
time on the initial review. For example, ven-
ture capitalists spend about three minutes
reading a business plan, and then invest in
only one percent to two percent of those they
review.”
With more elevator pitch competitions in the
future, Jourdan expects his students to ulti-
mately succeed in their future three-minute
opportunities.
making process. Without them, variables
like opinion, emotion, context and partial
data will take over the process and lead
you down the wrong road. Here's my two
cents to any business school student;
immerse yourself in the experience - take
chances, do everything! Take classes in a
variety of functions. Make a lot of friends
and go out of your way to stay close to as
many of them as you can - they will make
your life richer.”
Not surprisingly, Prieto was thrilled with
the partnerships.
“Through Clayton State’s MBA program,
dreams are definitely made real because
of the experiential learning that occurs in
the classroom that links theory to prac-
tice,” he explains. “I am proud of the fact
that my students are working with top
level executives in international firms and
offering their analysis on a variety of
issues related to global expansion and
logistics. They are well poised to become
global leaders.”
Dr. Jourdan
CEO, cont’d. from p. 3