Where are you going to be at the end of September? If you are involved in the Presentation Industry (designer, speaker, coordinator, trainer, etc.), I recommend attending the only conference exclusively focused on Presentations!

No, this is not a paid endorsement. I have attended and been an invited presenter at almost every Presentation Summit since it began. And I truly believe this is a conference of peers, learning, sharing and having a great time. So if you can make it there, I highly recommend it.

And I am just a happy attendee this year. Sorry, no sessions on animation, multimedia or design from me (not that I am at a loss for session ideas!). But I need to leave the summit early for an international project. So, this year there are few great things:

• TLC Creative Services’ amazingly talented Co-founder (and my lovely wife), Lori Chollar, will be at the Summit with everyone.
• I have no stress or schedule for presenting – so please say hello, show me your great work, or ask any technical questions – I am completely free to talk and enjoy being with so many great presentation industry people (at least Sunday through Tuesday morning)!

Hope to see you in Florida next month at the Presentation Summit!

Troy @ TLC

It’s a great day after receiving an email from Microsoft with this as the masthead!

I am honored to have Microsoft continue to include me in the “Most Valuable Professional” program as a representative for PowerPoint.

– Troy @ TLC

11 years ago today, Troy started The PowerPoint Blog. Here is the very first post (reposted) that started it all!

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Happy New Year! So, with the new year comes new resolutions. I figure I have thought about adding an informative and engaging blog for quite a while, so now must be the perfect time to start!

Why a PowerPoint blog? Well, I think there is a need for a good resource that focuses on the development/creation side of presentations. And because that is what I do every day, I should be able to offer up a steady stream of good (if not entertaining) information. Enjoy!

– Troy @ TLC

Christmas Greetings from Troy and Lori of TLC Creative Services, Inc. Many thanks to the Video Resources team for letting us jump in and make a fun Christmas greeting in their very cool green screen studio!

– Troy @ TLC 

I am heading home from a great 5 days at Microsoft as an invited guest at the 2016 MVP Summit. Each day was spent on the Microsoft campus in Redmond, WA in conference room meetings seeing the future of PowerPoint and providing input on the current version needs, feedback on concepts and giving examples of real-world use of the application the very dedicated dev team works on. Here are a few photos of the week:

(Top to Bottom)

1. Fun photo opportunity at the main conference center.
2. Comparing PowerPoint notes and files with PowerPoint MVPs Steve Rindsberg and Heather Ackmann.
3. Multiple espresso bars for the event were fantastic!
4. Some of the signage found across the Microsoft buildings
5. Troy with a number of the amazing PowerPoint dev team
6. 11 of the 15 North America MVPs for PowerPoint were here!

-Troy @ TLC

 I have been in San Francisco this past week at the largest attendee conference I’ve ever worked. DreamForce is massive, with 160,000+ attendees! I have seen just a fragment of the crowds while coordinating the presentation graphics backstage at the “small” 700 seat Yerba Buena Theater (same venue Apple uses for its product launches).

-Troy @ TLC

I am extremely excited and humbled that Microsoft has awarded the MVP (Most Valuable Professional) for PowerPoint to me again for the next year!

Curious about the MVP program? Information on what it is here.

Note: The letter from Microsoft lists 2016, which is almost over, but I am on the final review and renewal cycle where other MVPs are awarded at the beginning of the year, so this is my “2017” status.

-Troy @ TLC

We design great speaker support presentations. But it is not always about the (great) graphics. Sometimes the most engaging presentations are just a presenter on stage presenting.

Corporate meetings have guest speakers. Being the Presentation expert behind the curtain means we get a VIP seat to see and hear many of today’s engaging speakers, bands and entertainers. In 2015, General Colin Powell stands out as a memorable presenter, not for any presentation graphics, but just for being a fantastic and engaging speaker. This is Gen. Powell’s only slide and my view of the stage. It was a great hour of presentation!

– Troy @ TLC

For January, The PowerPoint Blog is focusing on 2015 Portfolio Highlights. Looking at the 2015 project calendar, it was a busy year. Along with the number of presentation shows we get to support, comes lots of travel. It’s great to experience new parts of the world and build new memories.

Here are a few of the memorable destinations that took place in 2015:

• Istanbul, Turkey
• New Orleans, Louisiana (multiple times)
• Bermuda
• New York, New York
• Orlando, Florida (multiple times)
• Los Angeles, California (many, many times)
• Singapore
• Seattle, Washington
• Many other ballrooms in cities across the U.S. and Canada

– Troy @ TLC