John Manitaras - Professional Portfolio

John Manitaras

Professional Portfolio

Skills and Experience

Presentation

My presentation and public speaking skills have always been strong. I have delivered successful presentations to groups ranging in size from less than twenty to over a hundred students and industry leaders. Having debated since primary school, I have been able to develop my skills in crafting and articulating arguments. I am also able to adapt to the needs of different audiences, which has frequently led to positive feedback from audience members.

These skills have led to numerous awards and leadership positions, including captaincy of my high-school senior debating team from 1999-2001, and multiple debating and public speaking awards. At University I have enjoyed academic success after delivering presentations for numerous assignments, including the awarded Market Research project.

Written Communication

My academic performance is due largely to my written communication skills. A broad base of business study, together with practical experience at “The Big Olive” (see my CV), has given me opportunities to prepare both business plans and marketing communications materials. I have been able to achieve consistent success in these endeavors, including strong academic performance and recognition.

Team Skills

Team skills are essential to the successful mastery of complex issues and problems. I have been required to participate in team environments throughout my studies, at work, and during extracurricular activities such as debating or the BCG strategy competition. Through these experiences I have refined my team skills, focusing on the establishment of clear and common team objectives, and fostering trust and open communication. The result has been continued improvement, leading to success in numerous team environments. For example, this approach led my team to achieve the ‘best marketing plan’ award for our work in Market Research and Project III.

Multi-Tasking

The demands of studying a double degree, with a triple major, while working approximately 20hrs per week frequently place stresses on my time. I have found that strong planning is a key to success in this situation. Of-course, events don't always go as planned, but a strong plan will enable quick and informed decisions. For example, I was once involved in a group assignment for International Management III, where circumstances forced one of my group members to leave the group just two nights before the assignment was due. Given other work and study commitments, my ability to respond to this development was limited. However, a strong pre-existing plan, combined with clearly defined priorities, allowed me to quickly determine my ability to contribute over the following 48 hours. On this basis, I quickly negotiated a re-allocation of work between the remaining group members. We achieved a distinction for the assignment, and I was awarded the “Australian Institute of Management Prize in International Management III” for achieving the best score in that course.