Missing Link's goal is to turn corporate clients' mediocre presentations into the 'rock concerts' of the business world. The presentation specialists have been successful at transforming ordinary presentations into something special precisely because of the company's different approach to everything it does; from the look and feel of its office - if you can even call it that - to the way staff are treated, and treat each other.
Mulholland says the focus of the work Missing Link does for clients never deviates from the core objective. "Our goal is to execute the mandate given to us by our clients."
To ensure the focus stays on this goal, Missing Link has a 'no awards' rule approach. "Delivery and fulfillment are the driving motivations, not getting trophies" says Mulholland.
The company, which includes Standard Bank, Nokia, Absa, Mazda, Broll and Deloitte among its clients, is not only a solution to corporate presentation needs but, as Mulholland says, "a cure for boredom".
"If your company is trying to win a pitch, explain a complicated formula or simply lift morale, and your presentation is losing the audience, you've not only wasted your time, but you could have the opposite effect."
Boredom and the mundane are in short supply at Missing Link. Mulholland's desk is a double bed; head of strategy and mentor Dave Meyer works at a coffin. Special projects person Graham McCowen, described by Mulholland as one of the best motion graphics guys this side of Pixar, wanted to do something else. His full-time job now is making sure that people in the company keep having fun.
Missing Link's philosophy behind creating great presentations for its clients is aligned with its business model. Creating a stimulating and thrilling working environment engenders loyalty and attention. The same pretty much applies to presentations. Unfortunately most people and companies believe that to make a presentation more gripping, all they need do is double up on the amount of text and pictures in their PowerPoint slides.
Missing Link combines visuals, video and strategy but Mulholland says there is more to creating compelling presentations.
"Anyone can throw together a few PowerPoint slides and call that a presentation, basically we're in business because many do. This is where strategy and coaching come in. We work with speakers to ensure they deliver the right message and enjoy the experience of presenting."
The key to success is rehearsal. The visual aids should be the last aspect of the entire production to be completed after coming up with a plan and rehearsing until the process runs with precision.
Mulholland set up Missing Link in his early twenties, using skills he had acquired as a roadie and lighting techie on the concert circuit. Despite an often unconventional approach, he says, "It's not so much that we're trying to break the rules, it's just that we were never in a position to learn the rules in the first place. So we've really just developed systems that make the most logical sense to us using today's tech."
Missing Link is expanding on the back of demand from its client base, and will be opening an office in Cape Town in January 2007.
