You have a deadline.

You open a blank slide deck.

You stare at it for ten minutes.

Then you open ChatGPT and ask it to "create a presentation about product carbon footprints." I hope you don’t do that! But in case you once did it you know.

It gives you something. Twelve slides. Looks decent. But something is off. The structure doesn't match how your stakeholders think. The storyline doesn't answer your stakeholders questions. And the moment your boss says "can you change slide four?" you're back to square one.

This is the real problem with AI presentations. Not the design, but the workflow.

Actually design looks good, below presentation built using a very simple prompt in NotebookLM.

Most people start with design and hope the content follows. It never does.

This week's video walks you through the exact 4-step workflow I use to build presentations that actually get sustainability initiatives approved.

Not prettier slides. A better process.

Here's the short version of what I cover:

Step 1 — Research first. Primary sources only. GHG Protocol, ESRS, TfS standards — whatever your topic demands. Uploaded into NotebookLM and turned into a structured, reliable report. This is your foundation. Everything else is built on top of it. Max of 10 resources.

Step 2 — Structure is yours. Not AI's. Before you open any design tool, you sit down and answer one question: what does the audience need to understand to walk out of that room ready to act? That answer becomes your slide structure. AI did not decide this. You did. This is the step most people skip. It's also the only step that determines whether your presentation actually works. You build the structure, GPT write it in a way Gamma would understand easily.

Step 3 — Design executes, not leads. Once the structure is locked, Gamma handles the visual execution.

Step 4 — Collaboration without chaos. Your boss will have comments. Procurement will flag something. Finance will want a slide adjusted. A good presentation is never a single person's input. The workflow is built for this — editable, structured, and easy to update without reprompting the entire thing.

The prompts, the case study, and the full resource are ready for you to duplicate:

In case you missed it

Three articles worth your time if you haven't read them yet:

→ The ESG Masterclass Is Now Free — If you want a clear, structured foundation of how sustainability actually works inside companies, this is it. And it costs nothing.

→ How to Set Up Claude Cowork as a Sustainability Manager — The setup guide built specifically for sustainability professionals. Not the generic one. The one that actually fits the work.

→ Has Building Apps Become Really Easier With AI? — You only need one part of an app to make it useful. This is the mindset shift that changes how you think about building tools.

See you next week.

Zyad

SustainOS — Weekly AI workflows for sustainability managers. Stop chatting with AI. Start executing with it.