How to Write a Biography for the Award Ceremony

If you are fully prepared before making a speech by doing the requisite research, when you stand before your audience you will be the poised, charming and witty presenter that you want to be. If you are introducing the award recipient, you will want to include background and solid biographical information in your speech. That will require some research and planning. The more prepared you are, the more impressive your time at the podium will be.

Research the award recipient's accomplishments, background, education and other relevant information. You may find a lot of information, so distill it down to the pertinent info relevant to the award. Highlight those items; you'll want to use them in the speech.

Interview the award-recipient if time allows. Use the research you did in Step 1 to ask appropriate questions of the award recipient to get details and fill in the cracks about his background.

Gather background information about how the recipient came to receive the award. Talk to relevant people: employers, coaches, teachers, family members and those who were responsible for selecting him for the award.

Write the opening of the speech. The best way to break the ice and gain the audience's attention to open with a humorous anecdote about the subject. This can be culled from the information you uncovered from the research and interviews you did in steps one through three. However, keep in mind the tone and venue of the event. If it's a solemn affair, avoid anything too risqué or embarrassing. It it's more light-hearted, such as roast, where the audience anticipates blue humor, don't be afraid to push the envelope.

Write the body of the speech. Include the recipient's most outstanding accomplishment discovered in your research, and write in a lively, engaging tone. Use the research you did to point out other highlights of his career and/or personal life and how they led to his nomination for the award. Interweave further anecdotes from your research to reinforce these points. For example: "Johnny's coach told me he was a stubborn player. He missed a foul shot once toward the end of game where his team was up by 20 points. It didn't matter in the outcome of the game, but it mattered to Johnny. He stayed in the gym that night after the game was over and practice his free throws for another hour. Coach finally had to kick him out so he could lock up and go home. It's had that kind of perseverance and dedication that's lead us to this evening and this award."

Write the conclusion. Here you will introduce the recipient and invite her to come up and accept the award. It should be warm and congratulatory.