Terry Rubin, cofounder of The Professional Communicators
Photo courtesy of Terry Rubin
Terry Rubin, cofounder of The Professional Communicators, previews his upcoming talk at the 2026 HIMSS Global Health Conference & Exposition in March, where he will discuss what he calls the "Tech Talk Trap," a common mistake in which technical and medical experts lose their audience by relying on jargon, overwhelming detail or rushed presentations that obscure key takeaways.
MobiHealthNews: How do you define the "Tech Talk Trap," and why do you think so many technical and medical experts fall into it?
Terry Rubin: The Tech Talk Trap is a common trap that people in tech, medicine, engineering, and really any field where you have to present complex information, fall into. The Tech Talk Trap essentially is when an expert presents complex information in a way that does not resonate or is not understood by their audience.
People in the IT/medtech industries can fall into it in a few different ways. One is when the expert conveys the complex information using jargon, acronyms or commonly used terms in their field, and their audience doesn't understand most of it.
The second way is that the expert can overload their audience with too much detail, firehosing them with information and leaving them unsure of the key takeaways.
The third way is how the information is presented: too fast with no pauses or lacking emphasis on what is the most important data or details to take away. That's the Tech Talk Trap.
This is an example of the Tech Talk Trap: A software engineer proposes a new AI system to a group of physicians or hospital leadership, using jargon, acronyms and complex language, leaving the team confused and unable to understand the innovation, how it will integrate, let alone whether it will be effective.
The reality is they lose their audience and, more importantly, control of their message. Their information is not retained or acted on as they want. The most effective technical and medical leaders don't water down their expertise; they translate it. They shift from "Here's everything I know" to "Here's what you need to know."
MHN: Will you provide practical tips for communicating that professionals can use instead of jargon?
Rubin: The quick answer is yes. We will provide attendees with easy-to-use practical communication tools and techniques to avoid the Tech Talk Trap. Participants will learn, not only how to evaluate their audience and determine how much jargon and detail they can use, but also how to implement it. Hence, they maintain control of the message and ensure everyone in the room understands their narrative. We want to provide communication tools that they can use the day after the conference to become more persuasive, concise and effective communicators.
MHN: What do you hope attendees will learn from your discussion?
Rubin: We want participants in our workshop to understand that communication is essential to their professional success. Projects can fail or never even get off the ground because of ineffective, unconvincing communication. We want participants to leave with tangible solutions and tools they can implement tomorrow to help them succeed, whether it is asking for a budget, securing a new client or improving medical care for millions of people. We want them to see the power of being an effective communicator when presenting complex technical information in a way their audience can understand. Avoiding the Tech Talk Trap starts with understanding your audience and then adapting the right communication tools to be persuasive and informative.
Terry Rubin's session "Avoiding the Tech Talk Trap" is scheduled for Thurs., March 12, from 11 a.m.-12 p.m., in San Polo 3501A I Level 3 at HIMSS26 in Las Vegas.
