When you prepared a presentation about a new inventory management system at a retail store. Working in small groups, plan the first few minutes of the presentation.

Then have one person deliver the beginning of the presentation and have others play the role of a hostile or skeptical audience who interrupts with challenging questions. Provide feedback on how well the presenter managed the group.

Repeat the process for a laid-back audience. Have a different member of the group present the beginning of the presentation to an audience who doesn’t say anything! They sit with their arms crossed and don’t respond at all. In some ways, this can be more difficult to manage than an openly hostile audience. How does the presenter handle this situation, and what could improve the response?