How would you plan an effective Q&A session for both individual and team-led presentations?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Answer: Anticipate questions and plan short answers. The main problem people face in impromptu speaking is the temptation to ramble. In other words, people talk aimlessly until they discover the point they want to make. The following advice will help you avoid that problem:
• Anticipate. Think in advance about questions your audience is likely to ask and plan short answers. Map out an answer in your head. Though it may be difficult to organize your impromptu thoughts, mentally note or write down a few key points you want to cover to keep on track.
• Keep your answers short. Begin with the shortest possible version of the answer and then stop. If people require additional information, they'll ask follow-up questions.

Decide how your team will handle questions. In a team presentation, you will want to avoid having team members look at each other blankly, waiting for someone else to answer. You will also want to avoid having multiple members trying to answer a question at the same time. Consider one of the following options for handling questions as a team. Both options depend on the team making a plan in advance about who will answer what kind of question.
Assign one team member to facilitate the Q&A session. That team member will ask for questions and "assign" them to the team member designated to answer that kind of question. The facilitator may also answer questions, but must be careful not to answer too many. Otherwise, he or she will seem to be claiming the spotlight.
Allow team members to decide whether a question falls under their designated area. For this option to work well, the team member should not just launch into the answer. Instead, identify that you plan to answer it by saying something like, "I'll take that question." This signals to the rest of the team that the question is covered, and it prevents two people beginning to answer at the same time.