Adapting Corporate Presentation Skills Training Practices for Use in a University Classroom

Abstract

Both corporate and university sectors are engaged in the teaching of communication courses. As someone who has taught in both settings, I believe that trainers and profes sors have much to gain from pooling ideas. With this in mind, I first observed and then participated in a week- long "Presentation Skills" workshop taught in a Fortune 500 company to determine what aspects of that program might be transplanted to a traditional university public speaking course. I then took ideas gained from the work shop and applied them to the public speaking classes I taught at a western university. This article is an examina tion and discussion of this process.