Facilitation Principlesand Techniques
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The Inside Facilitator
Authorized by the Project Champion
Invites project team members
Announces the facilitator
WHY?
Keep the team on track
Assure all ideas are explored
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The Inside Facilitator
Walking the ‘fine line’
Do not push the group to a specificsolution
Always try to introduce your ideas last
If you have information you need tobring out, try to phrase it as a question
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Facilitation Components
Prepare
Conduct & follow-up
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Preparation
Process walk-through
Strawmodels
Ground Rules
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Preparation
Process walk-through
Understand the process better
Understand the questions to ask
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Preparation
Process walk-through
Strawmodels
Can be a simple map of the process
Allows the team to discuss the topics in alogical sequence
More productive faster
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Preparation
Process walk-through
Strawmodels
Ground Rules
Govern the team’s conduct
Empower the facilitator
Can be added throughout the project
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Ground Rules
Generic behavior
Listen carefully to other speakers
Respect the point of view of others
Suspend judgment and consider alternativeapproaches
Speak up and share your views
Avoid side conversations
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Ground Rules
Project specific
Identify policy decisions that are within andoutside of the scope of the group
Determine who will make a decision if thegroup cannot reach consensus
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Facilitation Components
Prepare
Conduct & follow-up
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Conduct & Follow-up
Determine how information will beretained
Draw maps
Record notes on chart paper
Have someone else take notes
The facilitator should update the mapsto prepare themselves for the nextmeeting
Validate the maps with the team at thenext meeting
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Facilitation Techniques
Facilitation Styles
Group Management
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Facilitation Styles
Understand your default style
The way you prefer to handle specificsituations
My default style
Fun
Patient
Chaos
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Facilitation Styles
Understand your default style
Modify your style to deal with specificsituations
Tough talk
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Facilitation Styles
Understand your default style
Modify your style to deal with specificsituations
Scripts
Standard phrases used to introduce acomment
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Group Management
Staying on schedule
Moving the line of inquiry forward
Building consensus
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Staying on Schedule
Use the agenda as a guide
Shift from content to process
Script: “Let’s do a process check”
Stay on this topic or move on
Assign to a sub-group between meetings
Run over scheduled time
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Staying on Schedule
Use the agenda as a guide
‘Parking Lot’ ideas for later
Script: “With your permission I will captureyour idea on the parking lot.”
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Group Management
Staying on schedule
Moving the line of inquiry forward
Asking questions
Summarizing ideas
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Elevate details to themes
“It sounds like we need to determine howmuch risk of internal mistakes we cantolerate.”
Moving the Line of InquiryForward
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Elevate details to themes
Summarizing the ‘working proposition’
The path that seems to be resonating bestwith the group
Direction for the line of inquiry
Does not mean everyone has agreed
Script: “Why don’t I run through theworking proposition?”
Moving the Line of InquiryForward
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Elevate details to themes
Summarizing the ‘working proposition’
Explain it in the vernacular
Use common words not organizationaljargon
Moving the Line of InquiryForward
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Elevate details to themes
Summarizing the ‘working proposition’
Explain it in the vernacular
Recognize ‘violent agreement’ andmove on
Everyone favors an idea
Script: “It seems like we are in violentagreement.”
Moving the Line of InquiryForward
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Elevate details to themes
Summarizing the ‘working proposition’
Explain it in the vernacular
Recognize ‘violent agreement’ andmove on
Move some issues to another venue
Moving the Line of InquiryForward
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Consensus is the solution everyone iswilling to support
Recognize small victories
Script: “We already agree on X, so now weonly need to focus on Y.”
Building Consensus
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Consensus is the solution everyone iswilling to support
Recognize small victories
Recognize common elements ofseemingly differing views
Recognize views only differ by a fewelements
Building Consensus
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Consensus is the solution everyone iswilling to support
Recognize small victories
Recognize common elements ofseemingly differing views
Working proposition morphs intoconsensus
Building Consensus
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Avoid voting for the final Yes/Nodecision
Don’t create winners and losers for thefinal decision
Building ConsensusVoting
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Avoid voting for the final Yes/Nodecision
Where voting works
Clarify the working proposition
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Building ConsensusVoting
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Avoid voting for the final Yes/Nodecision
Where voting works
Clarify the working proposition
Ranking importance (2-d matrix)
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Building ConsensusVoting
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Voting:Two-dimensional matrix
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Facilitation Summary
Facilitators allow for more productivemeetings and projects
Preparation and follow-up are critical fora successful facilitation
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Facilitation Summary
Manage the group to:
Stay on schedule
Move the line of inquiry forward
Build consensus
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