The Effective Facilitator: Maximizing Involvement and Results

Become a meeting facilitator who brings out the best in individual and team performance.

Want superior facilitation experiences? Look no further. This is your go-to course to hone in on core facilitation skills to create positive and seamless flow.

Your role as a facilitator demands exceptional interpersonal skills, keen observation, insight and tact. Like a conductor, you must bring out the best in individual players and orchestrate successful group efforts. This course provides maximum practice, group interaction and feedback as you explore your role as a facilitator in a variety of group situations.

Who Should Attend

This program is a basic course for managers who must facilitate results in meetings, group work or project teams, managers who have groups under their direction, as well as managers who work as internal consultants.

How You Will Benefit

• Make your meetings more productive
• Spark and enhance critical synergy and creative energy
• Address the challenges of having multiple roles—leader, manager and facilitator
• Build consensus, handle conflict and keep meetings on track
• Confront behaviors more effectively
• Direct meetings that reduce frustration and produce results
• Gain the must-have skills you can apply to all group and meeting situations
• Keep content, process and structure on track to produce positive outcomes

What You Will Cover

• Facilitation and facilitating
• Identifying and developing the qualities and skills of a facilitator
• Leveraging your personal style and preferences to maximize engagement
• Developing essential skills for fostering effective relationships
• Listening and talking in ways that you will be heard
• Mastering the phases of the facilitation process
• Planning for effective interventions for conflict, anger and disagreement
• Developing visual practitioner skills
• Incorporating visual practitioner skills into all phases of facilitation
• Customizing your plan to facilitate

Outline

Learning Objectives

• Define and Describe Facilitation and the Role of Facilitator
• Develop Greater Awareness of Self and Leverage Strengths of Personal Style
• Demonstrate Facilitator Values and Attitudes
• Utilize Key Facilitation Skills of Observation, Diagnosis, Intervention and Assessment
• Develop Visual Practitioner Skills
• Plan for Successful Facilitation Experience

Exploring Facilitation

• Define Vocabulary of Facilitation Field
• Create and Use Guidelines for Group Interaction
• Identify the Qualities and Skills of a Facilitator
• Describe the Role of Facilitator
• Differentiate Among the Roles of Facilitator, Leader, Manager, and Consultant

Understanding Yourself

• Determine Your Own Style and Preferences
• Describe How Behavior Styles Can Affect Individual and Group Functioning
• Develop Strategies to Leverage Your Style and Preferences to Maximize Involvement
• Discuss Values and Attitudes of Facilitators

Essential Skills for Effective Relationships

• Discuss Values and Attitudes of Facilitators
• Address the Challenge of Multiple Roles—Leader, Manager, and Facilitator
• Listen at Deeper Levels
• Talk in Ways That You Will Be Heard
• Confront Behaviors Effectively

Setting the Stage for Success

• Describe the Four Phases of the Facilitation Process
• Explain Foundational Skills of Facilitation
• Distinguish Between Interpersonal Interventions and Process Interventions
• Use a Process Analysis Tool to Observe Forces That Are Out of Your Control and Plan Interventions

Developing Visual Practitioner Skills

• Explore the Field of Visual Practitioners
• Describe Different Types of Visual Practitioners
• Develop and Practice Drawing Skills: Containers, Icons, Figures, and Lettering
• Discuss the Nature and Importance of Listening Skills for Graphic Recording, Facilitating, and Coaching
• Plan to Incorporate Visual Practitioner Skills into All Phases of Facilitation
• List and Describe Methods, Techniques, and Resources for Visual Practitioners

Optimizing Results from Your Facilitation Work

• Organize the Essential Elements of Effective Facilitation Work
• Assess Your Own Skills
• Identify a Challenge in Your Work Setting and Ways to Overcome It
• Plan Your Next Steps in Professional Development