It is impossible to be part of an organization today and not attend meetings. Staff meetings, project meetings, planning and coordinating meetings—they all take time.

There has been a growing realization that we have to pay attention to the process elements of meetings, if we want them to be effective. With its focus on asking rather than telling, and listening to build consensus, facilitation is the new leadership ideal, the core competency everybody needs. Managers and supervisors are often asked to facilitate rather than instruct or manage their meetings and training Modules.

This workshop has been created to make core facilitation skills better understood and readily available for your organization. It represents materials and ideas that have been tested and refined over twenty years of active facilitation in all types of settings.

At the end of this workshop, participants should be able to:

• Distinguish facilitation from instruction and training.
• Identify the competencies linked to effective small group facilitation.
• Understand the difference between content and process.
• Identify the four stages of team development and ways to help teams through each stage.
• Use common process tools to make meetings easier and more productive.

Course Outline:

Module One:       

Course Overview

Module Two:       

Definitions

Module Three:    

What is a Facilitator?

Module Four:      

Types of Groups

Module Five:       

Content and Process

Module Six:        

Group Norms

Module Seven:             

Types of Thinking

Module Eight:              

Controversial Issues

Module Nine:                

Listening Skills

Module Ten:                 

Asking Questions

Module Eleven:            

Non-Verbal Messages

Module Twelve:            

Listening For Common Ground

Module Thirteen:

Common Facilitation Techniques

Module Fourteen:        

Effective Feedback

Module Fifteen:            

Facilitating an Open Discussion

Module Sixteen:           

Managing Divergent Perspectives

Module Seventeen:      

The Language of Facilitation

Module Eighteen:         

City Council

Module Nineteen:         

Agendas

Module Twenty:           

Dealing with Difficult Dynamics

Module Twenty-One:   

Interventions

Module Twenty-Two:   

Sustainable Agreements

Module Twenty-Three:

Stages of Team Development

Module Twenty-Four:  

Analysis Tools