Posts Tagged ‘group process’
Five Principles of a Solution-Focused Facilitation Process
. In my consulting I have made it a practice to discuss with clients my philosophical approach and the foundational theories that I use to in facilitation. I find this is often time well spent because it helps to create a shared space for our working relationship. One “shared space” discussion ...Read More
Facilitating Advisory Groups: Labels & Social Contracts
. When convening a group, two of the primary tasks of a facilitator are to clearly articulate the label that is applied to the group and to create an appropriate social contract between group members. The terms “workgroup,” “taskforce,” “coalition” and “advisory group” are labels that are often used loosely and ...Read More
Facilitating a Nonprofit Board Orientation
. I recently helped out on a board member orientation workshop for a nonprofit agency and thought I would share some perspectives on nonprofit board development while the ideas are fairly fresh on my mind. Over the last few months I have been occasionally posting what has become an informal series ...Read More
Facilitating Transitions
. One question that frequently comes up when potential clients contact me is “When do I need to bring in an outside facilitator?” If you ask three or ten different facilitators the same question one will get three or ten different answers. Early on in this blog I outlined some heuristics ...Read More
Facilitating for Government & Governance
. Over the course of my career I have studied with many talented facilitation mentors from both the organizational development world and the world of community organization. Studying and, more importantly, practicing in both worlds has helped me develop an understanding that there are two facilitation disciplines that require different sets ...Read More
Facilitating a Reflection Process
. This post focuses on reflection as a Facilitation Technique and is part of a series on facilitation skill-building. . Recently I was asked to facilitate a meeting that was designed to be a reflection on the first year of implementing a new strategic plan. The goal of the meeting was to think about ...Read More
Facilitating Community Engagement: Skills and Competencies
. I have been fortunate enough through my career to have sat as a member of community coalitions and advisory groups that were highly effective. In my Master's degree program I studied community engagement processes and been mentored by some very skilled community leaders. I have also had the fortune of ...Read More
Clarifying Facilitation Goals and Tools
. As I speak to potential clients, it is not too infrequent that I have to say, “When looking for a facilitation consultant it is important to separate and keep separate the concepts of facilitation goals and facilitation tools.” To unpack this concept, let me illustrate with a personal story. At ...Read More
Strategic Planning: Accountability Matters
. This is the final post in a four part series on creating the right context for strategic planning. In the first post I outlined the need to match strategic planning process to your organizational culture. In the second post discussed the need to have a clear and focused change or ...Read More
Matching Facilitation and Process with Outcomes
. There is an old truism that states, “If the only tool that you have in your toolbox is a hammer then everything starts looking like a nail.” In my experience that least productive meetings are those that apply a hammer to every group process. The typical hammer process is linear. ...Read More