Facilitation skills - Getting the most out of meetings
- Do you want more than the usual old far-too-long presentations, the predictable postits-on-the-wall sessions, the lengthy Q+As dominated by a handful of people?
- Are you bored with people struggling to get a flipchart page to stay up, getting someone else to hold it – and then reading it out?
- Would you like to be sure that everyone can contribute – whether they are a dynamic, strong contributor or a shyer person with less self-confidence?
Meetings: from now on they’ll be a pleasure!
Some of the topics we’ll cover:
- Focused outcomes: what is the meeting for?
- Planning and preparing (from venue logistics and lighting to energisers, breakouts and the right seating plan)
- Effective agendas: plus getting started and keeping to time
- What makes a good and bad facilitator? (Includes cross-cultural issues)
- Solving the main problems: loss of focus (‘faffing’); difficult characters (power players, tricky customers, stars, critics, the quiet ones...)
- Using creative techniques:
- tools and mixed modalities
- timed discussions and presentations
- plenaries and breakouts
- involving all participants
- marketplace
- what’s the decision!
- Guiding note-taking and report production (including relevant styles)
“Tony is a magnificent facilitator!” (IW-Learn: UN learning initiative)
“Excellent. Clear, full of tips, facilitated well, and stimulated good discussion and exchange of ideas” (Lisa Hadeed)
(We can also provide consultancy and follow-up to the workshop, to help you put your plans into action.)
