by Facilitation Expert | Nov 4, 2024 | Communication Skills, Facilitation Skills, Leadership Skills, Managing Conflict, Meeting Structure
Imagine a Super Bowl without neutral referees or a courtroom without impartial judges. Similarly, envision a high-stakes meeting, aimed at driving strategic decisions and achieving consensus, without neutral facilitation led by a neutral facilitator. The parallels are clear—without neutrality, the entire process is at risk.
For business professionals leading complex, multi-stakeholder meetings, neutrality is the foundation of effective facilitation. In this article, we’ll explore the value of neutral facilitation, its core principles, and how it can transform your meetings. This isn’t just theory; these practices can be immediately applied to improve meeting dynamics, drive clarity, and lead to actionable results. Whether you’re a seasoned executive or a project lead, embracing neutral facilitation will enhance your ability to lead productive, purpose-driven discussions.
The Critical Role of Neutral Facilitation in Business Meetings
Neutral Facilitation = No Judgments
At its heart, neutral facilitation is about creating an environment where all participants feel heard, respected, and engaged. It converts subjective perspectives into objective facts, allowing teams to make decisions based on shared understanding rather than individual bias. Neutrality not only promotes trust but also increases participation, ensuring that the best ideas emerge from a balanced discussion.
In complex settings—where decisions affect multiple stakeholders, departments, or even entire markets—neutral facilitation becomes essential. By staying neutral, facilitators maintain focus on the process rather than the outcome, allowing participants to align around the best path forward collaboratively.
What Does Neutral Facilitation Look Like?
The essence of neutrality lies in non-judgment and non-partisanship. This means that as a facilitator, you should:
- Encourage All Viewpoints: Neutrality requires that you give equal weight to all perspectives, supporting an inclusive environment where diverse opinions drive richer discussions.
- Focus on Process, Not Content: Effective facilitators guide participants through the process without steering the content. This keeps the facilitator out of the debate, preserving their role as an unbiased leader.
- Avoid Offering Personal Opinions: Participants rely on the facilitator to maintain objectivity. Sharing your views, even subtly, can undermine trust and sway the conversation.
- Be Mindful of Non-Verbal Cues: Neutrality isn’t just verbal. Body language, tone, and even facial expressions can inadvertently reveal a bias. Aim for a balanced tone that conveys acceptance and openness.
Applying Neutrality Across Different Contexts
Neutrality as a principle spans various fields, each lending a unique perspective on its meaning. In business facilitation, neutrality parallels some of the following areas:
- Mediation and Arbitration: Like an arbitrator, facilitators serve as objective guides, ensuring all sides have a fair opportunity to express their views without influencing the decision.
- Balanced Chemistry (pH): Just as neutral substances maintain a pH of 7, facilitators maintain equilibrium, allowing the meeting to flow naturally without forcing outcomes.
- Conflict Zones and Nonpartisanship: In high-stakes settings, neutrality serves as a stabilizing force, ensuring no one perspective dominates over another.
The Risks of Non-Neutral Facilitation
Neutrality isn’t just a “nice-to-have”; it’s essential. For instance, federal mediators in the U.S. face strict standards of neutrality, and any bias can have serious repercussions. In a business context, a lack of neutrality risks polarizing participants, diminishing trust, and reducing engagement.
Consider the experience of an alumnus who facilitated sessions with the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Even the highest-ranking officials left rank and title at the door to engage freely in these sessions, trusting the facilitator’s neutrality as the anchor of productive dialogue.
How to Remain Neutral: Practical Techniques for Facilitators
- Keep Language Inclusive: Use “we” instead of “I” to reinforce collective ownership. This simple shift minimizes ego-driven conversations and encourages team alignment.
- Depersonalize Content: Frame ideas in terms of “their” or “your” work instead of claiming ownership. This maintains focus on the participants’ contributions and fosters a collaborative atmosphere.
- Use Questions to Guide: Instead of stating, “I think we should…,” reframe it as, “What if we…?” This subtle shift maintains the facilitator’s neutrality and empowers participants to respond or contribute.
- Actively Encourage Participation: Neutrality allows quieter voices to contribute without fear of judgment. Proactively invite input from all participants, and use our “tips” for securing input from ‘quiet people’.
- Signal Neutrality from the Start: At the beginning of the session, clearly state your role as a neutral facilitator and invite participants to help maintain this balance. This sets expectations and gives permission for participants to respectfully remind you if neutrality slips.
Managing Challenges to Neutrality
Avoid Prison with Neutral Facilitation
Even the most experienced facilitators may encounter moments where neutrality feels compromised. When this happens, pause the meeting, take a break, and recalibrate. Transparently communicating the commitment to neutrality reinforces trust. If necessary, empower the group to keep you accountable, signaling your dedication to impartiality and the process.
Neutral Facilitation for Project Managers and Product Owners
While managers or owners may ultimately need to render a decision, they can still facilitate neutrally up to that point. Neutral facilitation helps build consensus, empowers teams, and ensures decisions are grounded in collective insights. As a meeting leader, you can:
- Passionately Champion the Method, Not the Content: Stay invested in the process, driving enthusiasm around collaboration without aligning with a particular outcome.
- Engage Expertise in Advance: Share essential information before the session, enabling participants to form opinions based on knowledge, not influence.
- Present Ideas as Questions: Guide the conversation by asking for feedback on options rather than prescribing solutions.
Ultimately, neutrality is a discipline. It may require stepping back from personal convictions, but in return, it provides a foundation of trust, inclusivity, and high-quality decision-making.
Unlocking the Power of Neutral Facilitation
For any leader responsible for guiding teams, mastering neutral facilitation is transformative. When facilitators remain neutral, participants feel empowered to contribute, the group aligns around shared objectives, and the potential for innovative, collaborative solutions soars. Whether you’re facilitating a small team meeting or a large cross-functional session, neutral facilitation enhances your ability to lead with clarity and confidence.
Are you ready to elevate your facilitation skills and unlock the full potential of your meetings?
If you’re ready to take your meeting leadership skills to the next level, consider a structured training program in neutral facilitation. With targeted curriculum and practical techniques, you’ll gain the expertise to guide complex, multi-stakeholder conversations with ease, ensuring every meeting fulfills its purpose and drives actionable outcomes.
Transforming Meetings into Productive Powerhouses: Mastering Meeting Leadership, Facilitation, and Design
We get it. Few things are as frustrating as a meeting that drags on without clear outcomes, only to end with the promise of yet another meeting. That’s why we’re passionate about empowering professionals to lead meetings and workshops that deliver impactful, actionable results—sessions that people look forward to attending because they know their time will be used wisely and productively.
In the business world, where schedules are packed and demands are high, finding the right training to elevate meeting skills can be challenging. Yet, without this foundational instruction, people often feel less confident in both the purpose and effectiveness of their sessions. That’s why we’ve created a comprehensive curriculum based on proven best practices, meeting tools, and design criteria, all developed over more than 15,000 hours of training. Our approach has helped over 4,000 professionals worldwide become highly effective meeting leaders and facilitators, both in person and virtually.
Why Professional Facilitation Becomes More Compelling Every Day
- Essential Skill for Real-World Challenges: In nearly every facilitated session, unresolved conflicts or differing perspectives can arise, leading to slow decision-making or disengagement. Trainees recognize that skillfully handling these situations allows them to maintain momentum and prevent derailment.
- Foundational to Consensus-Driven Outcomes: Facilitators trained in consensus-building and conflict-resolution techniques are better equipped to create a *zero-distance* mindset between participants, fostering collaborative ownership of solutions. This speaks directly to achieving high-quality, collective decisions rather than compromises.
- Versatile Application Across Settings: The techniques learned in conflict resolution and consensus-building apply to various environments, from project management meetings to innovation workshops, planning sessions, and team alignment efforts. Candidates see immediate applicability across different facilitation settings.
Integrating Team Leadership, Facilitation, and Meeting Design Skills
Meetings are a significant investment of time and resources. When they’re unproductive, they drain morale, reduce efficiency, and miss opportunities for team growth and strategic advancement. And yet, despite how common meetings are, structured training on how to lead them effectively remains rare. Our curriculum focuses on three essential areas—WHY, WHAT, and HOW—to develop behavioral skills that transform meetings into highly productive and valuable experiences.
1. WHY — Leadership Training for a Clear Vision:
Meeting success starts with clarity of purpose. Effective meeting leadership ensures we begin with the end in mind: “Why are we meeting? What does “DONE” look like?” With this clear line of sight, facilitators guide the group confidently toward tangible results. Even the best facilitators can stumble without a well-defined goal, while a meeting leader with a clear objective can lead a productive session even in challenging circumstances.
2. WHAT — Facilitation Skills to Drive Effective Actions:
Once the purpose is clear, facilitation skills come into play. Facilitation isn’t just about guiding conversation; it’s about establishing the behaviors and interactions that make the session productive. Many of us have developed unproductive meeting habits over time. Changing these behaviors requires practice, immersion, and a structured approach that goes beyond passive learning. Our curriculum emphasizes active participation and practice, helping facilitators build effective habits and instill a collaborative mindset among participants.
3. HOW — Meeting Design to Chart a Path from Start to Finish:
With the purpose and facilitation skills in place, meeting leaders need a roadmap: “How will we achieve our goals?” Designing an agenda and guiding participants from the introduction to the final wrap-up demands preparation. While there’s often more than one ‘right’ way to design a meeting, there is one clear pitfall—a lack of planning. Our training emphasizes flexible but structured approaches to meeting design that enable leaders to navigate discussions smoothly and confidently, ensuring each session reaches its full potential.
Challenge for You
How can you foster a truly collaborative environment that makes each participant feel their voice matters, especially when stakes and emotions are high?
Build Immediate Results, Create Long-Lasting Impact
Our hands-on approach to meeting leadership, facilitation, and design offers immediate improvements in the productivity and effectiveness of your meetings. By focusing on purpose-driven agendas, engaging facilitation, and clear processes, we empower professionals to create meetings that yield results, enhance decision quality, and foster meaningful participation.
Are you ready to transform your meetings into opportunities for impactful decision-making and innovative problem-solving? Explore our curriculum and discover how structured training in meeting leadership and facilitation can elevate your team’s potential and enhance every session’s effectiveness.
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Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools, methods, and activities daily during the week. Therefore, while some call this immersion, we call it the road to building high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
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by Facilitation Expert | Oct 2, 2024 | Communication Skills, Leadership Skills, Meeting Structure, Meeting Tools
For project managers and product owners overseeing multi-million-dollar projects, the ability to facilitate impactful meetings with rhetorical precision and clarity is critical.
The role of facilitators has evolved into meeting designers, responsible not only for guiding discussions but for crafting structured, creative, and effective experiences. By understanding the nuances of language, integrating inclusive rhetoric, and leveraging structured decision-making techniques such as the Bookend Method, facilitators can foster better collaboration, sharper decision-making, and ultimately, higher quality outcomes.
This article integrates three key insights—shifting from methodologist to meeting designer, the importance of pluralistic rhetoric, and the strategic application of the Bookend Method—to help strategists, directors, project leaders, and product owners improve their facilitation skills and outcomes.
Part 1: Methodologist or Meeting Designer? A Rhetorical Shift in Facilitation
As business leaders, the terminology we use to describe our role in meetings can significantly influence the perception and effectiveness of our facilitation. Traditionally seen as methodologists—experts in processes and techniques—we must now embrace the role of meeting designers, taking on responsibility for the architecture of the meeting and the creative tools used to engage participants.
The shift from methodologist to meeting designer reflects the need for facilitators to create experiences that inspire creativity, foster collaboration, and yield actionable outcomes. A methodologist may focus on processes, but a meeting designer crafts the entire experience, aligning the meeting’s objectives with participants’ abilities to achieve them.
The Role of a Meeting Designer
- Clarifying the Meeting’s Objective: Meeting designers focus on what needs to be achieved during the session. Whether it’s a decision, a problem solved, or consensus reached, the goal must be clear and relatable. Use accessible language, such as replacing “deliverable” with “goal,” to ensure everyone understands the meeting’s purpose.
- Designing Around Participants: A successful meeting design takes into account the expertise, personalities, and dynamics of the participants. Tools and activities should be selected to match the group’s needs, maximizing productivity and engagement.
- Creativity and Breakthroughs: Beyond routine tasks, a well-designed meeting allows room for creative problem-solving and innovation. Methods like TO-WS Analysis or Real-Win-Worth introduce a level of playfulness and human-centered design that pushes participants beyond conventional thought patterns.
- Tried and Proven Tools: Use tried and proven tools such as DQ Spider, Power Balls, and Perceptual Mapping. For extra reach, get out of your comfort zone and experiment with the Creativity tool, Coat of Arms method, and many more tools such as the ones found here, at Facilitation Best Practices.
Part 2: Rhetorical Precision—Moving from “I” to “We”
Rhetoric is a powerful tool in facilitation, often determining whether a meeting leads to consensus or confusion. A critical first step for facilitators seeking to improve their effectiveness is to eliminate the excessive use of the word “I.” Frequent use of “I” shifts the focus from the participants to the facilitator, hindering group ownership and making the facilitator the perceived sole contributor to meeting outcomes.
The goal of any effective facilitator is to guide participants toward shared ownership of the deliverable. When “I” dominates the language, the perception is that the facilitator owns the deliverable, and participants become disengaged. In contrast, replacing “I” with “we” or “us” transforms the conversation into a collective effort.
Key Examples of Shifting from “I” to “We”
- Facilitators often fall into the trap of making statements such as:
– “I believe…” should become “Do we believe…” to engage the entire group.
– “I need your input…” must shift to “We need everyone’s input…” to emphasize collaboration.
– “I see…” can transform into “Do we all see that…” ensuring collective understanding.
The Illness of “I” vs. the Wellness of “We” Which is preferred?
A simple analogy explains the danger of overusing “I”: think of it as creating “illness,” an isolation of focus on the facilitator. On the other hand, using “we” promotes “wellness,” a group-focused approach that encourages unity. The transformation from “I” to “we” nurtures an inclusive culture where participants feel responsible for the outcomes.
Additionally, facilitators should be mindful of overusing “Thank you.” While polite, repeatedly thanking participants can undermine the perception that the deliverable is a collective product. Excessive gratitude may signal that the facilitator feels as though the participants are doing the facilitator a favor, rather than contributing to a shared goal.
Part 3: Enhancing Flexibility with Creativity and Alternative Communication
While rhetorical precision is critical to guiding discussions, facilitators can also enhance meeting design by incorporating alternative forms of communication. Visuals, symbols, and non-verbal cues can often convey meaning more effectively than words alone.
Forms of Alternative Communication
- Icons and Symbols: Universal symbols (e.g., STOP signs) communicate meaning quickly and effectively across language barriers.
- Illustrations: Visuals such as sketches and diagrams can clarify complex ideas that might be difficult to express verbally.
- Non-verbal Cues: Body language—such as nodding, leaning in, or crossing arms—provides additional insight into participants’ engagement and agreement.
Using multiple forms of communication allows facilitators to reach a broader audience, ensuring that meaning is conveyed clearly and efficiently, regardless of participants’ backgrounds or linguistic capabilities.
Part 4: Structured Problem-Solving Techniques
Meetings focused on problem-solving require a structured approach, especially when addressing complex challenges such as burnout in an IT department or improving product features. The process starts by identifying the purpose and gradually breaking down the problem into solvable parts.
Framework for Problem-Solving
- Purpose: Define the purpose of the meeting clearly. For instance, if the goal is to address IT burnout, facilitators must first define the purpose of the IT service department.
- Current Situation: Understand and describe the current state. For burnout, this might include identifying symptoms such as reduced productivity, tardiness, or employee dissatisfaction.
- Optimal Situation: Envision the ideal state. How should the IT department function once the problem is resolved?
- Symptoms and Causes: Separate symptoms (like tardiness) from root causes (such as understaffing). This distinction ensures that the group focuses on solving the underlying issues rather than just treating symptoms.
Mitigation Strategies
Once causes are identified, facilitators use rhetorical precision to guide participants through developing solutions—one cause at a time. For instance, addressing fatigue might involve both personal actions (e.g., better sleep habits) and organizational changes (e.g., hiring more staff or improving ergonomics).
Part 5: The Bookend Method of Rhetorical Precision—A Framework for Effective Prioritization
In managing multi-million-dollar projects, facilitators must often guide groups through complex prioritization processes. Traditional methods, which tend to categorize priorities as high, medium, or low, often fall short because they get stuck on middle-ground discussions. This wastes time and leads to diluted decisions. The Bookend Method offers an effective alternative by concentrating on the extremes, simplifying decision-making, and fostering group consensus.
How the Bookend Method Works to Support Rhetorical Precision
1. Identify the Extremes: The facilitator first asks the group to identify the most important and least important items. These extremes become the “bookends” of the discussion.
2. Work Toward the Middle: Once the extremes are identified, the group alternates between selecting the next most important and least important items. This process continues until two-thirds of the list is categorized.
3. Address the Middle: For the remaining items, the facilitator asks whether categorizing them as moderate would cause any concerns. If no strong objections are raised, they are categorized as moderate, avoiding unnecessary debates.
This method effectively prevents discussions from getting bogged down in gray areas and ensures that the most critical items are given appropriate focus. Observe how many groups spend the most amount of time on the least important factors. The Power Ball tool helps to make the results visually compelling.
The Pitfalls of Traditional Prioritization
Traditional approaches to prioritization often involve creating lists and asking participants to rank items as high, medium, or low priority. However, this leads to most items being rated as “high,” diluting the overall value of the exercise. Rhetorical precision demanded by the Bookend Method starts with the extremes, prevents irrelevant arguments, and ensures clearer prioritization.
Additionally, the Bookend Method supports consistency and precision in language. For example, facilitators should ask “Which is the most important?” rather than “Which are the most important?” to keep discussions focused. Rhetorical precision in language helps ensure clarity and prevents the conversation from veering off track.
Part 6: Enhancing Decision-Making with Flexibility and Numeric Alternatives
Liminal facilitation using the Bookend Method encourages flexibility. In some cases, facilitators may need more granular distinctions between priorities. For these situations, a six-level ranking system may be more appropriate:
1. Low Importance
2. Moderately Low Importance
3. Moderate Importance
4. Moderately High Importance
5. High Importance
6. Null (Will not have)
This approach is especially useful in complex scenarios, such as when project stakeholders need to prioritize dozens of potential features for a new product release.
Use Cases and Applications
The Bookend Method is not limited to prioritizing tasks. It can be adapted to a variety of facilitation scenarios, such as:
- Comparing Scenarios: Ask, “Which scenario is most similar to our ideal outcome?” and “Which is least similar?” Repeat until only a few remain in the middle.
- Strengths and Weaknesses: In team-building discussions, ask, “What is your greatest strength?” and “What is your greatest weakness?” Apply the method until the middle ground is clear.
Your flexibility makes it suitable for a wide range of discussions, ensuring that decision-making is both efficient and effective.
Part 7: Conclusion—Using Rhetorical Precision to Lead
Rhetorical precision is a vital tool for executives, directors, project managers, and product owners who must guide teams through complex decisions in high-stakes environments. This liminal role transcends traditional facilitation, requiring a structured approach, rhetorical precision, and creative problem-solving tools. By shifting from “I” to “we,” structuring decision-making with proven frameworks, and employing alternative communication methods, facilitators can create impactful, efficient meetings.
The next time you plan a meeting, consider how your language, tools, and design influence the outcome. Are you empowering the group to own the results? Are you using the right structures to streamline decision-making? By adopting the mindset of a meeting designer, you can lead more effective, focused, and successful meetings and workshops, ensuring that you and your team stay focused on what truly matters.
In a world where everyone can engage in decisions that affect them
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Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools and methods daily during the week. While some call this immersion, we call it the road that yields high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Facilitation Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including full agendas, break timers, forms, and templates. Also, take a moment to SHARE this article with others.
To Help You Unlock Your Facilitation Potential: Experience Results-Driven Training for Maximum Impact
#facilitationtraining #meeting design
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by Facilitation Expert | Sep 10, 2024 | Meeting Structure
When it comes to facilitating business meetings, there are 10 core elements that help ensure a creative, productive, and engaging experience.
Facilitating Business Meetings
1. How to keep meetings on track and productive
Facilitators frequently seek guidance on how to manage time effectively, maintain focus, and prevent meetings from becoming unproductive or wandering off-topic. Some solutions include:
- Setting clear agendas and sticking to them (most of the time).
- Managing discussions to ensure balanced participation without derailing the meeting deliverables.
- Avoiding unnecessary tangents and time-wasting activities.
2. How to engage participants and encourage collaboration
Many facilitators want to know how to engage attendees actively. Some solutions include:
- Ensuring every participant has a voice and feels involved.
- Promoting open communication, especially in diverse and cross-functional teams.
- Facilitating meaningful collaboration by using structured techniques for brainstorming (listing activity), prioritizing (e.g., PowerBalls), or decision-making (first, deselect).
3. Techniques for handling difficult participants or situations
Facilitators often face challenges managing dominant personalities, disengaged participants, or conflict during meetings. Links to solutions are provided to the three challenges before, answering common questions such as:
4. Best practices for virtual or hybrid meetings
With the rise of remote work, facilitators are increasingly concerned about the nuances of virtual or hybrid meetings. Key areas of interest when facilitating business meetings online are covered in detail with articles including:
5. Decision-making processes in meetings
Facilitators need tools to guide teams toward consensus-driven decisions without falling into the trap of groupthink or rushing the process. Proven solutions are linked to the following inquiries:
- Methods for structuring decision-making (e.g., multi-voting, consensus-building techniques).
- How to ensure alignment without sacrificing creativity.
- Handling indecision or prolonged debate in a time-constrained environment.
6. How to prepare for facilitating business meetings
Well-prepared facilitators are usually successful. Their preparatory activities include:
- Detailing the basic agenda steps should be taken before the meeting along with appropriate tools.
- Structuring the session through a focused and actionable agenda.
- Having a backup plan—anticipating and addressing potential roadblocks.
7. Post-meeting follow-up and accountability
Meeting outputs are arguably more important than the meeting itself. Make it clear with a thorough review and wrap . . .
- Decisions made during the session lead to follow-up actions.
- To carefully document outputs, assign responsibilities, and explain how progress will be tracked.
- Obtain feedback on how to improve future sessions and your performance.
8. How to foster creativity and innovation in meetings
Problem-solving and strategic planning sessions need space for creativity. Be sure to . . .
- Design meetings that encourage out-of-the-box thinking.
- Create a safe space for experimenting with ideas without fear of failure or reprisal.
- Balance your time and structure with flexibility to allow creative freedom.
9. How to handle diverse opinions and build consensus
To stimulate innovation, decision-making must reflect diverse perspectives, therefore:
- Encourage constructive disagreement while maintaining respect.
- Build consensus without forcing compromise.
- Demonstrate the amount of alignment using participants’ goals and objectives.
10. How to adapt facilitation techniques to different cultures or team dynamics:
As teams become more global and culturally diverse, know how to adjust:
- Techniques for understanding different communication styles or cultural approaches to reaching an agreement.
- Stress inclusivity and respect across diverse teams.
- Adapting your method to suit different organizational cultures or team dynamics.
Crafting a Dynamic Approach to Facilitating Business Meetings
Balancing Business Meetings
Balancing and facilitating business meetings that adapt to the group dynamics while ensuring both alignment and creativity requires a combination of thoughtful preparation, flexible execution, and a commitment to fostering both structure and freedom. Here’s how you can build such an approach:
1. Understand the Meeting Context and Participants
You will better understand the meeting’s purpose, the participants involved, and the specific dynamics at play by conversing with participants in advance. Learn their perspective and more about them:
- Deliverables: Secure their definition of what the meeting needs to achieve. What does DONE look like? The nature of the deliverables dictates the type of meeting approach.
- Participants: More fully understand the personalities, cultural backgrounds, and work styles of your participants. Knowing who is in the session helps tailor communication and optimize the tools you use.
- Organizational Culture: Familiarize yourself with the organizational and team cultures. Some teams are more hierarchical, while others value consensus and collaboration. Adapt your approach to align with these norms while guiding the group toward acceptable deliverables.
2. Establish Clear Deliverables and Ground Rules
Always start with the “end in mind.” To balance alignment and creativity, ensure everyone knows the boundaries within which they can freely operate. This means controlling the structure and ground rules upfront:
- Agenda and Deliverable: Share a clear agenda that outlines the purpose of the meeting and what success looks like. If everyone understands the deliverable, alignment becomes easier.
- Ground Rules: Define ground rules that promote respect, participation, and open communication. For example, encourage active listening and interrupt the interrupters, creating a safe space for creative ideas.
- Flexibility in Process: Let participants know that creativity and divergent thinking are welcomed, especially when listing ideas in brainstorming and problem-solving sessions.
3. Use Adaptive Techniques when Facilitating Business Meetings
Being adaptive means using facilitation methods that suit the flow of the conversation and the needs of the participants in real time. A combination of techniques can help foster creativity while ensuring alignment:
- Divergence and Convergence: Start with divergent techniques (such as brainstorming or mind mapping) to encourage free-flowing ideas. Then, have your analysis method pre-determined. For example, if prioritizing are you going to use PowerBalls, Decision-Matrix, Perceptual Map, etc? The tools help the team to deselect, narrow the focus, and align on the best options.
- Check for Alignment: Consistently summarize key points to ensure everyone will support what has been built. Their support is implied, even if it is not their favorite.
- Breakout Discussions: Breakout discussions and smaller group exercises foster creativity by allowing participants to explore ideas deeply before aligning in a common direction.
- Use Structured Innovation Tools: Techniques like the “Six Thinking Hats,” Changing Perspectives, and SCAMPER foster creative thinking within a structured framework. These tools allow creative exploration while keeping focus on the meeting’s deliverable.
4. Be Attentive to Group Dynamics
Adapt to the energy and flow of the meeting by guiding the group dynamics:
- Facilitate Participation: Ensure that everyone contributes by enabling quieter participants and managing dominant voices. A tool such as the “round robin” technique provides each participant an opportunity to speak. Your active listening skills ensure that they are heard.
- Manage Conflict Constructively: When disagreements arise, frame them as opportunities for learning. “Make their thinking visible” allows participants to explore divergent opinions without derailing the meeting.
- Use Your Intuition: Be sensitive to body language, tone, and energy levels. If the group seems fatigued or disengaged, introduce a quick energizer or break. If creativity is dwindling, inject a fresh exercise to spark new thinking.
5. Encourage Psychological Safety
In addition to physical safety (e.g., fire exits) ensure psychological safety. Participants need to feel comfortable sharing ideas without fear of judgment or reprisal:
- Encourage Open Dialogue: Let participants know that all ideas are welcome, especially unconventional ones. Reiterate that no idea is too “out there” and that all contributions will be treated with respect.
- Create a Judgment-Free Zone: Use techniques like “yes, and” (from improvisational theater) that build on ideas rather than shutting them down with “yes, but”. Integral thinking helps foster creativity while maintaining a sense of progress toward alignment.
6. Balance Structure and Flexibility
Striking the right balance between structure and flexibility is key to ensuring alignment without stifling creativity. Therefore, consider:
- Guided Freedom: Provide participants with structured prompts or exercises that guide creativity toward the deliverables. For example, use targeted questions to steer ideation within specific constraints (e.g., “How might we solve this problem with zero additional budget?”).
- Rhetorical Control: Use open-ended questions that allow for a range of responses such as “To what extent _______ ? and “What is the unit of measurement of _______ ?”
7. Encourage Post-Meeting Reflection and Follow-Up
Your meeting’s impact doesn’t end when the participants leave the room. Encouraging post-meeting reflection to ensure ownership and accountability:
- Recap Key Decisions and Action Items: At the end of the meeting, clearly summarize decisions made, and assign next steps with due dates to foster accountability.
- Communications: After each session get the group to agree on what they will others they accomplished. You want to ensure that everyone sounds like they were in the same meeting together!
- Continuous Improvement: After each meeting, obtain feedback on what went well and what could be improved. Have participants assess the effectiveness of the meeting and the facilitator. Use an anonymous method to secure solid, personal criticism. Use this feedback to adjust your style and technique for future meetings.
8. Foster a Culture of Alignment and Innovation
Ultimately, facilitating meetings that balance alignment and creativity is easier when it’s part of the broader organizational culture. Encourage leaders to:
- Promote Autonomy and Mastery: When participants feel empowered to take ownership of their contributions, creativity flourishes. Aligning on shared goals helps foster both autonomy and cohesion.
- Model Collaborative Leadership: Leaders should set an example by promoting collaboration, open dialogue, and respect for diverse perspectives. When these behaviors are encouraged, meetings naturally become more aligned and innovative.
_____
Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools and methods daily during the week. While some call this immersion, we call it the road that yields high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Facilitation Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including full agendas, break timers, forms, and templates. Also, take a moment to SHARE this article with others.
To Help You Unlock Your Facilitation Potential: Experience Results-Driven Training for Maximum Impact
#facilitationtraining #meeting design
______
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by Facilitation Expert | Apr 12, 2024 | Analysis Methods, Decision Making, Meeting Agendas, Meeting Structure, Planning Approach, Prioritizing, Problem Solving, Scrum Events
Even lousy movies and novels have three components: a beginning, a middle, and an end. A meeting participant (or ceremony, event, session, or workshop) should expect every session they attend to provide at least ten clear outputs. Seven clear results from the Introduction and three outputs from the Wrap.
Below is a checklist of the ten outputs a meeting participant should receive followed by detailed support for each.
Meeting Participant Checklist
1. Roles and Impact
- Facilitators should emphasize their own content neutrality and lack of bias.
- The facilitator should stress that participants are all equal (put on your sweaters to hide rank and leave your egos and titles in the hallway)
- The meeting impact should be quantified as to why the meeting is important, typically in currency (e.g., $,$$$,$$$.$$) and/or FTP (Full-time People)
2. Meeting Purpose
- An articulate statement of the Meeting Purpose (50 words or less).
- If the leader is unable to provide a clear statement of the meeting’s purpose, they are probably not ready to lead the meeting.
3. Situational Scope
- An articulate statement of the Meeting Scope.
- This may have been combined in the Purpose statement if the scope is rather simple or concrete such as geographical.
- However, if the scope is complex as with many IoT (Internet of Things) products and services, then it should be separate.
- Keep in mind that scope creep kills projects and products.
- And scope creep begins in meetings.
4. Meeting Deliverables (Objectives)
- A narrative statement, illustration, or sample that provides a clear understanding of the output from the session.
- Agilists refer to deliverables as DONE or what DONE looks like.
- Optimally, the leader provides an example from a surrogate product, project, or template.
5. Administrivia (Housekeeping)
- Covers contextual concerns, not related to the content of the deliverable.
- Examples include:
- Fire exits and safety evacuation procedures
- Bathroom locations and frequency of breaks
- Food and beverage provisions (if any)
- They might include icebreakers here, or insert as a step eight
6. Basic Agenda
- In the Launch or Introduction, the leader should explain each of the agenda steps, focusing on:
- What does the deliverable or DONE look like for each step?
- Why the steps are provided in the sequence shown?
- How each step relates to completing the deliverable and getting DONE.
- While explaining they should prepare you for the timing and duration of breaks, lunch, or other non-meeting issues that could affect timing.
- Optimally, the leader provides a metaphor or analogy explaining the relationship of the steps. You know that a picture is worth a thousand words. Well, a metaphor is worth a thousand pictures (and a story is worth a thousand metaphors).
7. Ground Rules
- Ground rules should be provided if you want to get more done, faster.
- “Be Here Now” because disabling electronic leashes reduces distractions.
- “Silence is Agreement” applies in for-profit situations. If you are being paid to attend the meeting, speaking up is not an opportunity, it is an obligation.
- “Make Your Thinking Visible” appropriately requests the cause behind the symptom, forcing all of us to provide evidence or objective proof of our claims.
- See “Ground Rules and Ideation Rules for Optimal Group Behavior in Meetings” for a list of others you may want to request as a participant.
- Unless icebreakers are inserted here, this step should conclude the Introduction.
8. (Wrap) Review and Confirmation of the Meeting Output (Deliverable)
- You are entitled to a complete review of the agreed-upon output from the meeting.
- During the review, take the following questions into account:
- What questions or issues of clarity do you have?
- What is missing that may be critical, important, or substantive?
- Even though the output (e.g., a decision) may not be your favorite, is the output robust enough that you will support it?
- If not, what needs to be removed or modified?
9. Open Issues (Parking Lot or Refrigerator)
- You are entitled to a complete review of the agreed-upon output from the session.
- Make sure you understand the Open Issue because frequently Open Issues are ‘thrown’ into the Parking Lot and may be somewhat cryptic.
- Be prepared to volunteer to take responsibility to report back to the group on the status of the Open Issue (you are not necessarily the ‘doer’).
10. Guardian of Change (Communications Plan)
- Make sure the leader takes a few minutes to build agreement around what the participants are going to tell others was accomplished during the session.
- Typically, the message to your superior might be different than the message to other stakeholders such as employees or contractors.
- Try to ensure that it sounds like all the participants were in the same meeting together.
Here’s a thumbnail of our approach to Structured Note Taking many find useful. Click HERE to download the full-size PDF.
Structured Note Taking
MIDDLE STEPS OF THE AGENDA
Here are the Basic Agendas for over 30 types of deliverables. Alumni can use their passwords to access the annotated versions in a .DOCX format, making them easy to modify. The annotated agendas include the following for EACH agenda step:
- Purpose of the agenda step
- Estimated time
- PROCEDURE or method including recommended tools and the questions to ask
- Visual or multi-media support suggested
- Output from the agenda step (Deliverable)
- Script for concluding the step, including the suggestion of a metaphor
PLANNING AGENDAS
Planning [From Strategic to Team]
- Launch
- Mission (WHY are we here?)
- Values (WHO are we?)
- Vision (WHERE are we going? How do we know if we got there or not?)
- Success Measures (WHAT are our measurements of progress?)
- Current Situation (WHERE are we now? Quantitative TO-WS Analysis)
- Actions (WHAT should we do?—from strategy through tasks)
- Alignment (Is this the right stuff to do?)
- Roles and Responsibilities (WHO does WHAT, by WHEN?)
- Guardian of Change (WHAT should we tell our stakeholders?)
- Review and Wrap
Project Planning
- INTRODUCTION
- CURRENT SITUATION
- MEASURES OF SUCCESS
- PROJECT STRATEGY
- PROJECT TASKS
- ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
- DEPENDENCY DIAGRAM
- NEXT STEPS
- WRAP & DISMISS
Riffs and Variations
- ASSUMPTIONS, CONSTRAINTS, and DEPENDENCIES
- BUDGET, TIMELINE, AND RESOURCE ALIGNMENT
- BUSINESS CASE OR PURPOSE
- COMMUNICATIONS PLAN and TOUCH POINTS
- CORRECTIVE ACTIONS
- DETAILED WORK BREAKDOWN STRUCTURE
- FLEXIBILITY MATRIX
- FRAMING DIAGRAM (eg, IS NOT/ IS)
- ISSUE ESCALATION PROCEDURE
- OPEN ISSUES MANAGEMENT
- PHASE GATES REVIEWS, MILESTONES, OR DECISION POINTS
- RISK ASSESSMENT AND GUIDELINES
- STAKEHOLDERS DESCRIPTIONS
Sprint Planning
- Launch
- Potential Sprint Goal
- Product Backlog Sizing
- Capacity Planning
- Backlog Selection
- Backlog Tasking
- Final Sprint Goal
- Review and Wrap
Sprint Review
- Launch
- Sprint Goal Reflection
- Sprint Reflection Demonstration
- “DONE”
- Acceptance
- Revisions
- Next Steps
- Review and Wrap
Sprint Retrospective
- Launch
- WHAT (Facts, Learnings)
- SO WHAT (Implications, Insight)
- NOW WHAT (Recommendations, Kaizen Improvements)
- Testing
- Review and Wrap
Sprint Riffs and Variations
- Action Conversion
- Categorizing
- Context Diagram
- Framing
- Guardian of Change
- Prioritization Tools
- Purpose Tool
- Requirements Gathering
- Root Cause Analysis
- Speedboat
- Splitting Stories
- TO-WS Lite
- User Story and Acceptance Criteria
- Temporal Shift
Problem-solving
- Launch
- Definition of the Object or Situation (problem state)
- Purpose of the Object or Situation (ideal state)
- Symptoms (externally identifiable factors)
- Causes
- Actions (for each cause):
-
- Preventions
- Cures
- Us
- Them
Project Risk Assessment
- Launch
- External Risk
- Internal Risk
- Hybrid Risk
- Consensual Review
- Prioritization
- Review and Wrap
Scenario Planning
- Launch
- Sunny Skies
- Stormy Skies
- Partly Sunny Skies
- Partly Cloudy Skies
- Probably Skies
- Ranges of Probability
- Targets and Thresholds
- Review and Wrap
Strategy Mapping
- Launch
- Financial Perspective
- Customer Perspective
- Internal Perspective
- Growth Perspective
- Cultural Challenges
- Leadership Challenges
- Alignment
- Teamwork
- Review and Wrap
Reflective Thinking
- Introduction
- Define and Limit the Problem
- Analyze the Problem
- Criteria
- Optional Solutions
- Selection
- Implementation
- Wrap
Resource Life Cycle
- INTRODUCTION
- PRODUCT OR SERVICE RESOURCES
- LIFE CYCLE
- ENABLING RESOURCES
- LIFE CYCLE FOR EACH RESOURCE
- PRECEDENCE BETWEEN RESOURCES
- WRAP & DISMISS
Solution Generation
- Introduction
- Ventilation
- Clarification
- Analysis of Problem
- Set Criteria
- Suggest Solutions
- Evaluate Solutions
- Deselect Sub-Optimals
- Select Solution(s)
- Implement the Solution
- Roles & Responsibilities
- Guardian of Change
- Review & Wrap
ANALYSIS AGENDAS
Appreciative Inquiry
- Launch
- Discovery
- Dream
- Design
- Destiny
- Testing
- Review and Wrap
After Action Review (Hot Wash)
- Launch
- Success Objectives
- Goals and Considerations
- What Worked and Hampered
- Issues and Risks
- Review and Wrap
Context Diagram
- INTRODUCTION
- PURPOSE OF THE BUSINESS AREA
- WHO INTERACTS (Enablers)
- WHAT COMES IN (Inputs)
- WHAT GOES OUT (Outputs)
- MODEL AND VALIDATION (Walk-thru)
- REVIEW AND WRAP
Activity Flows [Requirements]
- Introduction
- Purpose of the Business Area
- Support Activities (verb-noun)
- Processes
- Purpose of Each Process
- Life cycle Activities
- Procedures (or, SIPOC or Requirements)
- Review and Wrap
Data Flow Diagram
- Introduction
- THE BASE (Display or build the context diagram)
- BUSINESS PROCESSES
- MATCHED INPUTS AND OUTPUTS WITH PROCESSES
- STORES OF INFORMATION
- EACH PROCESS
- NEEDED DATA
- GENERAL REQUIREMENTS
- Review and Wrap
Decision-making Approach
- Launch
- Purpose of the Object
- Options
- Decision Criteria
- Deselection and Decision
- Testing
- Review and Wrap
Decision Support
- Introduction
- WHAT QUESTIONS DO YOU NEED TO ANSWER
- WHAT INFORMATION IS NEEDED
- WHERE IS THE INFORMATION CURRENTLY STORED
- WHERE SHOULD THE INFORMATION BE STORED
- HOW WILL THE INFORMATION BE USED
- INTERACTION
- OPERATING CHANGES
- Review and Wrap
FMEA (Failure Mode & Effect Analysis)
- INTRODUCTION
- DEFINE FMEA SCOPE (CHARTER)
- IDENTIFY FAILURE MODES
- IDENTIFY EFFECTS OF FAILURE MODES
- VALUE EFFECTS BY: SEVERITY
- RATE EFFECTS BY: INCIDENCE
- RATE EFFECTS BY: DETECTION
- VALUE EFFECTS BY: CONFIDENCE
- CALCULATE COMPOSITE RISK RATING
- IDENTIFY CORRECTIVE ACTIONS
- PRIORITIZE CORRECTIVE ACTION
- CALCULATE REVISED COMPOSITE RISK RATING
- WRAP
Logical Modeling
- INTRODUCTION
- PURPOSE OF THE BUSINESS AREA
- “THINGS” THAT SUPPORT THE PURPOSE
- HOW THINGS RELATE
- DESCRIBING EACH “THING”
- BUSINESS RULES
- WALKTHROUGH
- WRAP
Mandate Compliance
- Introduction
- Mandate Review
- Requirements Modeling
- Model Integration
- Guardian of Change
- Wrap and dismiss
Peer Review Inspection
- INTRODUCTION
- PRI SCOPE (Peer Review Inspection)
- RESOURCES* & PRIORITIZED ARTIFACTS
- OVERVIEW
- DEFECTS
- CAUSE-EFFECT (Optional)
- CORRECTIVE ACTIONS (REWORK)
- DEFECT LOG AND REPORT
- WRAP
Real-Win-Worth
- Launch
- To What Extent Is the Opportunity Real?
- How Can We Win Compared to Competitive Options?
- To What Extent is the opportunity Worth Doing?
- Review and Wrap
DESIGN AGENDAS
Basic Design Agenda
- INTRODUCTION
- THE ACTIVITY
- REQUIRED INFORMATION
- SCREENS, REPORTS, OR SWIM LANES
- ENVIRONMENT
- OPERATING CHANGES
(repeat for each activity or process)
Transaction (JAD or Joint Application Development)
(for each activity linking to the Design Agenda above)
1 PLANNING
2 RECEIVING
3 ARRIVAL PROCESSING
4 ASSIGNING
5 PROCESSING
6 RECORDING
7 DISPOSITION
8 PERFORMANCE EVALUATION
Organizational Design
- INTRODUCTION
- THE VISION
- ORGANIZATION OBJECTIVES
- CRITERIA FOR DESIGN
- ORGANIZATIONAL STRATEGIES
- CRITERIA FOR STRATEGIES
- PROTOTYPICAL ORGANIZATION
- TEST DESIGN—RASI AND SCENARIOS
- LATERAL COORDINATION
- EVOLUTIONARY PATH
- WRAP
Object-Oriented Design
- INTRODUCTION
- OBJECTS
- ACTIONS
- MESSAGES BETWEEN OBJECTS
- SCREENS, REPORTS, SWIM-LANES
- WRAP
You have just viewed a few hundred thousand dollars of time it took to build the annotated support behind each. Let us know what questions you might have. We aim to serve.
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Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools and methods daily during the week. While some call this immersion, we call it the road that yields high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Facilitation Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including full agendas, break timers, forms, and templates. Also, take a moment to SHARE this article with others.
To Help You Unlock Your Facilitation Potential: Experience Results-Driven Training for Maximum Impact #facilitationtraining #meeting design
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by Facilitation Expert | Mar 28, 2024 | Facilitation Skills, Meeting Support
Before we get to the 13 steps, let’s talk about what we mean by Collaboration and Innovation Hub.
A Collaboration and Innovation Hub is a dedicated team that serves as the engine for enhancing teamwork, facilitating strategic dialogues, and sparking creative breakthroughs across all levels of an organization.
Not only does it capture the intent of a facilitation department’s mission more vividly because its role is fostering collaborative processes and driving innovation within the organization, it provides a more dynamic and engaging portrayal of a facilitation department.
For us, at the heart of an Agile Mindset, Change Management, Quantum Management, and Zero-distance models, you should find a Collaboration and Innovation Hub.
Our vision of a Hub is not just about guiding efficient meetings; it’s a central resource to empower employees, catalyze change, and nurture a culture of ongoing improvement and innovation.
Building Capacity
The Collaboration and Innovation Hub represents a center for learning and development. The Hub offers training sessions and resources that enhance facilitation skills across the organization. By empowering associates with these skills, the Hub ensures the principles of effective collaboration and innovation are embedded in every team’s DNA. Facilitation skills dramatically increase the amount of meetings that get results.
Cultivating Collaboration
Recognizing that the synergy of diverse perspectives fuels innovation, the Collaboration and Innovation Hub specializes in crafting environments where voices are heard, ideas flourish, and collective wisdom guides decision-making. The Hub provides a place where barriers are broken down and teams are united in pursuit of common goals.
Fostering Innovation
The forefront of the Hub’s endeavors drives to foster an organizational mindset where innovation thrives. Through carefully designed ideation sessions and creative problem-solving workshops, the Collaboration and Innovation Hub challenges teams to think differently. With professional facilitation, the Hub encourages a culture where innovation is not just welcomed but actively pursued.
Leveraging Technology
In today’s hybrid work environment, the Hub embraces cutting-edge digital tools to bridge physical distances and foster seamless collaboration. Along with dynamic face-to-face sessions, by using virtual whiteboards and collaborative platforms, the Hub ensures that teams can connect, create, and innovate, regardless of where they are located.
Measuring Impact
With a commitment to continuous improvement, a Collaboration and Innovation Hub regularly evaluates the effectiveness of its facilitation practices. Through feedback mechanisms and performance metrics, the Hub adjusts its strategies to maximize its impact on organizational effectiveness and innovation.
Mission-driven Facilitation
The Hub’s mission extends beyond conventional facilitation by creating meaningful interactions that lead to actionable insights. By employing a blend of advanced facilitation techniques, the Hub ensures that every meeting, workshop, and structured[1] discussion provides an opportunity for growth and alignment.
The Collaboration and Innovation Hub aspires to be more than a facilitation department. The Hub provides a strategic partner in driving an organization’s success through enhanced collaboration, strategic innovation, and engaged leadership. The Hub represents where the future of work is being shaped, today.
INNOVATION HUB
13 Essential Steps to Create a Thriving Collaboration and Innovation Hub
Building a facilitation Hub effectively supports and enhances an organization’s collaborative processes, decision-making, and innovation capabilities. Here’s a framework for building a department, group, or team sponsored by a Collaboration and Innovation Hub:
1. Define the Purpose, Scope, and Objectives of Your Innovation Hub
- Identify Needs: Assess the organization’s needs for facilitation services, including areas like problem-solving, planning of all types, team development, conflict resolution, and innovation workshops.
- Clearly define what the Hub aims to achieve within the context of the organization’s overall strategy.
- Using frameworks like RenDanHeYi (RDHY) and SAFe, focus on enabling organizations to realign around customer outcomes through entrepreneurial teams and centralized services. Use these principles to build a Hub that supports organizational agility and customer-centric innovation.
- Confirm alignment with the organization’s vision, goals, and values ensuring all members understand and commit to this shared direction.
2. Secure Leadership Buy-in and Support
- Present Benefits: Articulate the value and benefits of having a dedicated facilitation group, including improved meeting efficiency, enhanced decision-making, and increased employee engagement.
- Outline Costs: Provide a clear budget for the Hub, including staffing, training, and resources.
3. Develop a Talent Acquisition Strategy
- Identify Skills: Determine the skills and qualifications required for department members, focusing on facilitation expertise, knowledge of group dynamics, communication skills, and familiarity with various facilitation methods and tools.
- Recruit Diversely: Aim for a team with diverse skills and backgrounds to support a wide range of stakeholder needs.
4. Create a Learning and Development Path for Innovation Hub Associates
- Foundational Training: Ensure all team members have training in core facilitation skills, methods, and tools.
- Continuous Learning: Offer continuous training and development opportunities for facilitators, focusing on enhancing their skills in leading effective meetings and workshops. This includes mastering facilitation tools, emotional intelligence, strategic questioning, and conflict resolution approaches.
5. Establish Innovation Hub Approaches and Methods
- Develop Frameworks: Create standardized facilitation frameworks and methods that can be adapted to different organizational contexts.
- Create Tools and Resources: Develop facilitation tools, templates, and resources that support the Hub’s work.
- Facilitate the Transformation of Vague Indicators into SMART Measures: Work on transitioning from subjective discussions to objective, evidence-based action plans by establishing SMART (Specific, Measurable, Adjustable, Relevant, Time-based) measures and criteria. Removing vagueness is essential for transforming abstract ideas into concrete actions and outcomes.
6. Enhance Interconnectedness and Collaboration
- Bridging Distances: Minimize perceptual and physical gaps among team members, thus fostering a sense of interconnectedness, ensuring that everyone feels engaged and part of a unified effort.
- Promoting Inclusive Communication: Encourage open, inclusive communication, building trust and clarity, which are essential for maintaining alignment in decision-making and achieving shared goals
7. Cultivating Psychological Safety and Well-being
- Establishing Psychological Safety: Foster an environment where individuals feel safe to express ideas, concerns, and feedback, creating an atmosphere of trust and mutual respect.
- Build Trust and Rapport with Stakeholders: Trust is foundational for effective facilitation. Leverage strategies for building quick rapport with participants and sponsors, such as understanding and communicating a clear vision, engaging through positive body language, speaking mindfully, and setting rank and ego aside.
- Prioritizing Well-being: Recognizes the importance of team members’ well-being, understanding that organizational coherence requires a healthy, motivated workforce. Facilitative practices include measures to support work-life integration and well-being.
8. Emotional Literacy and Ask Meaningful Questions
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- Enhance meeting effectiveness by recognizing and articulating a wide range of emotions. Facilitators should cultivate emotional literacy as highlighted in Dr. Brené Brown’s “Atlas of the Heart”. Her approach supports meaningful connections and clarity in meetings.
- Implement and Promote Best Practices for Meeting Facilitation: Use proven meeting facilitation methods, such as defining the meeting’s purpose, scope, and deliverables upfront, managing meeting dynamics effectively, and ensuring a strong meeting wrap-up to confirm gains and clarify next steps.
9. Integrate Technology
- Virtual Facilitation: Equip the Hub with technology tools and platforms for effective virtual facilitation, essential for remote or hybrid teams.
- Collaboration Platforms: Use online collaboration platforms to enhance interactive sessions and enable efficient pre- and post-meeting activities.
10. Market Services from the Innovation Hub
- Internal Promotion: Communicate the group’s offerings and successes within the organization to build awareness and demand for facilitation services.
- Stakeholder Engagement: Engage with key stakeholders across the organization to understand their specific needs and how the group can support them.
11. Implement a Feedback and Continuous Improvement System
- Collect Feedback: Build mechanisms for collecting feedback from session participants that help assess the effectiveness of facilitation services.
- Iterate and Improve: Use feedback to refine facilitation approaches, methods, and training to meet evolving organizational needs.
12. Measure Impact and Demonstrate Value
- Define Metrics: Identify key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the impact of the facilitation group on meeting effectiveness, decision-making quality, and organizational performance.
- Build mechanisms for measuring the impact of facilitation on meeting outcomes and organizational goals. Use feedback and performance data to continuously improve the facilitation group’s strategies and techniques.
- Report Successes: Regularly report on the Hub’s impact, highlighting successes and learning to maintain support and justify investments.
13. Fostering a Culture of Inquiry and Continuous Learning
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- Build a culture that values asking over telling. This involves training facilitators to lead with questions. It fosters an environment of learning and curiosity. The power of questions can significantly improve meetings by fostering engagement and new insights.
- Master the art of questions to facilitate meetings that yield innovation and improvement. Engage in talks with participants, use tools for brainstorming analysis, and adopt new points of view to craft questions that drive action.
- Promote Continuous Learning: Facilitation creates spaces for reflection and learning, encouraging teams to adapt their processes to align with organizational goals.
- Facilitate Knowledge Exchange: Encourage the sharing of best practices across the organization to ensure that learning is distributed and applied, thus contributing to a unified approach to innovation.
When these steps are carefully planned and implemented, an organization can build a robust facilitation Hub that will enhance the effectiveness of meetings and workshops, foster a culture of collaboration and innovation, and support the organization’s strategic objectives.
[1] Structured facilitation, as outlined in the principles and practices of MG RUSH Facilitation Training & Coaching, provides the methods, training, and tools necessary to harness the collective intelligence, creativity, and innovation potential of teams.
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Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools and methods daily during the week. While some call this immersion, we call it the road that yields high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Facilitation Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including full agendas, break timers, forms, and templates. Also, take a moment to SHARE this article with others.
To Help You Unlock Your Facilitation Potential: Experience Results-Driven Training for Maximum Impact #facilitationtraining #meeting design
______
With Bookmarks no longer a feature in WordPress, we need to append the following for your benefit and reference
by Facilitation Expert | Jan 18, 2024 | Facilitation Skills, Leadership Skills, Meeting Structure, Meeting Support
To master the art of meeting engagement (i.e., active involvement, collaboration, and participation in meetings), meeting facilitators need a nuanced understanding of various aspects of meeting engagement techniques. To help you achieve this, below we provide you with a Strategic Blueprint for Active Collaboration and Productivity in Every Professional Gathering: a detailed outline focusing on the key elements of meeting engagement, supported by brief comments and links to supporting articles.
I. Meeting Preparation
A. Distribute relevant materials in advance. In invitations for crucial sessions (excluding routine staff meetings), include the following in your meeting invitation:
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-
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- Meeting importance, with quantitative support (e.g., cost or labor at risk) if the meeting fails. If the meeting supports a product or project, what is the worth of the product? A poor meeting jeopardizes the product or project, even if only to slow it down.
- Meeting purpose, clarifying why the meeting is essential.
- Meeting scope—scope creep begins in meetings, but you need to determine in advance what we will cover, and more importantly, what we will NOT cover.
- Meeting deliverables, defining success in 50 words or less.
- Simple and draft agenda. Always prepare them with the possibility of minor changes if things develop that would improve or speed up their effort.
B. Encourage participants to provide in advance their insights or questions so that you can shape your agenda around their input. Their input yields insight into their expectations and becomes the secret for you to manage scope creep.
C. Set expectations for active participation. Explain the Ground Rules “Be Here Now” (professional obligation to speak) and “No Hiding” (applies to virtual or hybrid meetings).
“In for-profit situations, stress duty or fiduciary responsibility. Since participants are professional and being paid to attend, the meeting is not an opportunity for them to contribute. Rather, it is an obligation.”
II. Agenda Design
A. Structure the agenda with a clear insight into the sequence of steps. Include interactive elements such as breakout sessions.
B. Ensure a balance between sharing information and driving behavioral change. If nothing changes, the meeting is a waste of time. The meeting’s value lies in tangible outcomes and actionable insights.
C. Be prepared to explain what DONE looks like with the output from each agenda step, and how it feeds the deliverable to help us get done quicker. Use a metaphor or analogy to explain the rationale behind the sequencing of the agenda steps.
D. Allocate some time for the unexpected and Q&A sessions.
III. Technology Integration
A. Harness collaboration tools, especially in virtual meetings.
B. Regularly employ interactive elements such as breakout sessions and polling to enhance participant involvement and foster dynamic discussions.
C. Guarantee universal access to necessary technology, coupled with a clear understanding of its use, promoting an inclusive and seamless virtual experience.
IV. Visual Aids and Documentation Support
A. Utilize visual aids, legends, and handouts to elevate comprehension and reinforce key concepts.
B. Document input, key points, action items, and open issues in real-time to maintain a dynamic and transparent record.
C. Share meeting notes promptly to solidify engagement and ensure that participants remain informed and aligned.
D. Move beyond the narrative mode; leverage illustrations like the Creativity or Coat of Arms tool. Use Decision Matrices and Quantitative TO-WS analysis for numerical comparisons and insights.
Meeting Engagement
V. Facilitation Technique
A. Integrate icebreakers to establish a positive and open atmosphere, especially in virtual meetings where connection is crucial. Never EVER skip icebreakers in virtual meetings. Remote people are longing for connections.
B. Employ interactive facilitation methods and tools that encourage participation. Always use breakout sessions when in the “Ideation” or “Listing” mode of Brainstorming. Pull the one-team together for the “Analysis” mode and one-voice agreement.
C. Foster a culture of inclusivity and respect for diverse opinions. Explain that no one is smarter than everyone because groups create more options than individuals on their own. Having more options at your disposal remains the number one driver of increasing decision quality. Emphasize that we care about WHAT is right, not WHO is right.
VI. Encourage Active Participation
A. Ask open-ended questions and challenge contributions with probing inquiries like “Because?” or “Why?” to uncover deeper insights. We know that people speak initially about symptoms. Consensus gets built around causal factors, so discover them. We may not agree on whether the “curry” is hot enough or not. We can agree however that it scores 3,000 SHU (Scoville Heat Units) on the capsaicin scale.
B. Always shift air time to your participants. Do not read back to participants. When possible, have each CEO (Chief Easel Officer) perform the read-out for their team. If conducting a readback of some inflection point, appoint a participant. Do not ask them because you are the process police person, the master of context. Always strive to have the reflection of their content come from a participant, not you.
C. Use break-out teams frequently. With three teams you are tripling the available air time.
VII. Follow-up and Accountability
A. Summarize key takeaways and action items at the end of the meeting. Without the documentation trail, nothing happened. Make your action items visual for everyone to see.
B. Facilitate responsibilities and deadlines for providing the team with updates on action items. Consider or modify the RACI approach for clarity.
C. Perhaps suggest or even schedule follow-up sessions to track progress and maintain accountability.
VIII. Feedback Mechanisms
A. Foster an environment where participants feel comfortable sharing diverse opinions, emphasizing the value of multiple perspectives. Stress the likelihood that there is more than one “right answer”. As the facilitator, you are seeking to help them find the best answer for their situation. If there is a clear, right answer—don’t have a meeting.
B. Use their feedback to continuously improve future meetings. Focus feedback on the meeting format and context. What else could you be doing to make their time more effective? Embrace an “inspect and adapt” approach inspired by Agile principles.
C. Exercise caution with praise; focus on praising the team collectively rather than individually. Even positive judgments are a violation of neutrality. If you must praise, compliment the team, not individuals. And always praise the quantity of output that was created, do not evaluate the quality of the output. “You folks got a lot done today.”
D. Acknowledge and appreciate contributions from individual participants privately.
E. If consensus appears evident, celebrate the team’s achievements and milestones.
F. It’s important to be yourself while you foster a positive and collaborative atmosphere. But never forget the importance of maintaining neutrality. All teams need a neutral referee.
By meticulously attending to these aspects, facilitators can cultivate an environment that not only encourages active engagement but also enhances the overall meeting experience, making it more enjoyable, productive, and collaborative.
______
Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools, methods, and activities daily during the week. Therefore, while some call this immersion, we call it the road to building high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Facilitation Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including fully annotated agendas, break timers, and templates. Finally, take a few seconds to SHARE this article with others.
To Help You Unlock Your Facilitation Potential: Experience Results-Driven Training for Maximum Impact #facilitationtraining #meeting design
______
No longer a feature in WordPress, we need to append the following to each post for your benefit and reference
by Facilitation Expert | Dec 7, 2023 | Communication Skills, Facilitation Skills, Leadership Skills, Managing Conflict, Meeting Agendas, Meeting Structure
Professional business facilitators confront a variety of challenges, perhaps none greater than overcoming resistance to change. Other challenges differ based on the specific context and industry. Significant and frequent facilitation challenges include:
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Adapting to Dynamic Environments:
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Communication and Misunderstandings:
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Conflict Resolution:
- Managing conflicts arising during discussions or decision-making processes is crucial. Effective conflict resolution skills are essential for maintaining a productive and collaborative environment. (See “Don’t Run! How to Manage Meeting Conflict”)
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Facilitating Hybrid or Virtual Sessions:
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Lack of Engagement:
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Maintaining Neutrality:
- Facilitators must uphold impartiality and neutrality to ensure fairness, avoiding any perception of bias. This is vital for building trust among participants. (See “How to Ensure Neutral Facilitation”)
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Managing Large Groups:
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Measuring and Demonstrating Impact:
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Resistance to Change:
- Facilitators may encounter resistance from participants who are hesitant or unwilling to embrace change. Overcoming resistance and fostering a positive attitude toward change remains a significant challenge. (See this primer that immediately follows)
Addressing these challenges requires a combination of strong interpersonal skills, adaptability, and a deep understanding of group dynamics. This article focuses on the final challenge above, a frequent and difficult challenge of facilitators—the art of overcoming resistance to change.
Guiding Change: A Facilitator’s Options for Overcoming Resistance
You might be familiar with the distinction that ‘management’ involves doing things right, while ‘leadership’ involves doing the right things. Given this perspective, shouldn’t we lean towards using the term “Change Leadership” rather than the conventional “Change Management”? The term “Change Leader” aptly captures the role of a skilled facilitator guiding purposeful and mindful change initiatives. Certainly, this viewpoint aligns with the insights of Dr. John P. Kotter.
Kotter argues that
Change Management
“LEADING CHANGE must replace MANAGING CHANGE as the overriding mindset and challenge if organizations are to make it.”
Many acknowledge Kotter as a leading authority on managerial behavior and leadership responsibilities in the context of change. According to him, this isn’t a mere semantic nuance; it represents a substantial and pivotal issue.
Cultivating Transformation: Navigating Kotter’s Eight Stages of Cultural Change
Kotter scrutinized the endeavors of over 100 companies striving to transform themselves into more formidable competitors. Through this analysis, he pinpointed the prevalent errors made by leaders and managers when endeavoring to instigate change. His research yielded eight essential activities that a leader must undertake to surmount the challenges associated with change:
- Establish a Sense of Urgency
- Create a Guiding Coalition
- Develop a Vision and Strategy
- Communicate the Change Vision
- Empower Broad-Based Action
- Generate Short-Term Wins
- Consolidate Gains and Produce More Change
- Anchor New Approaches in the Culture
(see Leading Change, Harvard Business School Press)
The success of each “Leading Change” activity relies on adept facilitation to navigate cultural and individual resistance to change. Many are familiar with the FUD factor that often surrounds change initiatives: Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt. Few professional scenarios require a neutral and reliable facilitator as much as change initiatives do. However, it’s advisable not to rely solely on the Kotter model, as there are more contemporary and potentially simpler frameworks worth considering.
Navigating Change: Unpacking the Significance of Overcoming Obstacles
Whether you label your project deliverable as Business Process Improvement (BPI), Business Process Reengineering (BPR), or any other term-du-jour, when employees sense vulnerability, it often leads to suboptimal decision-making and performance.
Process redesign entails identifying and, where possible, eliminating non-value-adding activities. Another facet involves the potential for concurrent execution of certain activities. Additionally, redesign may involve reassigning responsibility for activities to different roles or personas. This process frequently necessitates a reimagining of how a business is structured and managed and is often linked to job losses or income reduction.
Primarily credited to Michael Porter of Harvard University, the value chain models a sequence of interconnected activities. Primary activities directly contribute to the creation or production of the organization’s product or service, while secondary activities offer support to the primary ones.
The value chain is commonly employed to conceptualize the activities and tasks supported by an organization and its stakeholders. Traditionally, primary activities are categorized by functional labels such as marketing, operations, and distribution. Secondary activities typically encompass functions like legal, purchasing, research and development, and so forth.
The Enduring Legacy of Porter’s Value-Chain Methodology
Creating a value chain compels us to pinpoint the activities that contribute value to the organization and its stakeholders. Ideally, the focus should be on activities that enhance customer value rather than those that merely incur costs.
The establishment of a value chain aids in recognizing non-value-adding activities. Consequently, the outsourcing of non-value-adding activities to a third party, such as logistics, becomes feasible. However, when analyzing the simultaneous execution of activities or the reassignment of responsibilities and supporting roles, the value chain may offer less guidance. Therefore, incorporate the following considerations into your meeting designs that support change initiatives.
Innovative Approaches: Investigating Established Alternatives and Supplementary Choices to the Kotter Model
Change is an unavoidable and intricate facet of business growth. Change management models serve as guides that assist change leaders in navigating challenging transitions and directing stakeholders toward greater acceptance of adopting new methods, processes, and stakeholders.
What Constitutes a Change Management Model (or Framework)?
Change management models encompass concepts, theories, and methods designed to serve as guides in implementing and navigating transformations. Their goal is to ensure that changes are not only accepted but also effectively put into practice.
Whether the changes involve onboarding new hires, company-wide shifts in internal tools, department-specific adjustments, or anything in between, change management frameworks are crafted to facilitate smoother implementation and, crucially, to establish the change as the new norm.
“For example, switching from one video conferencing system to another may seem like an easy change. Still, anyone who has been forced to make that switch can tell you that minor frustrations such as having to hunt down the share-screen button or navigate mic-muting options can lead to a severe dislike for a new tool.” (WhatFix)
Several widely embraced management models in 2023 include:
This model focuses on the individual change experience, addressing Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, and Reinforcement as key stages in the change initiative.
Bridge’s Transition Model is a framework that focuses on managing individual transitions during times of change. It consists of three main stages: Ending, Neutral Zone, and New Beginning. The model recognizes that people experience emotional responses during change, and a successful transition involves helping them let go of the old, navigate a neutral period of adjustment, and embrace the new.
Deming’s Cycle provides a continuous improvement model that is widely used in quality management and process improvement.
Kotter’s model emphasizes the importance of creating a sense of urgency, building a guiding coalition, and anchoring the changes in the organization’s culture.
Also known as the Five Stages of Grief and introduced by psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross provides the context of understanding the emotional responses of individuals facing terminal illness. Over time, the model has been applied to various forms of personal and organizational change. The five stages represent a series of emotional reactions that people may go through when dealing with significant transitions or losses.
Lewin’s model involves three stages: Unfreeze (preparing for change), Change (implementing the change), and Refreeze (ensuring the change becomes permanent).
Elaine Biech, building on the work of Rick Maurer, introduced the 3 Levels of Resistance and Change Model including intellectual, emotional, and operational resistance.
The McKinsey 7-S Model is a management model that identifies seven internal elements that must be aligned for an organization to be successful. The model emphasizes the interdependence of these elements and the need for alignment to achieve organizational effectiveness. The 7 S’s include:
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- Strategy: The plan for achieving the organization’s objectives.
- Structure: The organizational design and reporting relationships.
- Systems: The processes and procedures that guide the organization’s operations.
- Skills: The capabilities and competencies of the employees.
- Staff: The organization’s workforce and their values.
- Style: The leadership and management style within the organization.
- Shared Values: The core beliefs and values that guide decision-making.
Developed by Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein, suggests that positive reinforcement and indirect suggestions can influence the behavior and decision-making of groups or individuals. It seeks to guide choices in a way that encourages desirable outcomes without restricting options. Nudge theory often applies to areas like public policy and organizational behavior to influence decision-making and promote positive change.
The Satir Change Model, developed by family therapist Virginia Satir, describes how individuals and organizations respond to change. Its four stages include Late Status Quo, Resistance, Chaos, and Integration.
The Significance of Models for Change
Grasping the fundamental principles of widely used change management models and frameworks empowers you to apply best practices, tactics, and strategies when overseeing change projects. By relying on the core principles of change models, you can develop more effective, strategic, and context-specific change initiatives.
Change, ideally, should positively impact the bottom line. However, change initiatives can have widespread effects on productivity, revenue, customer experience, and other crucial areas. Given their intensive nature in terms of time and investment, change initiatives are inherently costly. Resistance to change is a common challenge across all models. While this article does not aim to delve into each model, it provides links to more comprehensive sources. From a facilitator’s standpoint, overcoming resistance is often a paramount concern.
Five Strategies to Conquer Resistance to Change
Explore some of the most effective approaches to address resistance to change within your organization.
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Build stakeholders into the change management plan, placing a strong emphasis on their involvement.
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- Frame changes with a focus on your stakeholders, especially considering that most changes involve technology. Plan with a focus on stakeholder adoption rather than solely emphasizing the technological aspects. Shift the perspective from what the technology can do to what users can achieve with the assistance of this new technology.
- Address resistance by fostering a cultural shift. Identify and train team members who naturally exhibit leadership qualities. These individuals can serve as role models and influencers, creating a ripple effect throughout the organization.
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Empower your stakeholders throughout the transformation process.
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- Infuse enthusiasm into your communication about the change. Clearly articulate the reasons behind it, letting your passion become infectious. Any hint of hesitation can undermine the initiative.
- Equip team members with resources, change management tools, knowledge bases, and training for the new process or tool being introduced. Diminishing uncertainty assists employees in recognizing the value of something new, fostering trust. Present concrete evidence of how the change initiative will benefit your stakeholders. Maintain continuous training efforts to ensure they feel proficient and at ease navigating the change.
- Execute your plan incrementally, allowing stakeholders to address the change one step at a time. This approach enables them to acquire new and pertinent skills gradually, making the change more digestible and less likely to be met with resistance.
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Gather input from stakeholders continuously throughout the initiative.
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- Frequently, employees resist change due to the perception that their opinions are disregarded and won’t influence organizational decisions. Conduct surveys among stakeholders to gauge their sentiments about the change and solicit their ideas on how to facilitate the process.
- Inclusion fosters a sense of being valued and heard. Integrate key stakeholders into the change management team to instill a feeling of ownership and accountability. Avoid making decisions without consulting those directly involved – your employees. Foster a consensus on the timeline and the strategy for managing and implementing the change initiative.
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Offer metrics reflecting the objectives and performance of your initiative.
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- Allow stakeholders to directly access and interpret the data, demonstrating the necessity for improvement through transparency.
- Involve various stakeholder groups when establishing OKRs, KPIs, or similar metrics that contribute to gauging success. Measurement provides organizations with insights into how the implementation impacts overall business performance. If certain aspects deviate from the plan, this offers an opportunity for prompt correction or modification during the subsequent phase of implementation.
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Speak less and listen more.
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- Allocate more speaking time to your stakeholders and empower them to take the lead in the conversation. People desire to be heard, so provide them with the opportunity to express their concerns and aspirations. Effective communication and connections mitigate the frustration of feeling isolated.
- The thoughts, concerns, and suggestions of stakeholders may offer valuable insights to guide your efforts. Understanding their perspectives helps pinpoint the root causes of resistance to change.
- Engaging in two-way exchanges helps construct a bridge between management and stakeholders. The more transparent and candid your communication, the less likely stakeholders are to speculate and adopt a negative outlook.
______
Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools, methods, and activities daily during the week. Therefore, while some call this immersion, we call it the road to building high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Facilitation Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including fully annotated agendas, break timers, and templates. Finally, take a few seconds to SHARE this article with others.
To Help You Unlock Your Facilitation Potential: Experience Results-Driven Training for Maximum Impact #facilitationtraining #meeting design
______
With Bookmarks no longer a feature in WordPress, we need to append the following for your benefit and reference
by Facilitation Expert | Oct 10, 2023 | Communication Skills, Facilitation Skills, Leadership Skills, Managing Conflict, Meeting Structure, Meeting Support
Meeting facilitation challenges vary depending on the specific context and the participants involved. However, some common facilitation challenges facilitators often encounter include:
Conflict Resolution:
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- Addressing conflicts or disagreements during a meeting represents a significant facilitation challenge. Facilitators need to prepare strategies that will manage any conflicts constructively. Facilitators are not responsible for resolving all conflict, but for managing it. The participants hold responsibility for resolving conflict, with proper guidance.
Dominant Participants:
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- Dealing with participants who dominate discussions and prevent others from contributing can disrupt the meeting’s flow and effectiveness. Google discovered that its high-performance teams shared airtime equally among all team members.
Engagement:
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- Keeping participants engaged and actively participating in the meeting remains a significant facilitation challenge. People may become disinterested or distracted during lengthy or unstructured meetings. The facilitator also wears the role of a process police person.
Follow-Up and Action Items:
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- Ensuring that action items are documented and assigned remains the responsibility of the facilitator. However, the follow-up belongs to a different role, although it could be the same person. The facilitator must ensure that one and only one person will report back on the status of the assignment. However, when the sessions end, a different role ensures that the assignment is monitored, such as the project manager or product owner.
Group Dynamics:
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- Understanding and managing group dynamics, including cliques or factions within the group, lends itself to a significant facilitation challenge. However, high-performance teams are frankly quite rare, and turn facilitators into scribes.
Lack of Preparation:
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- Participants may not come to the meeting adequately prepared, which can hinder progress and effectiveness. This facilitation challenge is easily solved by putting the meeting purpose, scope, deliverable, and agenda in the meeting invite. Why would someone agree to attend a meeting if they don’t know the purpose?
Meeting Objectives:
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- Ensuring that the session (meeting or workshop) achieves its intended objectives provides a significant challenge. Facilitators need to plan and guide the meeting to reach its goals. They also need to know what DONE looks like before the session begins.
Multicultural or Multinational Meetings:
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- Many participants come from diverse cultural backgrounds and speak multiple languages. Understanding and preparing for potential communication and cultural barriers remains a huge facilitation challenge.
Remote Participants:
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- In the era of remote work and virtual meetings, facilitating effective online or hybrid meetings comes with its own set of facilitation challenges. With many aspects to consider, common challenges include technical issues, limited non-verbal cues, and various distractions.
Time Management:
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- Managing the meeting’s time effectively represents a clear facilitation challenge and responsibility. Striking a balance between allowing for meaningful discussion and staying on schedule requires thorough preparation. You cannot simply show up and be a great facilitator.
Facilitation Challenges Solved
We provide detailed Best Practices articles that provide tips and tools for dealing with each of these Facilitation Challenges. Below, you’ll find a summary of the corresponding “Solution” article and links to its sources.
Conflict Resolution:
Resolving conflict begins by understanding, clarifying, and confirming the purpose of the object of discussion and argument. If that appeal fails, active listening coupled with extensive challenges structures the discussion. Further appeals ask about the extent to which the purpose and objectives will be supported by the decision, especially the product, project, departmental, program, business unit, and enterprise objectives.
Dominant Participants:
“Proven Methods for Managing Any and All Meeting Conflicts” covers challenging personality types provides advice on managing challenging personalities in meetings and emphasizes the importance of maintaining a productive and respectful atmosphere. It suggests that problems in meetings often arise from certain individuals but highlights the need to avoid labeling them permanently as “problem persons.” Instead, it recommends identifying the cause of their disruptive behavior and offers a series of strategies for handling them. It also identifies several types of difficult participants and provides specific recommendations for dealing with each type, including dominant personalities such as loudmouths and monopolizers.
Engagement:
The article explains the concept of executive presence and provides tips on how to improve it. Executive presence is defined as a combination of qualities that convey confidence, authority, and the ability to lead. It encompasses factors like gravitas, communication, and appearance. The article breaks down the characteristics of executive presence into dimensions, traits, and factors, including credibility, clarity, warmth, and self-confidence.
Follow-Up and Action Items:
Daniel Pink’s book, “When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing,” emphasizes the importance of a productive meeting wrap-up, which he refers to as “ending on a high note.” Four critical activities combine for a clear and actionable meeting wrap-up: Review, Next Steps (Assignments), Communications, and Assessment. This article instructs on HOW TO wrap so that it sounds like all of your participants attended the same meeting together.
Group Dynamics:
“Don’t Run! How to Manage Meeting Conflict” emphasizes the importance of managing conflict in meetings and workshops for productive outcomes. It suggests that conflict, both internal and external, can lead to creative change and improvement when harnessed effectively. To manage meeting conflict, it recommends understanding group dynamics, especially the four stages of group development (Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing), and using appropriate leadership styles to navigate these stages. The article also encourages facilitators to employ visual aids, challenge established paradigms, and address groupthink for better decision-making. Finally, it acknowledges that people can change and offers specific activities to resolve conflict, such as appealing to a common purpose, active listening, appealing to objectives, and documentation.
Lack of Preparation:
“Meeting Preparation – How to Quickly Prepare Meetings for Results” outlines a comprehensive approach to meeting preparation, providing nine key activities and a basic agenda framework. It emphasizes the importance of thorough preparation for successful meetings and offers guidelines for structuring these activities.
Meeting Objectives:
“Meetings That Get Results,” presents the challenges of unproductive meetings and the importance of effective meeting leadership. It provides a practical guide for facilitating productive meetings. The book focuses on the objectives of decision-making, planning, and problem-solving. It emphasizes the significance of facilitation in making meetings productive and efficient. Given the busy schedules of professionals and the lack of formal training in meeting facilitation, it stresses the importance of having the right skills and tools to design and lead effective meetings, which can have a significant impact on an organization’s success.
“Meetings That Get Results” is designed for quick reference and cross-referencing, with lists and conventions for organizing information. It provides guidance on managing various types of meetings, emphasizing the importance of scripting the meeting purpose, scope, deliverables, and agendas along with providing support materials that ensure clear and actionable results.
Remote Participants:
“Online Meeting Problems (and Solutions)” explains common problems encountered during online meetings and offers solutions to address them. It mentions that these issues relate back to numerous causes, regardless of the specific video conferencing platform being used, and highlights the importance of addressing them to improve the overall meeting experience. The problems discussed include late arrivals, audio feedback, technical issues, interruptions, and distractions.
The suggested solutions emphasize the importance of effective communication, active listening, and respectful behavior among participants. It also highlights the need for skilled facilitators who can manage the flow of the meeting and maintain focus on the agenda. Additionally, the article suggests that organizations should invest in quality online tools and equipment to enhance the virtual meeting experience.
In closing, the passage emphasizes the need for better communication, leadership, and cultural norms in online meetings while also highlighting the importance of quality equipment and training for facilitators to improve the overall effectiveness of virtual meetings.
Time Management:
All the Best Practices articles focus on efficiency and time management, throughout the various stages of a meeting or workshop. “Don’t Just Start Meetings, LAUNCH Them in 5 Minutes or Less” on the essential activities for a successful meeting introduction will get you off to a roaring start with these seven activities, lasting no more than five minutes:
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-
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- Start with the End in Mind: Define the objectives of the meeting by describing what success looks like in terms of results or deliverables.
- Transfer Ownership: Emphasize the shared responsibility of the participants in achieving the meeting’s goals, using inclusive language like “we” or “us.”
- Visual Confirmation: Display the meeting’s purpose, scope, and deliverables visually to ensure clarity, and make sure they can be summarized in 25 words or less.
- Roles and Impact: Introduce the facilitator as neutral and highlight participants’ equal roles, emphasizing the importance of the meeting’s success and its potential impact on time or resources.
- Meeting Purpose: Clearly state the purpose of the meeting, seeking audible confirmation from participants.
- Meeting Scope: Describe the boundaries of the meeting, specifying what is included and what is not, while securing participants’ agreement.
- Meeting Deliverable: Explain what “done” looks like by presenting a prepared statement and obtaining agreement from participants.
Additionally, you will find optional activities for specific situations, such as icebreakers, updates from product owners or project managers, reviewing open items, and using a Plus-Delta feedback system for multi-day workshops. These activities should be conducted in a specific sequence to ensure a clear and compelling meeting introduction. Finally, the article guides how to handle executive sponsor contributions during select projects or product launches.
“LAUNCH” highlights the activities of a quick, yet structured meeting wrap-up and references other articles with details on conducting meetings quickly.
______
Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools, methods, and activities daily during the week. Therefore, while some call this immersion, we call it the road to building high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Facilitation Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including fully annotated agendas, break timers, and templates. Finally, take a few seconds to buy us a cup of coffee and please SHARE with others.
In conclusion, we dare you to embrace the will, wisdom, and activities that amplify a facilitative leader. #facilitationtraining #MEETING DESIGN
by Facilitation Expert | Sep 7, 2023 | Decision Making, Meeting Structure, Meeting Tools, Prioritizing
Meeting participants don’t argue about verbs and nouns, they argue about modifiers. Modifiers include adjectives, adverbs, and prepositions. For example…
Facilitating the transformation of vague indicators into SMART (Specific, Measurable, Adjustable, Relevant, Time-based) measures and criteria is crucial for turning abstract ideas into actionable outcomes. When participants in a meeting debate modifiers—adjectives, adverbs, and prepositions—they’re often grappling with the subjective elements of goals, such as the difference between completing a task “well” or “quickly.” The key to moving from subjective to objective is identifying clear, quantifiable measures.
Edwards Deming provided the original acronym and definition of SMART as specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-based.
At MGRUSH we frequently change the “A” to adjustable as explained later. Finding the specific and measurable represents the most common challenge when creating SMART measures or objectives. Finding the unit of measurement quickly shifts arguments from the subjective to the objective.
Use the following question to build consensus around SMART measures (objective) rather than fuzzy goals (subjective).
“What is the unit of measurement for (insert modifier)?”
Transition from Subjective to Objective
To transition from subjective discussions to objective, actionable plans, employ a powerful question to pinpoint SMART measures: “What is the unit of measurement for [insert modifier]?” This question shifts focus from abstract descriptors to concrete, quantifiable terms, facilitating consensus on specific, measurable objectives.
Understand the different types of criteria
There is no universally accepted definition of terms used to describe measures. The history of SMART criteria reflects CSF, CTQ, FMA, KPI, NCT, OKR, TQM, and others.
There are differences of course. For example, with Six Sigma, SMART criteria are frequently referred to as CTQ, or Critical to Quality measurements. CTQ might substitute the following questions for the SMART test:
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- Specifically, stated with upper and lower specification limits?
- Is it directional so that we can objectively determine whether it is increasing, decreasing, or staying the same?
- To what extent is it linked to specific customer needs connected to the objectives of the project?
We won’t bother you with additional explanations (such as OKR) since they all represent measures of success (or failure). As the process policeman, however, facilitators must control the operational definitions. Use whatever terms work for your culture, but aspire for consistency and do not permit arguments about the definitions of terms you use in the meeting purpose, meeting scope, and meeting deliverables.
The purpose of all SMART measures is to identify WHAT an organization will measure as it reaches toward its future vision. Measures enable a group to shape and define the most appropriate strategies, activities, or tactics (i.e., WHAT to do to reach the vision). SMART measures are particularly helpful since they are objective and non-biased by perception. Understand the next two measurement types that follow to effectively facilitate consensus.
Defined Measures: Objectives, Goals, and Considerations♦
- A measure is a standard unit used to express the size, amount, or degree of something. An objective is a desired position reached or achieved by some activity at a specific time. Objectives provide measurable performance [ ≣ ].
- A goal is a directional statement that may remain fuzzy or subjectively measurable [ ☁ ].
- A consideration is an important management issue, constraint, or concern that will affect reaching the objectives [ ✓ ].
♦ NOTE: Some consulting firms define them exactly the opposite. There is NO universal standard or answer. We are agnostic but must consistently apply one definition or the other(s). Please be consistent within your culture.
To Facilitate from Vague Indicators into SMART Measures and Criteria
Use Ideation to develop candidate measures: Describe the rules of Ideation in Brainstorming. Capture their candidates and consider the voice of the customer or customer types. Focus on potential measures that overlap or share a common purpose.
When the group exhausts its list of candidates, review each candidate and separate them into potential categories by coding them as shown above: objectives [ ≣ ], goals [ ☁ ], and considerations [ ✓ ]. Review potential objectives [ ≣ ] and make them SMART by first determining the unit of measurement. Do not show the SMART definition however until after you have captured the raw/ draft input. Consider using break-out teams to convert raw input into final SMART objectives:
- Specific,
- Measurable,
- Adjustable [and challenging],
- Relevant [and achievable], and
- Time-based).
Next, separately list and fully define remaining non-SMART goals (subjective) and other important considerations (binary).
The facilitator must challenge participants to make their thinking visible.
Again, when someone uses a modifier, take over the conversation, isolate the modifier, and challenge it with the same question:
“What is the unit of measurement for (insert modifier)?”
Always focus on identifying WHAT is being measured before allowing arguments on HOW to measure it. WHAT unit or units of measurement do we typically use to agree that the job qualifies as well done? For example, if the job is to create a Facebook advertisement that will run for five days, the unit of measurement that defines well might be the number of clicks the advertisement receives in that five-day period. One hundred or more clicks may equal well done, while less than that, not so well done. To measure what determines quickly, we might turn to a calendar and agree on a completion date(s). Do not hesitate, time permitting, to facilitate multiple measures for quickness.
Converting Vague Indicators into SMART Objectives
Gauges, potentiometers, and dials help us zero in on specific and measurable aspects. The gas gauge indicates available gallons (or liters) of fuel. Much like pressure gauges rely on PSI or kPa while temperature gauges depend on Fahrenheit or Celsius. The unit of measurement provides an objective reference point on which everyone must agree. We have found that once people can envision a gauge, you make it easier for them to isolate a potentially SMART objective. If they are unable to dial up or dial down a specific unit, they do not have SMART objectives or criteria. They have become stuck with something fuzzy and subjective.
We may still argue whether we have ‘enough’ gas to reach our destination, but few can now argue that we have approximately X.x gallons remaining because gauges provide real-time feedback. The refining method also focuses on other factors that contribute to fuel consumption such as weight, headwind, etc. One at a time, you can lead participants to meaningful actions that everyone can own (e.g., roll up the windows, turn off the air-conditioning, etc.).
Be a stickler for specificity
Once they’ve agreed on the unit of measurement, get their agreement on where the data is found or created. You do not want people arguing in future sessions about different numbers coming from different reports. We go so far as to demand the report number and even the page, column, and row intersection.
For example, if we are measuring productivity by millions of barrels of oil, then isolate the Report Name/ Number and the row and the column as well. You want to make it easy for your great-grandmother to complete the calculation (given the right information) and derive the same answer as your team. If so, they identified a truly objective standard that everyone will support.
Modifiers Are Vague Indicators of SMART Objectives or Criteria
Discover the Conditions that Fail to Yield SMART Objectives
Once participants reach an agreement about the unit of measurement and source of the data, lead a richer discussion about thresholds. For example, how much ‘stuff’ puts us in the Green Zone? When do we enter the Yellow zone? What characteristics toggle us into the Red Zone? Further, refine your objectives with a sense of timing such as duration or frequency. And be prepared to record the conditions, because there is usually more than one right answer. Your questions should avoid being close-ended. Rather, be prepared to ask . . .
“Under what conditions (insert zones or values)?” or
“(insert zones or values) conditions occur BECAUSE . . .”
. . . differing viewpoints may co-exist. We have found that combining crisp meeting design with facilitators that carefully control context, pre-empts discussion about factors that are NOT relevant. Strive to build ranges rather than to target a single value. No one can predict future factors with certainty. However, explaining WHY behind the best case, worst case, and most likely case will make it much easier to build consensus.
Probabilities consist of commonly held assumptions, beliefs, and outlooks about some future state or condition. Forward-looking deliverables such as five-year plans and shaping curves rely exclusively on the concept of probabilities since no future state is certain.
How can a facilitator help resolve arguments around conflicting probabilities, particularly when evidence supports multiple outcomes? Create ranges and not fixed numbers.
Scenario Planning Creates Ranges
Stormy Skies Scenario
Strive to avoid building one set of “answers”. Rather, build multiple answers and at minimum three. Facilitate common understanding around three to five scenarios:
Sunny Skies
Dare your participants to think positively. Ask them to relieve themselves from concerns about risks and other exogenous factors. Build and agree on the “best likely” scenario, akin to sunny skies and clear sailing. Don’t allow impediments or other negative throttles. While probabilistically unlikely, the sunny skies scenario provides a bookend, number, or set of numbers that would unlikely ever be exceeded.
Stormy Skies
Take your participants in the opposite direction. Allow for every conceivable catastrophe or injurious situation. Try to fall short of “bankruptcy” or “going out of business” but relent if your participant makes an urgent claim that complete “death” is one possible outcome.
Partly Sunny Skies
Having built the two prior scenarios, take a closer look at the Sunny Skies scenario and toggle some of the less likely occurrences. Strive to make this view and set of numbers positive, but not extreme. If necessary, use the PowerBalls tool to rank the importance of assumptions and toggle the most important drivers, leaving others untouched.
Partly Cloudy Skies
With our bookend approach, move in the opposite direction by taking a closer look at the Stormy Skies scenario. Toggle some of its less likely occurrences. Here you want to lead to a set of negative numbers, but not in the extreme. Have them study past performance and downturns for reliable percentages. Again, if necessary, use PowerBalls to rank the impact of assumptions. Only toggle the most impactful, leaving the others untouched.
Probable Skies
Take your scenarios and sets of numbers to drive consensus around the most likely scenario. Force participants to defend their arguments. Appeal to the prioritized lists of assumptions and revisit the prioritization results if necessary. Begin to listen and note the most extreme numbers being suggested as “most likely” because they can help establish the final range.
Refining analysis takes the final range and establishes targets and thresholds for on-target performance (e.g., green lights), cautionary performance (e.g., yellow lights), and intervention performance (e.g., red lights).
The value of a facilitator is rarely greater than when serving as a referee for future conditions.
The facilitator’s role is pivotal in steering discussions from abstract debates over modifiers to the establishment of clear, actionable SMART objectives. By insisting on specificity, managing scenario planning, and refining assumptions, facilitators can guide groups to consensus on measures that are not only precise but also universally understood and agreed upon within the group. This structured approach ensures that objectives are not just well-defined but also aligned with the organization’s strategic vision and capable of guiding effective action.
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Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH focuses on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools and methods daily during the week. Therefore, while some call this immersion, we call it the road to building high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite meeting tools.
Go to the Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including full agendas, break timers, and templates. Finally, take a few seconds to buy us a cup of coffee and please SHARE with others.
We dare you to embrace the will, wisdom, and activities of a modern leader. #facilitationtraining #MEETING DESIGN
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by Facilitation Expert | Aug 22, 2023 | Meeting Agendas, Meeting Structure
Successful meetings and workshops comprise three essential phases: a beginning, a middle, and an end. Yet, meetings often fail because leaders ignore the importance of one or more of these.
In this Best Practices article, we’ll focus on phase one, the beginning, or meeting introduction, by detailing seven consecutive activities that, easily mastered, ensure stronger meeting and workshop launches. Here is a link to four activities to command a professional wrap.
Start with the End in Mind
An effective meeting introduction relies on the leadership consciousness that knows what the result looks like. Yet describing the results of a successful meeting is not enough. The name for each agenda step needs to describe its result or deliverable. Remember, the objective for each agenda step or activity is an object—a noun. You cannot deliver a verb. Agenda steps are best described by answering the question, “What does DONE look like?”
We begin by detailing seven activities that you should command for every Launch (Introduction). In a separate Best Practices article you will find a detailed explanation of four activities that you should command for every Review and Wrap (Conclusion).
Launching — Your Meeting Introduction
Your launch sets the tone, confirms roles, clarifies boundaries (scope), and describes what results will be generated during the session. A meeting launch should last no longer than 5 minutes (excluding icebreakers or other special activities such as an executive kickoff or a product or project update).
Transfer Ownership
Make sure that your participants understand that this meeting has a clear purpose and impact. Use the integrative and plural first person of ‘we’ or ‘us’ and avoid the singular ‘I’ so that you begin to transfer responsibility and ownership to the participants who need to own the results.
Visual Confirmation
Before you start your meeting, have your in-person or online room set up to visually display the meeting purpose, meeting scope, and meeting deliverables. If you cannot simplify each statement into 25 words or less (for each), then you are not ready to launch your session. In particular, if you do not know what the deliverable looks like, then you do not know what success looks like, or when you will be DONE.
Display the meeting purpose, scope, and deliverable on a slide, screen, whiteboard, handheld artifact, or large Post-it® paper. Additionally, display the agenda and ground rules appropriate to your politics and situation. Use the following seven activities in sequence to launch every session, even a 50-minute meeting. Your meeting introduction is not an appropriate time to experiment. These seven activities (plus occasional Kick-off), in this sequence, have been stress-tested and proven to be most effective, assuring a clear and compelling launch.
Seven Meeting Launch Activities
Seven Meeting Introduction (Launch) Activities
ONE — Roles and Impact
Introduce yourself in the role of facilitator as neutral and unbiased. Stress their roles of participants as equals. Remind them to leave egos and titles in the hallway. Stipulate how much money or time (FTP)[♠] is wasted or at risk if the meeting and thus the organization, product, or project fails. Complete this activity within 30 seconds. Avoid using the word “I” after this activity. It is tough to drop the ego but remain conscious whenever you use the first person singular. Complete this first activity within 30 seconds.
Time is Short, Let’s Begin
TWO — Meeting Purpose
Describe the meeting purpose, either on large-format paper, a handout, or a screen. Stress again that this session is important because… and seek audible confirmation from your participants. Frequently, for this first request, put your hands to your ears while saying “I can’t hear you” to force a louder audible response. Professional facilitators constantly strive to shift “airtime” to their participants, and participants’ vocal affirmation transfers ownership.
THREE — Meeting Scope
Describe the meeting scope, either on large-format paper, a handout, or a screen. The meeting scope is either the entire organization, department, product, or project, or part of them, but never more. Again, secure an audible assent from your participants that builds consensus and transfers ownership.
FOUR — Meeting Deliverable
Describe what DONE looks like by using your prepared statement. After securing audible assent here, you will have facilitated audible agreement three times within two minutes. If participants cannot agree on the meeting purpose, meeting scope, and meeting deliverables, then your agenda is at risk, and you have a more serious problem to address.
NOTE: This meeting purpose, scope, and deliverable should be provided to participants before the meeting as part of an invitation, pre-read, or read ahead. The prepared statements should not change at this point. If they do, the meeting may be challenged, and the agenda may no longer be valid. I have been asked to modify the scope a few times, but it was always sharpening and not broadening the prepared statement ( Who knew that Greenland and part of Iceland are in North America?).
I frequently put hands to my ears while saying “Can’t hear you” to force a louder audible response. Professional facilitators constantly strive to shift “airtime” to their participants, and their vocal affirmation transfers ownership.Be particularly careful to describe what DONE looks like (the deliverable). After securing audible assent here, you will have facilitated consensus three times within two minutes.
FIVE — Housekeeping
Explain that housekeeping or “administrivia” is any noise that might be causing a distraction. You want to clear participants’ heads from thinking about themselves, especially their creature comforts. For brief meetings, you might include where to locate emergency exits, fire extinguishers, lavatories, or coffee and tea. For workshops and longer meetings, you would also cover the frequency of breaks, break times for responding to emails, lunch arrangements, and any other “noise” that might prevent participants from staying focused. You may also conduct Icebreakers here, or after presenting the Ground Rules described as the seventh activity below.
SIX — Meeting Agenda
Describe each Agenda Step, including the reason for the sequence of the Agenda Steps and flow. Explain how the Agenda Steps relate to one another. Do not read them. Rather, explain why the Agenda Steps help us get DONE and why they are listed in the sequence provided. Link Agenda Steps back to the deliverable so that participants see how completing each Agenda Step helps us get DONE.
Fully explaining the Agenda Steps helps groups move out of “storming,” Stage 1 of the group life cycle. Again, do not read the Agenda Steps —explain them! Optimally, use a nonprofessional analogy to explain your Agenda Steps.[♣] You have heard that a picture is worth a thousand words; well, an analogy is worth a thousand pictures (and a story is worth a thousand analogies).
SEVEN — Ground Rules
Share appropriate Ground Rules. Most importantly, explain why they are being used. Supplement your narrative posting of Ground Rules with audiovisual support, including humorous clips, but keep it brief. After presenting your essential Ground Rules, solicit any additional ones from the group, if desired.
Explain each ground rule (not more than nine). For professional meetings, we treat ‘speaking up’ in a meeting, NOT as an opportunity, rather as an obligation. After all, they are being paid to be there. We stress that “consensus” does not mean that we’ll make everybody happy, rather we will find an answer that everyone can support. See the MGRUSH alumni site for some other examples and audio-visual support.
Optional or Occasional (Eighth) Activities
- Have everyone introduce themselves by providing a structured Icebreaker. Complete Icebreakers before moving out of your Launch agenda step. If you expect Icebreakers to take up a significant amount of time, more than a half-hour, consider sequencing this activity sooner and move it up to the fifth activity (“Housekeeping”).
- Product owners and project managers or sponsors may provide updates about progress or changes that have occurred. Have them remain brief by sticking to the vital information affecting the participants. Do not let them go too far “into the weeds,” providing details that bore everyone else. Keep them focused on WHAT has transpired (abstract), not HOW it is being done (concrete).
- You may need to conduct a review of open items from prior meetings. Preferably, have the product or project manager or sponsor read open items and share a status update while you document or record participants’ comments if needed.
- For multiple-day workshops, consider mounting a Plus-Delta in the back of the roofer participants to comment and request during the meeting. You don’t want to find out on the last day there is something you may have fixed on day one.
Kick-off During a Meeting Introduction
Do not modify the sequence of the seven activities for your meeting introduction sequence except, for any executive sponsor contributions. As soon as the sponsor enters the room, if the meeting has begun, stop and introduce that person. If the sponsor is present at the start, introduce him or her immediately. Have the sponsor up front and out of the room as soon as possible or practical, preferably without letting them sit down. If the sponsor insists on staying, seat him or her in the back or on the side as an observer, unless the sponsor is going to be an equal participant, like everyone else.
For a kick-off, have your executive sponsor explain the importance of participants’ contributions and what management intends to accomplish. Consider a quick project update. However, do not allow the update or executive sponsor to take more than five minutes. Your meeting is not a mini-Town Hall meeting (unless it actually is).
NOTE: For multiple-day workshops, cover the same items at the start of subsequent days (except kick-off). Additionally, review content built or agreed upon the day(s) before and how it relates to progress made in the agenda.
The Meeting Middle
After your meeting Introduction, the agenda steps between the Introduction and Wrap comprise the middle steps. Hundreds of our other Best Practices articles focus on what you can do between the introduction and wrap to plan, decide, and prioritize issues.
The Meeting Wrap
We also provide a detailed article that provides a structured approach to your meeting Wrap. See “Use a Professional Meeting Wrap-Up Because Most Meetings Don’t End, They Stop” for a quick but thorough explanation of four activities to manage at the conclusion of your meetings and workshops.
Daniel Pink, in his book “When” claims that the Wrap represents the most important part of any meeting because the Wrap is the “taste you leave in someone’s mouth out in the hallway” where your participants should sound like they were in the same meeting together.
NOTE: In a separate Best Practices article you will find detailed explanation of four activities that you should command for every Review and Wrap (Conclusion).
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[♠] FTP represents Full Time Person or Full-time equivalent (FTE), frequently viewed as around 2,000 hours per year.
[♣] For an example, see the section “Explanation via Analogy” in the Planning Approach (Chapter 6) of Meetings That Get Results.
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Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools, methods, and activities daily during the week. Therefore, while some call this immersion, we call it the road to building high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Facilitation Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including fully annotated agendas, break timers, and templates. Finally, take a few seconds to buy us a cup of coffee and please SHARE with others.
In conclusion, we dare you to embrace the will, wisdom, and activities that amplify a facilitative leader. #facilitationtraining #MEETING DESIGN
______
With Bookmarks no longer a feature in WordPress, we need to append the following for your benefit and reference
by Facilitation Expert | Aug 8, 2023 | Meeting Structure
Decision-making frequently considers fuzzy information, fuzzy implications, and fuzzy thinking. To reduce fuzziness, and improve decision quality, lead your group to focus on What is right, NOT Who is right.
By structuring your questions and meeting design, you minimize the risk of decisions made that are no more than educated gambles.
Decision Quality Results from Focusing On What is Right, NOT Who is Right
Some organizations rely on advocacy. As issues surface, people take sides[1]. Some participants win — while others lose. By depersonalizing the input required to support a decision, you create a win-win situation. In “majority win” cultures, the most powerful arguments do not necessarily win. Rather, the most persuasive and charismatic ‘champions’ are frequently victorious. Effective facilitation and structured meeting design mitigate risks associated with poor decision quality. After all, nobody is smarter than everybody[2].
Daniel Kahneman has proven that most people decide and then they justify their decision. A structured approach forces participants to delay their decision until available evidence has been provided. Unfortunately for most, once participants have decided, much of their deliberation focuses on finding support to justify their position. Structured facilitation can stop, or at least delay, premature decision-making. Tremendous risks arise if you don’t strive to identify the SMART (Specific, Measurable, Adjustable, Relevant, and Time-based) support that improves decision quality. We hope that you value and aspire to avoid the DUMB response (Dull, Ubiquitous, Myopic, and Broad).
Some meetings even lead to anger, resentment, or jealousy that can sabotage decisions and cultures. Reverse the flow of poor decision quality by first building consensus around the purpose of the decision. Next, develop and expose available options (actions). Then force the development of decision criteria based on evidence: facts, truths, and examples that support the claims. The structured approach helps groups focus one step at a time. Finally, have a method or tool(s) prepared for comparing the options against the criteria that support the originally stated purpose.
Structured Tools Focus on What is Right
For example, do you plan on using PowerBalls, Perceptual Map, Decision Matrix, Scorecard, etc.– or some combination thereof? Scrub (cleanse or clarify) that evidence to ensure clarity and shared understanding, so that the logic and arguments no longer belong to one person. Rather rationale for the decision quality becomes owned by the entire group. Visually displaying the comparison of the various options and supporting criteria additionally helps to depersonalize the analysis.
While many methods use a projected software tool, there are advantages to paper and whiteboards that include the transfer of ownership. The presenter or facilitator usually ends up owning PowerPoint®-type slides, regardless of group comments. If you create and visually display participant content with markers, the group retains ownership and not the keyboard operator.
Remember the 3-Question Approach when scrubbing:
- To what extent is the input clear and understood?
- What critical or substantive input appears to be missing?
- Will the participants support the input or does something need to be eliminated?
Professional facilitators understand the challenge and importance of focus. Groups cannot move coherently to consensus when starting from ‘many to many.’ With sharp questions, a group can be led from ‘one to many.’ The Content Management tool manages the transformation from the abstract to the concrete, from the WHY to the WHAT to the HOW. Note that a single fact (WHAT) can lead to multiple Implications (SO WHAT). Each Implication can lead to many Recommendations. And there is no way to focus a discussion from many facts to many recommendations effectively. However, the ‘many-to-many’ headache describes most unstructured meetings being held right now.
By structuring your decision-making, you minimize the personal bias that lowers decision quality. With focus, you eliminate much of the scope creep in meetings that results in wasted time. You may have heard that a ‘meeting’ is where minutes are kept and hours are lost. As a session leader, you can minimize confusion using a structure that documents the entire process. Therefore, all the participants can own it at the end.
Speed of Decision-making | When Quality Not Enough
According to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Army General Martin Dempsey,
“Power is no longer simply the sum of capability and capacity but now, disproportionately, it includes speed—speed of action but especially speed of decision-making.” (source: WSJ, Voices on the Future)
Race Against Time: Speed of Decision-making
For any consensual and well-informed decision, please embrace at least seven agenda steps to ensure speed of decision-making:
- Introduction
- Purpose of (the scope or object of the situation)
- Options
- Criteria
- Decision
- Testing
- Review and wrap
Seven Agenda Steps Ensure Speed of Decision-making
Do not forget to begin with the purpose of the object of the decision. If not, you risk combative participants with competing purposes. Always begin with WHY the decision is valuable or important before you begin your analysis of WHAT decision appears best.
Do not forget the rules of ideation when capturing options — no discussion, high energy, etc. Set the options aside and immediately develop an understanding of the decision criteria. General Dempsey added that:
“Countering the need for speed is often the paralyzing volumes of information, which often create an illusion of control and optimal decision making.”
Here is why we rely on subject matter experts, to translate the volumes of information, into the most important factors.
Prepare in advance how you plan to scrub the criteria and what tool is most appropriate for your situation. In our MG RUSH Professional Facilitative Leadership workshops, we consider various tools that galvanize consensus around decisions including:
Technique to Ensure Speed of Decision-making
Throughout the decision step in your agenda, get the group to first deselect and agree to eliminate or delete sub-optimal options, thus reducing the number of viable options. The origin of the word ‘decide’ means to cut off, and that increases the likelihood that your group will focus on the best candidates. NEVER allow any tool to make your decision for you, but do allow tools to help you de-select.
For testing, take the decision and compare it with the purpose developed in the second step of the agenda. Determine “to what extent” the tentative decision supports that purpose. If the harmony is strong, the meeting is over. If there are disconnects, revisit both the purpose statement and tentative decision with questions about clarity, omissions, and deletions, until you have developed a decision that the participants can “live with” meaning they will support it and not lose sleep over it, even if it is not their ‘favorite.’
What is Right by Others
Although Aldous Huxley with first attributed with saying . . .
“It isn’t who is right, but what is right that counts.”
. . . we imagine others have said something similar, in various languages, long before the 20th century. After all, the risk of poor group decisions in the past frequently resulted in death.
Karl Albrecht[3], a pioneer of the structured-inquiry method, said it best:
“As we trade in the ‘who is right’ mind-set for the ‘what is right’ mind-set. We make our organizations collectively more intelligent and more capable of meeting the changing demands of the business environment.”
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[1] Note the Type One Thinking in Daniel Kahneman’s book, “Thinking, Fast and Slow”
[2] Look at James Surowiecki’s book, “The Wisdom of Crowds”
[3] See www.KarlAlbrecht.com
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Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools, methods, and activities daily during the week. Therefore, while some call this immersion, we call it the road to building high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Facilitation Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including fully annotated agendas, break timers, and templates. Finally, take a few seconds to buy us a cup of coffee and please SHARE with others.
In conclusion, we dare you to embrace the will, wisdom, and activities that amplify a facilitative leader. #facilitationtraining #MEETING DESIGN
______
With Bookmarks no longer a feature in WordPress, we need to append the following for your benefit and reference
by Facilitation Expert | Jun 13, 2023 | Communication Skills, Facilitation Skills, Leadership Skills, Managing Conflict, Meeting Tools
No method anywhere can show you how to facilitate a resolution for ALL meeting conflicts.
Sometimes, people or parties refuse to agree simply because they dislike each other.
Sometimes, people or parties refuse to agree simply because they dislike each other. Yet while you may not be able to resolve all meeting conflicts, you can learn to manage all meeting conflicts. Below you will find four proven activities for managing conflicts in any group session or workshop.
Meeting conflicts present a serious distraction. Wisely, the International Association of Facilitators (IAF) aspires for facilitators to:
• “Help individuals identify and review underlying assumptions.
• Recognize conflict and its role within group learning/maturity.
• Provide a safe environment for conflict to surface.
• Manage disruptive group behavior.
• Support the group through the resolution of conflict.”
Four Proven Activities For Managing Meeting Conflicts
Fortunately, you can rely on this four-step method to manage ALL meeting conflicts:
1. Document consensual purpose.
2. Secure evidence in support of the purpose.
3. Align with the level of support for the objectives of the product, project, program, department, business unit, and enterprise.
4. Assemble documentation, then escalate.
I. Document consensual purpose
The burden on facilitators demands building consensus around the purpose of the decision and what the decision supports. You cannot afford to have a moving target if you want to build consensus. Make your group’s integrated purpose clear and concise. Use our Purpose Tool as a quick and effective means of galvanizing consensual purpose. When captured in writing, you supply instant visual feedback to all of your participants.
2. Secure evidence in support of the purpose
Most office professionals have been exposed to the concept of active listening. Distinguished from passive listening because active listening demands that the listener provide reflection and confirmation of what the speaker said. Reflecting the reasons to support the statement and WHY the evidence to support the purpose remains more important. Frequently understanding WHY requires additional challenge and reflection. Other participants may hear WHAT was said but they also need to understand WHY the claim was made, and under what conditions the claim remains valid.
Effective facilitators make participants’ thinking visible by challenging them with one word—“Because?” Consensus is not built around symptoms. Rather, consensus gets established around causes. Getting everyone to understand under what conditions certain claims may be valid can ease misunderstanding. Sometimes people are in violent agreement with each other but are doing a poor job of listening. A good facilitator provides robust reflection, not only on what was said but under what conditions the assertions hold true. Fortify your active listening with a comprehensive reflection of BOTH what was said and why it was said.
Active listening includes four separate activities:
- Establish contact with the speaker, eye contact ensures the speaker is engaged,
- Absorb what the speaker presents so that you can advance the group’s understanding of the participant’s contribution,
- Reflect on what was said to ensure the speaker understands what was offered up, but more importantly, REFLECT WHY their contribution claims to be valid as it relates to the question they were answering (frequently it is best to provide their reflection in writing whether on a whiteboard, large Post-It® paper, or on the screen), and
- Confirm that their content, as reflected, is complete and correct.
Meeting participants do not necessarily listen or even hear what other participants say. Some people fail to listen to themselves. Reflection provides an essential part of effective, active listening. But do not forget to confirm that your reflections are clear, complete, and correct.
3. Align with the level of support for the objectives of the product, project, program, department, business unit, and enterprise
Sometimes people understand each other and yet continue to disagree. Most arguments about future conditions cannot be proven one way or another. Learn to appeal to the objectives of the project or initiative your meeting supports. If needed, go further and appeal to the organizational values, as to which argument better harmonizes and supports the organization.
After two or more competing arguments have been clarified, and fully documented, ask the group to compare the positions by asking them to what extent each supports the organizational objectives; specifically:
- Project or product: To what extent does each position support the overall project (or product) objectives?
- Program or department: To what extent does each position support the program (or departmental) objectives (i.e., the reasons for approving the project or product)?
- Business unit: To what extent does each position support the business unit objectives (i.e., what would the executive sponsor say)?
- Enterprise or organization: To what extent does each position support the enterprise objectives (i.e., what would the chief executive officer say)?
In some company cultures, for example, safety is critical, and if one position can be viewed as ‘riskier,’ it loses. If necessary, look at the argument from the perspective of the executive sponsors or even the enterprise. If the CEO (Chief Executive Officer) attended the meeting, what would they say, and more importantly, WHY?
Appealing to objectives reconciles some disagreements, but not all of them. Use our holarchy to present a visual illustration of harmonizing objectives (available as a poster at https://mgrush.com/shop/product-category/posters/).
4. Assemble documentation, then escalate
Sometimes participants do not agree with each other based on irrational or irreconcilable terms. When the three steps above, in sequence, do not drive consensual resolution, prepare to escalate. Take the documented positions back to the executive sponsor, product owner, steering team, decision review board, or other authority for their decision.
First, carefully and fully document both positions (arguments) with their supporting claims, evidence, and examples. Then take the conflict off-line, back to the executive sponsor. Explain the method you followed above and provide them with a set of documentation. Tell them the group has reached an impasse and needs their help. Ask them to decide. More importantly, capture their rationale so that their reasons can be brought back to team members and fortify them to be more effective in subsequent decision-making situations.
Executives will also Appeal to Objectives, asking questions like:
- Why did we approve this product, project, or initiative?
- What were we trying to accomplish?
- How does this initiative serve as a foundation for our strategy and future planning?
Executive sponsors, product owners, steering teams, decision review boards, and other authorities supply better insight than team members because the authorities are more intimate with plans, shaping curves, and transitional and transformational efforts underway designed to ensure that your organization reaches its vision. When they share their understanding with you and your group, you empower your group to make higher-quality decisions in future meetings. No facilitator can build consensus around every issue, but having a method to follow provides the assurance that you have done your best.
Fortunately, you can rely on four proven activities for managing meeting conflicts
Don’t Run
Meeting conflicts reflect emotions that, when harnessed, enable innovative change. A facilitator sees conflict in a workshop as coming from the group and coming from within. We must understand our own internal conflict so that we can better serve others. A meeting without conflict is a boring meeting, and we’ve seen truly little value derived from predictable and unexciting meetings, sessions, and workshops.
Internal Conflict
Internal conflict drives fear. All people possess fears. When we allow these fears to control us, we lose our ability to perform. First, we must understand our fears. Once we do, then we can control them. Fears never go away—you simply learn to control your fears.
Once you identify your personal fears, you can find ways to make them work to your advantage. Adrenaline gives you an edge. Remember that the butterflies in your stomach will always be there. You don’t want to remove them. You want to teach them to fly in formation.
Summary
Resolving conflict begins by understanding, clarifying, and confirming the purpose of the object of discussion and argument. When that appeal fails, active listening coupled with extensive challenges will structure the discussion. Appeals are determined by the extent to which the purpose and objectives will be supported by the decision, especially the product, project, departmental, program, business unit, and enterprise objectives.
______
Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools, methods, and activities daily during the week. Therefore, while some call this immersion, we call it the road to building high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Facilitation Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including fully annotated agendas, break timers, and templates. Finally, take a few seconds to buy us a cup of coffee and please SHARE with others.
In conclusion, we dare you to embrace the will, wisdom, and activities that amplify a facilitative leader. #facilitationtraining #MEETING DESIGN
______
With Bookmarks no longer a feature in WordPress, we need to append the following for your benefit and reference
by Facilitation Expert | Mar 23, 2023 | Facilitation Skills, Meeting Support, Meeting Tools
We’ve spoken about the power of questions. But while you know the right questions (in the right order) can lead to answers that stimulate learning, the exchange of ideas, and fuel innovation and performance improvement–HOW do you develop these questions?
Below we offer up three proven methods for developing questions that include conversations, brainstorming, and changing perspectives. Questions, that when applied properly, ensure Meetings That Get Results.
CONVERSATIONS
The quickest and simplest method of developing questions relies on having conversations with others, especially your meeting participants. Develop a list of questions that all stakeholders would like to answer by asking them what questions they would like to answer. Our conversations are considered CONFIDENTIAL so that no one is at risk when ‘speaking their mind.’
Use the following set of stress-tested questions to use during conversations with potential workshop participants, before the session. They are open-ended, precise, and optimally sequenced.
-
- “What do you expect from the session?”
- “What will make the workshop a complete failure?”
- “What should the output look like?”
- “What problems do you foresee?”
- “Who should attend the workshop? Who should not? Why?”
- “What is going to be our biggest obstacle?”
- “What questions do you think we should answer?”
- “What should I have asked that I didn’t ask?”
Example
During our preparation phase, we conducted conversations with meeting participants from a nationally recognized and respected client. After the conversations concluded and duplications were eliminated we developed a list of 39 discrete questions participants were hoping to answer throughout a two-day workshop.
By working with the executive sponsor (e.g., product owner), we developed nine distinct questions that needed to be answered during the workshop, in addition to standard activities like Introduction, Updates, and Conclusion. By distributing a Participant’s Package in advance, we were able to manage expectations. We shared the final questions that would be addressed while letting them know that other questions they raised would not be answered within the two-day timeframe.
The driving question for the session was to determine what could be done to improve client penetration. But we viewed that question as too broad and difficult to answer. The answers would be unstructured and difficult to prevent scope creep. Yet, from conversations in advance, we began to sense how ‘improving client penetration” (Y) was a function of many (Xs).
Nine Stakeholder-Driven Questions
Here are nine of the major questions that our conversations yielded:
- What can we do to improve insights on where clients need to improve? In response, what steps should both we and they take?
- What can we do to improve the quality of our presentation deck as a pre-read, presentation support, or as a stand-alone, leave-behind document?
- What can we do to improve client engagement and satisfaction during our presentation of insights and recommendations?
- What should we do to demonstrate the impact of improvements in customer experience on business results for individual clients?
- What is required to illustrate the impact of customer experience on stockholder value?
- What needs to be done to develop an approach for prioritizing clients with the highest potential for additional sales?
- What might a model of client interaction look like before, during, and after the presentation?
- What model might create thought leadership content for multi-channel distribution that identifies urgent and pervasive issues, risks/rewards of not taking/ taking action, and solutions?
- What should we do to create written stories that increase the perception of our expertise and solutions?
BRAINSTORMING FOR QUESTIONS
Hal Gregerson, Executive Director of the MIT Leadership Center and co-author of “The Innovator’s DNA” and four other books has his clients focus on questions for breakthrough insights.
“Brainstorming for questions rather than answers makes it easier to push past cognitive biases and venture into uncharted territory.”
Staging
Gregerson suggests a straightforward three-step approach that supports the tri-part approach we’ve always advised; i.e., diverge, analyze, and converge. Once a challenge has been identified and articulated, he suggests setting the stage with a heterogeneous group that offers unique perspectives.
Ideating
Leverage the various perspectives using at least two of our Ground Rules of Ideation, namely high energy and no discussion. Stress the latter to provide highly effective facilitation. Do NOT be the first one to violate the rule of no discussion by asking for clarification or additional information when you are in the listing or ideation mode.
Don’t forget to enforce the rules for all other participants as well. Stick to verbatim for the time being, that will probably not exceed six to eight minutes. Enforce participant contributions to come in the form of questions and prohibit answers and ALL discussion during this step. Do not permit framing or justifying the questions during the ideation mode. Strictly enforce contributions that are provided exclusively as questions.
Encouraging
Experience shows that not all questions offer equal value, therefore encourage participants with principles such as:
- Suggest divergent thinking by assigning different perspectives (more on this in the next section)
- Ask for open-ended questions keeping in mind that shorter may be better, but eventually understand that complex questions will yield richer insight than simple questions
- Encourage speculative questions (e.g., What might be?”) rather than simple descriptive questions (e.g., “What’s working?”)
- Strive for evidence-based angles meaning facts, examples, and objective characteristics rather than accusatory or based on WHO rather than WHAT
- Remove fear and any sense of reprisal, providing permission to speak freely
Analyzing
Facilitative tools that help sharpen the questions rely on challenging participants to make their thinking clear. Consider the Five WHYs and SCAMPER as immediate and appropriate challenges.
Keep your challenges focused on the WHY, WHAT, and HOW by de-emphasizing or prohibiting input about WHO, WHEN, and WHERE. Generously challenge modifiers such as adjectives and adverbs with the two best challenge questions:
- What is the unit of measurement of ________________ ?
- To what extent does ______________________________ ?
Consider multiple rounds by using the Perspectives approach explained in the next section. Remember that when a group is in the ideation phase, it is important to elicit ideas from all members of the group. Additionally, consider using break-out groups and mixing them up from round to round.
Testing
Here are some questions you might ask yourself as you develop powerful questions. They are modified from research done by the Public Conversations Project, a group that helps create constructive dialogue on divisive public issues (Adapted from Sally Ann Roth Public Conversations Project c. 1998)
- Is this question genuine—a question to which we don’t know the answer?
- To what extent is this question relevant to the real work of the people who will be exploring it?
- What assumptions or beliefs are reflected in the way this question is worded?
- To what extent is this question likely to invite fresh thinking/ feeling? Is it familiar enough to be recognizable and relevant—yet different enough to demand a new response?
- To what extent will this question generate hope, imagination, engagement, creative action, and new possibilities rather than increase a focus on past problems and obstacles?
- What “work” do we want this question to do? What type of conversation, meanings, and feelings will be evoked by those exploring it?
- To what extent does this question leave room for new and different questions to be raised as the initial question is explored?
CHANGE PERSPECTIVES
In addition to Conversations and Brainstorming, Change Perspectives to develop sharper questions. To prevent or refine questions that are too broad (e.g., “How do we solve global hunger?”), carefully manage the scope of the question. We can more easily develop solutions for hunger among children in coastal Somalia than addressing all of humanity at once. The following is based on the Perspectives Tool found in Chapter Eight of Meetings that Get Results.
Perspectives Tool
This approach to building questions is remarkably powerful and severely underused. When you ask your participants to “walk in someone else’s shoes” by embracing a new perspective, you stimulate participants to change their point of view. More perspectives create more ideas, and more ideas drive decision quality.
The inputs provided by shifting perspectives are not necessarily definitive. By challenging and exploring them, we can surface questions and problems that were not previously considered.
You may ask individuals or Breakout Teams (Chapter 6) to take on new perspectives. I’ve personally witnessed remarkable success using two specific Breakout Teams: monasteries and organized crime (it can be like night and day). I’m also aware of alumni who love contrasting the Apple, Linux, and Microsoft perspectives.
BREAK OUT TEAMS PERSPECTIVES
- WW_D: What Would
Do? Insert analogs of famous people, organizations, or teams. Ask, “What questions would be asked from the perspective of ?” (fill in the blank using one of the items found later in this section).
- Use Breakout Teams to develop questions contrasted with other specific points of view, such as the following:
-
-
- A college or university compared with the military-industrial complex
- A monastery compared with the Mafia or organized crime
- Bill Gates (or Microsoft) compared with Steve Jobs (or Apple)
- Jeff Bezos (Amazon), Sergey Brin (Google), or Mark Zuckerberg (Meta)
- Genghis Khan (warlike) compared with Mohandas Gandhi (peaceful)
-
- Or create your own based on driving forces in your situation, such as antifragile technology (gets stronger), ants (collaborative), Drake or Lizzo (unrepresented voices), or weather (unpredictable yet returns to homeostasis)
NOTE: Use any of the perspectives suggested or make up your perspectives to help participants focus their input from a specific point of view.
INDIVIDUAL (OR TEAM PERSPECTIVES)
The 6-M’s, 7-P’s, or 5-S’s are frequently used as the main “bones” in an Ishikawa diagram. Take and choose from among the following 30 perspectives that are most germane and compelling to your situation to develop sharper questions, namely, what should be asked from each perspective? Take only the most pertinent perspectives related to your situation. For example, asking about machines may be irrelevant to a policy consulting firm, or packaging irrelevant to an organization that provides only services.
The 6-M’s perspectives:
-
- Machines
- Manpower
- Materials
- Measurements
- Methods
- Mother Nature
The 7-P’s perspectives:
-
- Packaging
- Place
- Policies
- Positioning
- Price
- Procedure
- Promotion
The 5-S’s perspectives:
-
- Safety
- Skills
- Suppliers
- Surroundings
- Systems
Perspectives (trends) from the World Future Society
-
Demographic perspectives:
-
-
- Family composition
- Public health issues
- Specific population groups (and so on)
-
-
- Business
- Careers
- Finance
- Management
- Employment (and so on)
-
Environmental perspectives:
-
-
- Ecosystems
- Habitats
- Resources
- Species (and so on)
-
Governmental perspectives:
-
-
- Laws
- Politics
- Public policy
- World affairs (and so on)
-
-
- Culture
- Education
- Leisure
- Lifestyle
- Religion
- Values (and so on)
- Technological perspectives:
-
-
- Discoveries and effects
- Innovation and effects
- Science and effects (and so on)
Six value or utility lever perspectives:
- Convenience
- Customer productivity
- Environmental friendliness
- Fun and image
- Risk
- Simplicity
By shaping your questions around the most appropriate of these 37 Perspectives, you are assured of narrowing scope creep and minimizing wasted time in your meetings.
______
Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools, methods, and activities daily during the week. Therefore, while some call this immersion, we call it the road to building high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Facilitation Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including fully annotated agendas, break timers, and templates. Finally, take a few seconds to buy us a cup of coffee and please SHARE with others.
In conclusion, we dare you to embrace the will, wisdom, and activities that amplify a facilitative leader. #facilitationtraining #MEETING DESIGN
______
With Bookmarks no longer a feature in WordPress, we need to append the following for your benefit and reference
by Facilitation Expert | Feb 23, 2023 | Communication Skills, Facilitation Skills, Leadership Skills, Meeting Structure
The HBR (Harvard Business Review) article, The Surprising Power of Questions by Professors Alison Wood Brooks and Leslie K. John declares that “the secret to being more likable and improving interpersonal bonding isn’t being polite, helpful, or having a good sense of humor. It’s asking more questions.”
This is the first of 2 articles on the Power of Questions.
- FIRST, we’ll explain the power, importance, and special relevancy of using questions in meetings by either the role of facilitator or meeting designer.
- NEXT, check back for Part Two in March, when we’ll help you build powerful questions by providing examples, perspectives, and tips.
“Question everything,” Euripides originally said.
Many consultants have realized that their value add derives less from providing clients answers and more by getting clients to focus on the right questions, in an optimal sequence. Drawing from the behavioral sciences and our research across more than 4,000 alumni who are certified facilitators (see additional evidence-based factors provided in Meetings That Get Results [pg 13] ), note that . . .
“The servant leader does not have answers but rather takes command of the questions. Optimal questions are scripted and properly sequenced. Today, leadership is about asking precise and properly sequenced questions while always providing a safe environment for everyone’s response.”
The Power of Questions
Professional facilitators understand that asking precise and sequenced questions can unlock value in organizations by providing a catalyst. Questions provide the basis for learning, stimulate the exchange of ideas, and fuel innovation and performance improvement. According to Brooks and John,
“Questions can mitigate business risk by uncovering unforeseen pitfalls and hazards . . . For some people, questioning comes easily. Their natural inquisitiveness, emotional intelligence, and ability to read people put the ideal question on the tip of their tongue. But most of us don’t ask enough questions, nor do we pose our inquiries in an optimal way.”
Most meeting time is invested in information exchange. The three most common meeting deliverables are:
- To decide
- To endorse
- To inform
Yet, “to inform” comprises 80 percent of the time invested in meetings. If the information addresses gaps or uncertainties, then the material being presented addresses or answers questions germane to the participants. By having answers to questions, we can presumably reduce the FUD factor caused by change initiatives (fear, uncertainty, and doubt).
After all, if nothing changes after sitting through a deck of slides, what good were they? Therefore, it helps in advance to know and articulate what questions are being addressed by the information exchange.
We can observe and know that for some people, questioning comes easily. Natural curiosity, emotional intelligence, and the ability to read people ease their ability to construct optimal questions. But many people don’t ask enough questions, nor do they pose their inquiries optimally.
A Guide on the Side, Not a Sage on the Stage
Questions and not edicts or mandates advance information exchange. Well-prepared and sequenced questions:
- Build group cohesion
- Create receptiveness to change and development
- Direct teams to look for similarities—for example, apples and oranges are both fruit and similar in shape, size, and weight; they both bruise easily and rot as well
- Help maintain focus within the scope
- Increase learning and innovative thinking
Questions are most effective when presented with an inquiring, probing, and neutral perspective. Effective questions are open-ended discoveries and not opinions disguised as questions. Superb questions convert subjective perspective into objective criteria, making it easier to build consensus:
- “What is the unit of measurement for _________?”
- “What examples have you discovered?”
- “What type of evidence can you provide?”
Ask More Questions
Ask More Questions
Asking a lot of questions unlocks learning and improves interpersonal bonding. Dale Carnegie recommends in How to Win Friends and Influence People to “Ask questions the other person will enjoy answering.” The Harvard research discovered that people simply don’t ask enough questions.
Most people don’t appreciate that asking a lot of questions unlocks improves interpersonal bonding. Presumably, if people understood how beneficial questions can be, “They would end far fewer sentences with a period—and more with a question mark.”
Our workshop curriculum has stressed for more than 15 years the importance of closing with a question such as “What should have I asked you that I did not ask?” Research by others indicates that questions of this nature, even during job interviews, “can signal competence, build rapport, and unlock key pieces of information about the position.”
Sequencing Questions
For optimal meeting design, we’ve stressed and continue to stress the importance of questions to cause meeting traction (i.e., progress or the opposite of distraction) and the equal importance of the sequencing of those questions. For example, when building a new home (residence), eventually you will need to answer “What color do you want the grout to be in the kids’ bathroom?” However, if that is the first question the architect poses, you will likely seek out a new architect.
Sequence is critical. For sequencing, a leader might begin with the least-sensitive questions to build rapport, and then escalate slowly. As a general rule, we should begin the WHY (purpose) first, then open up the world of options (WHAT might be done to support the purpose), and close with HOW we convert the new understanding into Next Steps or an action plan.
For politically charged situations such as business process improvement, consider asking the tougher questions first. Asking tough questions first can make participants more willing to open up. Leslie found that people are more willing to reveal sensitive information when questions are asked in decreasing order of intrusiveness.
When a question asker begins with a highly sensitive question—such as ‘Have you ever had a fantasy of doing something terrible to someone?’—subsequent questions, such as ‘Have you ever called in sick to work when you were perfectly healthy?’ feel, by comparison, less intrusive, and thus we tend to be more forthcoming.”
However, also note that when the intent is to strengthen relationships, opening with less sensitive questions and escalating slowly may be more effective.
Type and Tone of Questions
Brooks and John further mention type and tone as factors to consider. For question types, echoing our sentiments, they encourage the use of open-ended questions. Answers to close-ended questions hide the underlying rationale or reason and offer only three possible responses:
- Yes
- No
- Maybe (conditional)
Tone generally refers to those non-narrative aspects that are difficult to generalize, such as non-verbal clues, vocal intonations, and eye movement. Nevertheless, do not underestimate the power of the “right tone of voice” when asking questions. Note how the following sentence changes simply by shifting the emphasis of one of the three words: I Love You. The first-person emphasis of ‘I love you’ generates a different response than stressing the second word, as in ‘I love you’ and an additional difference is generated when stressing the third word as in ‘I love you.’ To improve your tone, strive to avoid using the first person singular “I” and especially avoid consuming too much air time by droning on and on.
In the words of Brooks and John, “Use energy, humor, and storytelling to engage your partners and avoid talking too much about yourself.” Additionally, participants are more forthcoming when casually asked questions, rather than using an official tone. In general, an overly formal tone will likely inhibit participants’ willingness to share information.
Favor Challenge Questions
“Because?” — my favorite ‘challenge’ question is used very frequently, and as soon as the speaker has uttered their last sound. The ‘Because’ (WHY) question stimulates the subject matter expert to provide some proof, evidence, or something objective, to support their argument. Remember, people typically speak about external observations that are indicative of symptoms and do not represent the true, underlying cause. Consensus is built around causes, not symptoms.
For example, someone may be exhibiting “red eye.” While we could jump to conclusions, we’d probably be wrong. Much easier to find out WHY? For this example, causes could be air quality, allergies, asthenia, etc., and those are only top-of-mind causes that begin with the letter ‘A.’
‘Challenge’ questions provide special power because they signal that you are listening, care, and want the group to explore further. Participants led by a facilitator who challenges frequently feel heard and respected. Additionally, ‘challenge’ questions do not require much preparation, and may become part of your natural style.
Leverage Group Dynamics
Willingness to participate and contribute can be contagious. Willingness to respond openly and innovatively affects other members of the group who tend to follow one another’s lead. Caution however because the opposite is true, as one participant withholds information, others may follow suit. Additionally, Alison’s research revealed that participants tend to like the people asking questions more than those who answer them.
Rhetorical Precision
Creativity and innovation rely on sharp questions that generate novel perspectives and new information. After all, people don’t change their minds, they simply make a new decision based on new information.
Detailed, sequenced questions foster richer interactions, strengthen rapport and trust, and lead to discovery. Brooks and John beautifully summarize the power of questions when they say:
“The wellspring of all questions is wonder and curiosity and a capacity for delight. We pose and respond to queries in the belief that the magic of a conversation will produce a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts . . . mindful of the transformative joy of asking and answering questions.”
In Summary
While we are interested in WHAT participants think, consensus is built around WHY they think that way, and unanimity occurs when your questions and challenges result in objective proof or evidence. Consider the following sequence that demonstrates increasing robustness, by questioning:
- What they know or believe to be true—good
- Why they believe something to be true—better
- Proof for their belief or claim—best
(And don’t forget to avoid DUMB questions—[Dull, Ubiquitous, Myopic, and Broad], by preparing yourself with scripting and rhetorical precision!)
______
Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools, methods, and activities daily during the week. Therefore, while some call this immersion, we call it the road to building high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Facilitation Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including fully annotated agendas, break timers, and templates. Finally, take a few seconds to buy us a cup of coffee and please SHARE with others.
In conclusion, we dare you to embrace the will, wisdom, and activities that amplify a facilitative leader. #facilitationtraining #MEETING DESIGN
______
With Bookmarks no longer a feature in WordPress, we need to append the following for your benefit and reference
by Facilitation Expert | Jan 5, 2023 | Communication Skills, Facilitation Skills, Leadership Skills, Managing Conflict
Dr. Brené Brown’s book on emotions, “Atlas of the Heart” (Mapping Meaningful Connections and the Language of Human Experience), was our most flagged book of 2022. Undoubtedly, here’s why…
Atlas of the Heart builds around the fact that the average American can only identify three emotions: mad, sad, and glad. Since her team studied more than seventy emotions, Brené Brown makes it clear that understanding emotive states is as important as knowing physically where you are or where you’re going. Significantly, people everywhere, are seeking meaningful connections.
Indeed, poor or inaccurate vocabulary (rhetorical precision) challenges most people to understand or explain what they are feeling. Similarly, when meeting and workshop participants are unable to express how they feel, deliverables and accountability for those deliverables are seriously jeopardized.
For example, a majority of us would have a tough time explaining the difference between despair and grief, or calm and tranquility, but “Atlas” makes the differences clear and easy to understand. Therefore, here is an alpha-sorted table of the emotions that “Atlas” explores:
| Admiration |
Defensiveness |
Happiness |
Pride |
| Amusement |
Dehumanization |
Hate |
Regret |
| Anger |
Despair |
Heartbreak |
Relief |
| Anguish |
Disappointment |
Hopelessness |
Resentment |
| Anxiety |
Disconnection |
Hubris |
Resignation |
| Avoidance |
Discouragement |
Humiliation |
Reverence |
| Awe |
Disgust |
Humility |
Sadness |
| Belonging |
Dread |
Hurt |
Sarcasm |
| Betrayal |
Embarrassment |
Insecurity |
Schadenfreude |
| Bittersweetness |
Empathy |
Interest |
Self-compassion |
| Boredom |
Envy |
Invisibility |
Self-righteousness |
| Boundaries |
Excitement |
Irony |
Self-trust |
| Calm |
Expectations |
Jealousy |
Shame |
| Cognitive Dissonance |
Fear |
Joy |
Stress |
| Comparative Suffering |
Fitting In |
Loneliness |
Surprise |
| Comparison |
Flooding |
Love |
Sympathy |
| Compassion |
Foreboding Joy |
Lovelessness |
Tranquility |
| Confusion |
Freudenfreude |
Nostalgia |
Trust |
| Connection |
Frustration |
Overwhelm |
Vulnerability |
| Contempt |
Gratitude |
Paradox |
Wonder |
| Contentment |
Grief |
Perfectionism |
Worry |
| Curiosity |
Guilt |
Pity |
|
Why You Should Care About Meaningful Connections
Whereas effective meetings rely on clear expression, “Atlas” opens with a quotation from Rumi indicating the importance of language to express oneself.
Heart is sea,
language is shore.
Whatever sea includes,
will hit the shore.
While I encourage you to add this book to your library, both as a reference and as an excellent ‘loaner,’ here are eleven “facilitator’s highlights.” In particular, she stresses references or definitions indicating the vital role that language provides to advance consensual understanding by sharing our emotions. Therefore, we all know that clarity and sharing are significant keystones of effective meetings and workshops.
Language and Facilitating Meaningful Connections
Brené Brown begins by touting the importance of language as the primary portal to meaning—allowing connections, learning, and increased awareness. Thus, having access to the right words (read: rhetorical precision) “opens up universes.” Furthermore, each of us contains a unique vocabulary that helps explain why no one is as smart as everyone.
“Without accurate language, we struggle to get the help we need, we don’t always regulate or manage our emotions and experiences in a way that allows us to move through them productively . . . Language shows us that naming an experience doesn’t give the experience more power, it gives us the power of understanding and meaning.”
Painting DONE
While the Agile mindset calls it DONE, business consultants call it a “deliverable.” Steven Covey concurs with his expression, “Start with the end in mind.” Likewise, Brené Brown asks her research staff and team to “paint done.” Markedly, she brings the “right to left” thinking component of our curriculum to life by describing the importance of “painting done.” Also, her method requires visual details as someone is walking her through the expectations of what the completed task will look like, when it will be done, how it will be used, the overall context, and the consequences of not doing it.
Highlighted Emotions When Facilitating Meaningful Connections
Frequently observed in meetings and workshops, the following emotional states have been selected for your review and consideration. Assuredly, “removing distractions” remains the primary rule for all facilitators. However, the following emotions cause noise and distraction, working against the traction you seed to develop among your meeting and workshop participants. Additionally, the highlighted emotions are alpha-sorted so as not to place a stronger emphasis on one over others.
Anger
Anger might not be an emotion. Rather, it is a reflection (symptom) or intensification of many potential emotional causes. Many times, people feel better simply by sharing and talking and getting things “off of their chest.” Use Brené Brown’s book when you want a clearer understanding of the following causes of anger:
- Anxiety
- Confusion
- Depression
- Fear
- Frustration
- Grief
- Guilt
- Helplessness
- Humiliation
- Hurt
- Isolation
- Jealousy
- Loneliness
- Outrage at injustice
- Overwhelming stress
- Rejection
- Sadness
- Shame
Belonging vs. Fitting In
Like earlier Best Practices articles and arguments about the crucial difference between being “nice” and being “kind.” Here are explanations discovered by other experts based on her extensive research:
- Belonging is being somewhere where you want to be, and they want you.
- Fitting in is being somewhere where you want to be, but they don’t care one way or the other.
- Belonging is being accepted for you 🙂
- Fitting in is being accepted for being like everyone else.
- “If I get to be me, I belong. If I must be like YOU, I fit in.”
Confusion
When confusion persists, it’s clearly one of the most valuable times to benefit from a professional facilitator. Confusion is vital to learning, it motivates and triggers problem-solving. When confused, we typically engage in more careful deliberation. Brené Brown refers to a Fast Company article by Mary Slaughter and David Rock with the NeuroLeadership Institute who claim that to be effective, learning needs to be effortful. Liken it to a muscle ‘burn’ when the muscle is being strengthened. The brain needs to feel some discomfort for deep learning.
Connection (a synonym for love)
Brené Brown defines ‘love’ as the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard, and valued; when they can give and receive without judgment; and when they derive sustenance and strength from the relationship. We’re a social species (see Hurari’s “Sapiens”) and that’s why meaningful connections matter.
She stresses that connection is why shame can be so painful and debilitating. We’re wired to be connected, and shame weakens our connections. Note the importance of feeling connected based on her research:
- Living with air pollution increases the odds of dying by five percent.
- Living with obesity—twenty percent.
- Loneliness—45 percent.
Love is defined as “the preoccupying and strong desire for further connection, the powerful bonds people hold with a select few and the intimacy that grows between them, the commitment to loyalty and faithfulness.” Love forms the emotional context from which to strengthen relationships. Strong relationships are an integral part of all high-performance teams.
Google’s research proved that the one characteristic among high-performance teams is the tendency to distribute airtime equally among all participants (i.e., how much time each person talks).
Contempt
Contempt says “I’m better than you. And you are lesser than me.” Today, in the USA, Democrats and Republicans think that each side is driven by benevolence while the other side is evil and motivated by hatred; therefore, an enemy with whom one cannot negotiate or compromise. Identical to the situation among diverse cultures and religions in the Middle East.
According to Arthur Brooks, we don’t need to disagree less, but we need to learn how to disagree better—without contempt and cruelty. We need to replace negative communication patterns with respect and appreciation. A talented facilitator will use ‘challenge’ and ‘discovery’ to surface the driving reasons or rationale behind contempt.
Empathy
Empathy is a tool of compassion, “an emotional skill that allows us to understand what someone is experiencing and to reflect that understanding. Empathy improves interpersonal decision-making because it “facilitates ethical decision-making and moral judgments.” It has been proven to enhance well-being, strengthen relational bonds, and allow people to improve how others see them.
“Empathy is a tool of compassion. We can respond empathically if we are willing to be present to someone’s pain. If we’re not willing to do that, it’s not real empathy.”
Brené Brown focuses on data that surfaces from her research when sourcing Theresa Wiseman’s attributes of empathy:
- Staying out of judgment: Just listen, don’t apply value.
- Recognizing emotions: How can I touch within myself something that helps me identify and connect with what the other person might be feeling?
- Communicating our understanding and confirming its accuracy.
- Perspective taking: What does that concept mean for you? What is that experience like for you?
- Practicing mindfulness (see Kristin Neff).
You may also take a self-compassion inventory at www.self-compassion.org.
Humility
Facilitators should remain humble and exude humility. Humility is not downplaying yourself or your accomplishments. That describes modesty. Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it is thinking of yourself less often.
Joy
The opposite of joy is not sadness, but fear. And FEAR is known to be an acronym for “F#@! everything and run.” FEAR implies a FUD factor that professional facilitators must eliminate or diminish; namely Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt.
Sadness
According to Brené Brown, one of the causes of “human beings engaging in all kinds of cognitive gymnastics aimed at justifying their behavior,” is sadness. Although many have proven the benefits of happiness, sadness provides benefits as well, according to Joseph Gorgas from Australia.
“Sad people are less prone to judgmental errors, are more resistant to eye-witness distortions, are sometimes more motivated, and are more sensitive to social norms. They can act with more generosity too.”
Even Daniel Kahneman would agree, that a group of sad participants will outperform a group of over-confident participants. Think about it, if we are not sad about something, then why have a meeting?
Surprise
Here we find the shortest-duration emotion. Brené Brown describes ‘surprise’ as a bridge between cognition and emotion, rarely lasting more than a few seconds. Although other experts claim a strong relationship between surprise and unexpectedness, she claims surprise is an emotion, but unexpectedness is a cognitive reaction. To improve our understanding of the differences, she references Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know by Wharton professor Adam Grant.
Tranquility
Seek contentment, not tranquility. Here is the difference between being content and feeling tranquil. With contentment, we often have the sense of having completed something. With tranquility, we relish the feeling of doing nothing.
Summary
Professional facilitators do not ignore emotions, they leverage them. Our goal is not to eliminate participant feelings but to harness them in a way that develops a deliverable that everyone promises to accept and support.
______
Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools, methods, and activities daily during the week. Therefore, while some call this immersion, we call it the road to building high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Facilitation Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including fully annotated agendas, break timers, and templates. Finally, take a few seconds to buy us a cup of coffee and please SHARE with others.
In conclusion, we dare you to embrace the will, wisdom, and activities that amplify a facilitative leader. #facilitationtraining #MEETING DESIGN
______
With Bookmarks no longer a feature in WordPress, we need to append the following for your benefit and reference
by Facilitation Expert | May 3, 2022 | Communication Skills, Leadership Skills, Meeting Structure
Whether you’re facilitating a complex meeting or a daily standup, if your meeting participants don’t trust you (or your methods), they will not trust the meeting results.
Robin Dreeke, of People Formula, led the FBI’s Counterintelligence Behavioral Analysis Program. Tips in his book[1], “It’s Not All About Me: The Top Ten Techniques for Building Quick Rapport with Anyone” speak loud and clear to professional facilitators. Below, we’ll examine a few of his recommended techniques for building trust.
Know What Done Looks Like
“The first step in the process of developing great rapport and having great conversations is letting the other person know that there is an end in sight, and it is really close.”
Whether you come from an Agile mindset or waterfall background, leadership begins with a line of site. You must know where you are going. When you don’t, everyone senses that you are groping and lost. Trust begins with the willingness to follow a leader who knows where they are going.
Become Non-verbally Appealing
“When you walk into a room with a bunch of strangers, are you naturally drawn to those who look angry and upset or those with smiles and laughing? Smiling is the number one nonverbal technique you should utilize to look more accommodating.”
Trust should not be assumed, but it can be earned. Your non-verbal and para-verbal signaling is more important than word choice if you want to build trust. You can’t say one thing but display something else. In addition to human connection methods such as empathy, seeking to understand, and avoiding judgments, consider the following:
-
- Tilt your head a bit to the side so you don’t run the risk of looking straight down on people.
- Stand at an angle or a bit to the side and avoid being ‘front and center’ too much. You want to give people visual access to the front and center, whether it’s an easel, screen, or whiteboard. We call this area W.I.P. or the work-in-progress area. When that work is finished, move it to the side for the next content that belongs front and center, not you.
- And of course, smile (sincerely).
Slower Rate of Speech
Research has shown that rapidly speaking in certain situations can increase credibility and even make you sound more intelligent. The goal, however, when meeting new people is to make them feel comfortable. To accomplish this we are better off speaking slower than normal and pausing at times to give people space to absorb what we are saying.
Educators understand Cognitive Load Theory suggesting that any learning experience has three components: 1. Intrinsic load, 2. Germane load, and 3. Extraneous load. Of course, if I say much more on this topic, you will rightfully accuse me of causing cognitive overload. Therefore, if you want more on this topic, I recommend “Effective Education Videos” (I know, ironic eh — an article on videos).
Put on Your Sweater (Hide Rank)
Putting your ego aside and focusing solely on the wants, needs, and opinions of people around you isn’t always easy. But being non-judgmental builds trust.
According to Robin Dreeke, “People who allow others to continue talking without taking their own turn are generally regarded as the best conversationalists.”
Facilitate each topic as a learning opportunity. Seek out the stories of others. Remind yourself that good things happen when we prioritize our two ears over our ego.
Listening Builds Trust
Listening skills build trust quickly, so learn to put your own agenda on hold. We all have agendas. The key to building trust with people, however, is to put our own wants, needs, dreams, and opinions on hold to better learn about the person we are speaking with. After all, the most valuable people take the time to understand what other people value.
As Robin Dreeke says — “When the focus is on the other person and we’re not anxious to tell our own story, we also tend to remember the details. We’re mindful.”
Thoughtfulness
Thoughtfulness doesn’t have to be a big thing. Little gestures like offering a participant who is coughing a cup of water, a mint, a tissue, or even hand sanitizer can go a long way in building trust and rapport.
Questioning
“Once the individual being targeted supplies more words and thoughts, a great (facilitator) will utilize the content given and continue to ask open-ended questions about the same content.”
Focus Builds Trust
According to Robin Dreeke, one of the most reliable trust-builders is our “focus.” After all, as human beings, we frequently prefer different things. One thing we have in common is that we love to know that our voice is being heard and we are truly seen.
Below are five Best Practices articles that reinforce the basis of trust and support the topics we spoke of above.
Remember, nobody is smarter than everybody.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
[1] Adapted from “According to an FBI Behavior Expert, These 10 Techniques Quickly Build Trust with Anyone, by Michael Thompson, Personal Growth, Medium
______
Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools, methods, and activities daily during the week. Therefore, while some call this immersion, we call it the road to building high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Facilitation Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including fully annotated agendas, break timers, and templates. Finally, take a few seconds to buy us a cup of coffee and please SHARE with others.
In conclusion, we dare you to embrace the will, wisdom, and activities that amplify a facilitative leader. #facilitationtraining #MEETING DESIGN
______
With Bookmarks no longer a feature in WordPress, we need to append the following for your benefit and reference
by Facilitation Expert | Apr 7, 2022 | Communication Skills, Facilitation Skills, Leadership Skills, Meeting Support
In “Executive Presence: The Missing Link Between Merit and Success,” Sylvia Ann Hewlett affirms that executive presence is “an amalgam of qualities that telegraphs that you are in charge or deserve to be.”
Fortunately, you don’t need to be born with executive presence. Although, you can find many of the same traits among effective facilitators—traits you can learn and strengthen.
Therefore, the following article explains executive presence and then provides five tips on how to improve your executive presence.
Executive Presence and Facilitation
Dr. Amy Cuddy’s research indicates that executive presence can be calculated. Indeed, her formula suggests that executive presence is a function of Credibility PLUS Ease DIVIDED BY Ego. Significantly, note in the equation below, a very remarkable way to increase executive presence is to reduce the ego. Chiefly, for facilitators and most leaders, that means avoiding the first person singular, “I” or “me.”
Defined: Executive Presence
In our complex, fast-paced world, it is vital to be noticed, heard, and trusted. Executive presence is the ability to radiate a sense of poise, confidence, decisiveness, and dignity. Similarly, executive presence derives from being authentic, building confidence in others, and inspiring others to take meaningful action. Therefore, Executive presence represents a persona that lets everyone around the person know that they are in charge, confident, and capable of leading others. Hewlett claims that executive presence develops from combining three factors:
- Gravitas (how you act)
- Communication (how you speak)
- Appearance (how you look)
When combined, they can make leaders and facilitators the galvanizing force of an organization. Subsequently, employees demonstrating these executive presence skills are often “fast-tracked” or found in leadership positions.
The Characteristics of Executive Presence
When you think of leaders you genuinely admire, most likely they exhibit traits and talents, such as…
- A talent for “painting” a clear vision
- Speaking in such a way that naturally attracts people
- Teaching others how to think: how to plan, how to prioritize, and how to solve problems
- They tell great stories
- They work calmly in high-stress situations
Each of the three sources found in the footnotes has its description of characteristics. Consequently, we’ll show you all of them in the following table and then combine their definitions, as appropriate.
The Characteristics of Executive Presence
| Nine Dimensions |
Eight Traits |
Eleven Factors (Cuddy) |
| Personal |
Character |
Credibility |
| • Passion |
Charisma |
• Foundational: integrity, expertise, preparation |
| • Poise |
Command |
• Inflection patterns |
| • Self-confidence |
Composure |
• Speed of speech or using pauses |
| Communicative |
Conciseness |
• Vocal power and resonance |
| • Candor – communicative |
Confidence |
• Qualifiers, fillers, or “diminishers” |
| • Clarity – communicative |
Connection |
• Props or fidgets |
| • Openness – communicative |
Credibility |
Ease |
| Relational |
|
• Foundational: diet, sleep, exercise |
| • Thoughtfulness |
|
• Stability: grace under fire |
| • Sincerity |
|
• Congruence: external or internal |
| • Warmth |
|
• Connection with others |
|
|
• Authenticity: the ease of self-assurance |
Dimensions of Executive Presence
The following, while not exhaustive, provides ample explanation for understanding the dimensions, traits, or factors of executive presence.
Candor or Credibility
Credibility refers to the language and resources that you use when providing information or direction. It also includes the methods by which you gather information and credit sources. People listen to an executive because of their powerful communication methods and because they believe they’re qualified to present the information. Being interested in truth and honesty, a willingness to accept and engage the organization’s environment as it is, not as you would like it to be.
Clarity or Conciseness
If you can’t articulate it clearly, then you are not ready to communicate it to others. Conciseness includes the ability to present all necessary details without overwhelming others. When possible, create your story and tell it in an intuitively clear and compelling way.
Openness or Character
Character refers to inner traits and values. Those with executive presence often have high emotional intelligence, helping them connect with the organization at all levels. Character also includes ethics and morals and how they influence your work. The willingness to remain neutral and consider other points of view without prejudging them.
Passion or Command
You convince others of your commitment to what you are saying and doing through expression, motivation, drive, and engagement. Your facial expression must match your message when your voice modulates pitch, volume, and pace. Ensure you only speak when making eye contact and manage your eye focus appropriately when communicating with more than one person.
Poise or Composure
An ability to control your emotions, recognize emotions in others and manage your response to them. Composure comprises self-awareness and the ability to present yourself in a disciplined yet engaging manner. A look of sophistication and unflappability that creates the impression you are comfortable in your surroundings and able to handle adversity.
Self-Confidence
Communicate confidence both in what you say and how you say it. Look the part. Choose your wardrobe and accessories carefully. There are many factors to confidence, including nonverbal communication skills and consistency among mannerisms when communicating with team members. An air of optimism and assurance that convinces others you have the required strength, resources, and resolve to initiate and to lead.
Sincerity or Credibility
Filler language such as “um,” “uh,” and “so” immediately detract from executive presence. As do minimizers like “just,” “sort of,” and “this may not be a good idea but…” When someone with a strong executive presence speaks, there is no doubt about the conviction behind their words and the thoughts driving them.
Thoughtfulness or Connection
Connection refers to the interpersonal skills you use to develop professional relationships and encourage productivity. Skills that foster teamwork and include the ability to adapt to new work styles while promoting effective communication.
Warmth or Charisma
You develop warmth through active listening skills. The people you are communicating with need to know your focus is on them. They matter to you. Charisma represents an ability to engage others and encourage them to trust and rely on you. It relies on powerful communication skills, both verbal and nonverbal. Charisma includes the ability to narrow focus to a single situation and how it affects the goals of the organization. It encourages others to interact with you because you have become accessible to others, physically and emotionally.
The contributing factors above have little to do with the content. Instead, they focus on how you package content, question, or challenge it, and explain it through a story. A picture is worth a thousand words, a metaphor is worth a thousand pictures, and a story is worth a thousand metaphors.
FIVE TIPS FOR EXPERT FACILITATION
-
Communicate to Understand and Connect — Reflect the ‘Why’ behind the ‘What.’
Talking is only one part of the communication process. Decision-makers above you will take more notice of your listening skills. Usually, there is more than one right answer, and a good listener develops insight as to the conditions to support various outcomes. Executive presence demands that you control your emotions, sense emotions in others, and facilitate their understanding. Then manage their response. Since they need to own the answer, be open to feedback, engage in interactive communication, and with active listening, reflect the ‘WHY’ behind the ‘WHAT.’
-
Display Quiet Confidence with a Sense of Light-heartedness — It’s NOT thinking less about yourself, it’s thinking about yourself less often.
Be authentically “in the moment.” Welcome witticisms from others. Develop the ability to laugh at yourself. Light-heartedness is the universal language of leadership and confidence. Capturing your audience is not solely about charisma or extroversion. To some, charisma can even reflect a superficial, non-trustworthy characteristic. True confidence comes with undertones of humility. You don’t have to have the answer. You need a method or procedure to lead. It’s NOT thinking less about yourself, it’s thinking about yourself less often.
-
Emanate Conviction and Integrity — When you are honest about their flaws, you become more relatable and trustworthy.
Believe in what you’re saying. Stand, gesture, and move with energy and intention. Avoid body language that says, “I’m nervous” such as a furrowed brow. People trust those who do what they say they will do. They respect others who stand by their convictions and whose values cannot be shaken because they are deeply committed to doing the right thing for the right reason. People are drawn to those with executive presence because they are genuine. When you are honest about their flaws, you become more relatable and trustworthy.
-
Stress ‘WHY’ Before ‘WHAT’ — If the ‘WHY’ is critically important to them, people become self-inspired.
Strategic thinking reflects how all the pieces in an organization are interdependent. Lead others with strategic questions. Focus on why and not who, what, or how. People with executive presence make it a practice to listen, observe, collect, and assess information. When you start your communication with a strong ‘WHY,’ you engage your participants based on their wallet share. If that ‘WHY’ is important to everyone, you should come across as passionate. If the ‘WHY’ is critically important to them, they become self-inspired.
-
Summarize and Apply Powerful Pauses — Take a breath, make eye contact, and be comfortable with the silence.
Use questions to drive consensual understanding. Then give their input a moment to ‘sink in’ before moving on. Take a breath, make eye contact, and be comfortable with the silence. Silence positions you as thoughtful and measured. Then vary your voice with your volume, pacing, pitch, inflection, pausing, and tone to stress inflection points. A lower, rather than higher, pitch connotes authority and expertise. Speaking too quickly reveals nervousness.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
While there are hundreds of articles on the topic and the importance of executive presence, here are a few either referenced above or that we found helpful:
- https://www.harperbusiness.com/book/9780062246899/Executive-Presence-Sylvia-Ann-Hewlett/
- https://www.ted.com/talks/amy_cuddy_your_body_language_may_shape_who_you_are
- https://www.selfleadership.com/blog/executive-presence-definition-strategy
- https://www.executivepresence.com/what-is-executive-presence
- https://www.inscapeconsulting.com/
- https://www.corporateclassinc.com/what-is-executive-presence-training/
- https://booherresearch.com/top-10-tips-to-increase-your-executive-presence-and-expand-your-influence/
- https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/executive-presence
______
Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools, methods, and activities daily during the week. Therefore, while some call this immersion, we call it the road to building high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Facilitation Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including fully annotated agendas, break timers, and templates. Finally, take a few seconds to buy us a cup of coffee and please SHARE with others.
In conclusion, we dare you to embrace the will, wisdom, and activities that amplify a facilitative leader. #facilitationtraining #MEETING DESIGN
______
With Bookmarks no longer a feature in WordPress, we need to append the following for your benefit and reference
by Facilitation Expert | Mar 3, 2022 | Analysis Methods, Meeting Structure, Problem Solving
The purpose of this article is to help you manage and facilitate the transformation of the abstract (sourcing innovative ideas) into the concrete (managing new product concepts).
We hope you beg, borrow, steal, and modify heavily from our technique called Product Concept Management (PCM or Catalyst). Whereas this is the third of three connecting articles, remember to see (1 of 3) and (2 of 3).
Catalyst describes our method for clarifying the “fuzzy front-end” in product development. Meanwhile, the “fuzzy front-end” represents the time and space between a thought (e.g., problem or solution) and the decision to act by first converting the thought into a concrete concept. For your questions or suggestions, please contact us at +01 (630) 954-5880 or by email at info@mgrushfacilitation.com.
Sourcing Ideas
MANAGING CONCEPTS DEPENDS ON QUALIFYING INNOVATIVE IDEAS
Managing innovative ideas relies on one primary task: qualifying innovative ideas As explained in our last article Converting Raw Product Ideas into Polished Product Concepts (2 of 3), managing concepts means improving the certainty of ideas. We do this by adding information to the description of the idea and the pains it cures. Now we more fully explain the skills supporting four primary activities to QUALIFY innovative ideas:
SKILLS REQUIRED
The qualifying activity requires a broad set of skills to interpret product descriptions, envision them being applied in the market, comprehend market structure (distribution, competition, customer segments), and reasonably assess new product idea revenues and profit-generating potential. Since no one person may have the required talents or time to do everything, Catalyst workshops provide a wonderful opportunity for qualifying innovative ideas.
The qualifier role, fulfilled by a single individual or a team, also identifies resources that are needed to complete the idea qualification. Resources may include production and technical experts, engineers, scientists, economists, sales managers, lobbyists, regulation experts, and experts in customers and competitors.
Summary of Qualifying Skills
Qualifying Skills
Reminder about Sourcing Innovative Ideas and Managing Concepts
A fully qualified and complex product concept exceeds one descriptive sentence. The first QUALIFYING task reviews the idea for a minimal description, typically provided by the idea Author. To us, a comprehensive concept might also answer dozens of questions, such as:
A Raw Product Idea Transformed into a Manageable Product Concept with a Checklist of Issues
Technical/Physical Description
Describe the “need” (or “pain”) as a problem, want, or “hankering.” ABCs . . .
A. Ambition Size the opportunity in currency and units/volume
B. Benefits What are the benefits of the product to the buyer/customer? (Economic, emotional, . . .)
C. Choices What are the customer’s/user’s other options to solve the problem, satisfy the need or want, or achieve the improvement? Why? When, where, and how was the idea conceived?
Qualification Checklist
QUALIFYING enhances the character of a new product idea, enabling assessment and further development by adding information to the description of the idea. QUALIFYING also evaluates the idea for commercial potential and technical feasibility. A comprehensive Product Concept (qualified idea) resembles a business case.
SOURCING INNOVATIVE IDEAS
SOURCING innovative ideas requires one primary activity: discovering innovative ideas, and involves several supporting activities. The other activities support retrieval, including storing ideas and providing coaching, feedback, and incentives to idea authors. DISCOVERING innovative ideas depends on structuring a network of sources that feed raw or fragmented product ideas to our PCM technique.
MODES OF DISCOVERY
Continuous (Steady-State) Discovery
We advocate the design of a steady-state discovery apparatus to provide a continuous flow of ideas into Catalyst.
Based on understanding portfolio priorities, targeted markets, and technology priorities, the organization should structure information gathering, invention, and analysis activities to align with their future direction and constraints (available resources). Preferred sources of information might include:
- Channel members
- Competitors
- Customers
- Prospective customers
- Suppliers
Other sources include:
- Analogous markets (surrogate channels and suppliers)
- Experts in government and regulatory affairs
- Experts in specific technical and commercial subjects
Discrete (Singular) Discovery
Sometimes the need develops to seek innovative ideas through singular activities. Singular discoveries do not depend on regular, continuous activities. Discrete activities are similar to steady-state activities but differ in intensity, resource commitment, method, and results. Sources of information in discrete discovery activities are identical to the steady-state mode listed above.
DESIGN OF CONTINUOUS (STEADY-STATE) DISCOVERY
The principal characteristic of continuous DISCOVERY is the identification, training, equipping, and continual communication of resources involved in information gathering, analysis, and ideation.
Building The Network
Designing steady-state DISCOVERY requires identifying, prioritizing, and selecting network sources that can be accessed continuously. The option of actively seeking innovative ideas through intensive problem discovery, solution discovery, and other creative approaches already exists in most organizations – by way of existing customer-facing and other technically oriented resources.
We recommend a role-based network. Primary advantages when constructing a network include:
- Leverages existing reporting and support structures (such as IT for global access; contact between author and development, etc.).
- Leverages resources that are likely most qualified to establish communications between authors and their idea source (e.g., between a salesperson and customer).
- Uses existing resources, logistically positioned to minimize cost and responsiveness to local situations (improves overall performance, responsiveness, and consistency of contact between author and source).
PCM Leverages the Existing Network of Potential Authors and Sources
Summary of Networked Author/Source Characteristics
Technical resources, such as product and manufacturing engineering, laboratory scientists, installers, and field service technicians are valuable resources with “ears” and “eyes” tuned to problem DISCOVERY and pain identification. Customer-facing resources such as sales, marketing, distributors, and executives are valuable resources to listen for market opportunities.
Catalyst Characteristics
Value Chain Approach
Use the value-chain perspective when constructing a PCM SOURCING network. Using the value chain as a guide, PCM identifies participants who can provide innovative ideas. The network includes target market segments from market strategies and focuses on products that harmonize with the product portfolio strategy.
Catalyst Value Chain
Summary of Continuous Discovery Sources and Activities
DESIGN OF DISCRETE (SINGLE-EVENT) DISCOVERY
Discrete discovery mode provides a one-time selection of a method, participants, and target for the information gathering, analysis, or invention activity. Managers or team leaders organize single-event discovery opportunities. We recommend the use of the Problem-Solution Matrix (described below), to identify appropriate methods and tools.
Problem-Solution Matrix Summary
Problem-Solution Matrix
We’ve cut a lot of this series (three connecting articles) to keep each article to 2,000 words. Therefore, let us know where we over-cut or if you need further clarification and we promise to reply promptly.
______
Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools, methods, and activities daily during the week. Therefore, while some call this immersion, we call it the road to building high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Facilitation Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including fully annotated agendas, break timers, and templates. Finally, take a few seconds to buy us a cup of coffee and please SHARE with others.
In conclusion, we dare you to embrace the will, wisdom, and activities that amplify a facilitative leader. #facilitationtraining #MEETING DESIGN
______
With Bookmarks no longer a feature in WordPress, we need to append the following for your benefit and reference
by Facilitation Expert | Feb 10, 2022 | Leadership Skills, Meeting Structure, Meeting Support
As defined in Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary, a team is
“two or more draft animals harnessed to the same vehicle or implement.”
Okay, this may not be how you think of your team, but think about it–it’s a great description of what a successful team looks like. A group of individuals who, by working together, will achieve far more than one individual would working alone.
Empirical evidence supports this simple fact: working teams can accomplish more together than individuals acting separately. Team building through the combination and interaction of experience, abilities, knowledge, commitment, and creativity gives teams a powerful advantage for advancing business change.
Team Building and Building Teams Drives Success
As part of our series on Product Innovation (and our Catalyst Product Concept Management), we recommend the use of facilitated workshops that bring stakeholders, thought leaders, and implementors together with key designers and planners, under the guidance of professional facilitators. The network of individuals required in the analysis, design, and implementation of new products can be overwhelming. The guidance of trained professional facilitators in Catalyst, new product development, and voice-of-the-customer assures the highest integrity. We rely on a proven method that may be adapted to your organization when seeking to support your mission and objectives through product development or process improvement. If you have suggestions about how we can improve this or other Best Practices, please reply or contact us at (630) 954-5880, or by email at info@mgrushfacilitation.com.
Facilitators significantly contribute to organizational effectiveness when they support cohesive teams. The following provides some valuable tips on continuous team-building techniques.
Character of Teams
Teams have the characteristics of working toward a common goal, having shared experiences, and sharing work products for the good of the organization as a whole. Teams produce much more than a collection of individuals when assembled in meetings, sharing information, and following a common agenda.
Effective teams develop their own lexicon, memory, respect, and trust among members. Teams share responsibility, accountability, and glory for their shared output and behavior.
Teams may be built through their time together – or broken. We advocate a deliberate effort to build teams among the participants of your workshop, some obvious and others not-so-obvious.
Team Building
Successful team building can be facilitated despite the obvious challenges of separate priorities, individual goals, and variability of commitment among team members. Yet team building is rarely accomplished as the result of a single staged exercise.
Team building needs to be continuously supported by structuring appropriate events with open and safe exchange of individual biases, ideas, and constructive criticism.
Perform these team-building steps as appropriate:
- Deploy team-building activities throughout your workshop, especially early and upfront.
- Look for agreement beginning with shared mission, vision, and values, and then more detailed team and workshop goals, shared responsibility, and common success factors across products, departments, and business units.
- Plan on using breakout teams frequently, and then use them more often than planned.
- Have the participants perform a self-assessment of their effectiveness as a team at intervals, such as at the close of each day, and engage them in self-diagnosis and remedy.
Team building activities include:
- Staged activities aimed specifically at team building such as business simulations, icebreakers, warm-ups, and situational gaming.
- Activities in the course of the workshop, not apparent as team building activities, such as breakout sessions, combined homework/evening assignments (outside of the workshop), and joint analysis and presentations.
- Identify and reinforce common ground. Where two or more participants exhibit differing goals within the workshop, identify the common elements of their positions while concurrently recognizing their differences. Work to amplify the importance of their commonality to support organizational objectives, yet carefully probe for differences. Differences attributable to uncommon vocabulary or objectives imposed by others not attending the workshop, or even no longer with the organization.
- Most importantly, seeks to determine if challenges to team building are endemic to the culture that must implement the solution formed by the team. If so, share your observations and concerns with the executive sponsor(s) or product owner. The sponsor should structure appropriate action that needs to take place outside of your meetings and workshops.
Within MGRUSH, workshops represent much more than just a generic technique. Workshop design achieves a specific set of results and furthers the design and implementation of change in very specific ways.
Workshop Design and Focusing
The focusing stage of workshops develops a clear understanding of the mission, scope, and objectives of the workshop for all participants, and by extension, those indirectly supporting the workshop (such as sponsors, supporters, and other stakeholders).
Orientation and Focusing
The focusing stage occurs during orientation or early in the launch to:
- Introduce the project or product
- Launch the team
- Introduce the sponsor(s)
- Review and confirm the business purpose
- Confirm the mission, scope, and objective of the project or product
- Identify management priorities, concerns, opportunities, challenges, and constraints
- Identify and articulate the motivating concerns driving this project or product
- Affirm expectations about deliverables, performance, timing, work product, behavior, and other characteristics during development
- Identify additional workshop/project participants, sources (SME or Subject Matter Experts), and beneficiaries
- Management commitment — This is NOT to be obtained during the focusing stage of the workshop. Commitment is already obtained. Here the commitment is expressed and stressed to the workshop participants
Focusing preparation
Complete the following steps to launch team building prior to significant events, ceremonies, and workshops.
- Identify participants
- Notify participants of their involvement and contributing roles
- Confirm the availability of participants
- Reserve facilities, equipment, and refreshments
- Learn about workshop participants’ subject matter expertise
- Review techniques, work products, tools, issues, and challenges
- Create materials to be used during the workshop (or a version of previously created materials)
- Prepare likely assignments for breakout sessions
- Draft likely assignments for home/evening work
- Prepare “seed content” for discussions (to be used if the participants are slow to share their points of view, concepts, or insights)
- Prepare and review (with sponsors, and organizers) the workshop agenda; revise it as necessary
Focusing implementation
Complete the following steps that support team building during the workshop.
- Perform the warm-up/startup activities
- Welcome the participants
- Confirm workshop purpose, scope, and deliverables
- Review workshop agenda
- Review workshop/project “ ground rules”
- Confirm workshop/project mission, scope, and objectives
- Set expectations for deliverables and work product objectives
- Obtain commitment, identify principles, values, and organization policies
- Develop and articulate the case for action
- Identify supporting participants
- Document material presented, covered, analyzed, discussed, decisions reached and tabled, and open issues
- Wrap-up session and daily activities
- Close workshop
Focusing work products
The focusing workshops should also validate or produce work products, including:
Workshop:
- Mission statement
- Business purpose statement (may be pre-prepared)
- The case for action or charter
- Team principles, values, and (applicable) policies (that govern team behavior)
- Statement of “success” – what it looks like
- Critical success factors
- Risk factors and risk management approaches
Project or product plan
- Statement of work
- Project organization chart
- Project GANTT chart or sprint sequence
- Staffing and support plan
- SME identification
- Team member profiles
Next Steps
- Assignments
- Open issues
- Meeting schedule and agenda
Supporting In-formation
This activity identifies and articulates the motivating concerns that create the need for this project or product, such as (these are not exclusive of each other):
- Market threats
- Cost position, trends
- Customer needs and personas
- Financial, and market performance shortcomings
- Growth and stability (or lack of)
- Strategic position
- Position company for sale, increased valuation
- Repair history of too few new products
- Improve culture and morale
In the context of the motivating concerns, focusing and launch articulates the impact of action and inaction. Work product should include:
- State likely outcomes if the company/organization proceeds on its current path
- Reveal probably outcomes due to actions of customers, competitors, others
- State value/impact of an improvement in product concept management
- State value/impact of no action regarding product concept management
Best Practices / Lessons Learned
The organization and team may benefit from a scan of other practices, ambitiously seeking “best practices” from which they might model or derive “lessons learned.” This scan identifies or articulates activities of other units within the organization and its competitors or others that can be modeled for their product concept management activity. The content of the “best practices / lessons learned” session will likely include:
- Current PCM (Product Concept Management or Catalyst) practices
- History of PCM efforts
- PCM and NPI (new product ideation) efforts of other organizations
In the context of the best practices/lessons learned, this workshop activity articulates the organizational knowledge about PCM and new product ideation. We often think of PCM as a process that encourages plurality and most often includes
(a) the new product ideation activity and
(b) the business case evaluation
but is most distinguished as being sandwiched between these two more visible activities. Orientation and focusing activities articulate and permit comparison of past, current, and developmental efforts at PCM by other parts of the organization, its competitors, suppliers, and other third parties.
Work product should include:
- Organizational units having new product ideation processes, experience, process flow, and lessons learned
- Product or process surrogates or business units have had, have, or are developing PCM, its reason for being, experience, process flow, and lessons learned
- Organizational units having business case development processes (often the first stage of a Stage-gate-like product development process), and description of the process, its reason for being, experience, process flow, and lessons learned
______
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Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
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by Facilitation Expert | Jan 6, 2022 | Meeting Structure, Prioritizing, Problem Solving
Product Concept Management (PCM or Catalyst) is the technique of designing, implementing, and continuously managing the ideation, gathering, qualifying, maintenance, archiving, and evaluation of new product ideas into fully polished concepts.
This article advances a 3-step method you can use to transform new product ideas into innovative sources of revenue and increased efficiencies. If you have suggestions about how we can improve this or other Best Practices, please reply or contact us at (630) 954-5880, or by email at info@mgrushfacilitation.com.
Converting new product ideas into full product concepts requires numerous disciplines, including technical, information systems, creative, marketing, and financial management. This cross-functional demand on an organization is often the point of failure for most organizations in their attempts to maintain a fertile pool of new product ideas.
A NEW PRODUCT IDEA TECHNIQUE
The PCM technique comprises three major steps: “SOURCE” ideas, “MANAGE” ideas (into complete concepts), and “USE” concepts for further evaluation and possible development. These three steps have numerous activities embedded within them.
The most significant step of PCM is to publish (USE) a concept for further development. Without the movement of a product concept onto commercial development, there is no useful work accomplished. At the same time, most businesses focus today on the SOURCING step. That is the SOURCE and volume and “creativity” of the ideas put into the system for consideration.
With our PCM technique, the bulk of activity occurs during the MANAGE step. PCM holds that ideas are raw, slight notions of a product or business opportunity. Most new product people face having enough “good” ideas. In truth, many ideas are “good,” but suffer from a lack of certainty about their future opportunity. In our view, this is what distinguishes good ideas – their degree of certainty. We define the MANAGE step in PCM as the set of activities that convert new product ideas into polished product concepts. The concepts are then available for serious consideration and additional investment.
Polished Product Concept Technique (PCM or Catalyst)
Step
|
Description
|
Leads To…
|
1. SOURCE
|
The SOURCE step captures the “authoring” activities where ideas arise—invented, gathered from others, or derived from analysis. Ideation occurs here, from employees, vendors, customers, and field people. Ideas may originate spontaneously, through analysis, or by listening well.
Authors must introduce their ideas in the best form they are able to provide. Groups and teams serve as combined authors.
The requirements are low for what is considered an idea, although expectations are high for the effort invested by authors when describing their idea(s). |
MANAGE step |
2. MANAGE
|
The MANAGE step converts ideas into tangible concepts, making them available to others over an extended period.
The principle behind qualifying ideas is that all ideas are ‘good,’ but that in their description they carry varying degrees of certainty. The impact of the degree of certainty is that the most ill-formed idea, which is expected to have high potential – with a high degree of certainty – would easily attract investment for further development. Similarly, an elegant idea known to have poor revenue prospects – with certainty – would attract little investment. PCM adds value by reducing uncertainty that matches well with decisions and investments.
PCM views that all ideas have value – for someone at some time. Ideas and concepts can have long shelf lives, and some are known to be recognized years after they were first written down. The MANAGE step receives catalogs, stores, updates, files, and fashions ideas into concepts. |
“Use” step |
3. USE
|
The USE step provides the first decision on the future use of an idea. The SOURCE and MANAGE steps treat all ideas with a consistent level of interest. The USE step selects ideas from the database and pushes them further, such as a business case. The selection process operates like a query. The reviewer decides on the traits of the idea that will fit the strategic, tactical, portfolio, financial, technical, and social needs. Ideas that satisfy the selection criteria may then be advanced further. |
Business evaluation |
WHERE PCM FITS IN NPD
A Typical Gated Process
The gated new product development process consists of activities that evaluate, screen, and develop new products. With a gated process, investments in new products match their potential. New product ideas are refined for their commercial success. Products that appear not to be winners are screened or deleted for further development at one of the gates. The earlier a poor-performing product is screened, the more efficient the process.
The “Stage-Gate™” process from Dr. Cooper of Ontario, Canada[1] has five gates as shown below, and starts with the premise of “a great idea.”
The activities of getting new product ideas, gathering them, and turning them into valid opportunities are often missed. Like the Stage-Gate process, most start with the presumption of “the great idea.” They focus on developing the product, not filling the hopper with complete and robust “ideas.”
PCM revolutionizes the new product development (NPD) process by providing a disciplined method to manage a pool of problems and solutions. PCM fits in front of every NPD process because they all begin with the presumption of a great idea.
The Fit of PCM in Gated Processes
PCM contains a lot of activities (activities to design, use, ideate, gather, qualify, maintain, store, and assess new product ideas) to support the overall goal of building a well-managed source of qualified new product concepts for managers.
We defined three major steps to PCM: SOURCE, MANAGE, and USE. (Using the metaphor from publishing, we also refer to the three steps as Authoring, Editing, and Publishing. The distinct roles for participants in PCM are therefore: Author, Editor, and Publisher.)
Roles in a new product idea transformation
PCM is built with Six Sigma methods in mind. In keeping with the spirit of Six Sigma, we will discuss each of the PCM steps using the “right to left” method. Most processes flow from left to right (from inputs to outputs) in a process flow diagram. We will explain from the output back (left) towards the required inputs. This article then focuses on the USE step. Our next and final article (3 of 3) provides more detail on the MANAGE and SOURCE steps.
USE (Publishing — developed product concept)
The USE step reviews ideas for their desirability. When an idea is found to be attractive, it is moved into the next step of a group’s new product process. The USE stage selects ideas that demand more investment. Poor judgment in this stage corrupts the new product process, wastes time and money, and weakens market position.
The USE step is not necessarily a continuous process. It is a discrete activity that occurs when a reviewer has a need or desire to add a new product to his/her new product development portfolio. Thus, the interaction between the MANAGE step and the USE step is intermittent, and largely driven by the event of a “query,” or an attempt by a reviewer to identify another idea worthy of new product development.
USE Step Activities
Descriptions of USE Step Activities
Activities
|
Description
|
Query
|
Submit a query to identify ideas that are of interest or value. |
Review
|
Examine ideas returned by the query. Prioritize ideas for their fit and attractiveness. |
Select
|
Apply explicit (and implicit) criteria and identify ideas worthy of further development. |
Modify
|
Some ideas may be enhanced or made acceptable by changes imposed by the reviewer. Ideas that can be improved in their accuracy (of forecast or technical feasibility), or improved in their acceptability, are modified by the reviewer. |
Feedback
|
As conditions change, information is provided to the qualifier to guide future qualifications. As ideas are reviewed, information about the quality of the evaluations is provided to the qualifier. |
Direct
|
Direct the qualifier about required and desired analysis, information, and output formats. |
MANAGE (Editing)
The core activity in the MANAGE step improves new product idea quality while storing them. When a new product idea comes from an author, it is added to the idea database. The idea is also qualified so that it can be reviewed by an editor.
MANAGE Step Activities
QUALIFYING
The primary activity in the MANAGE step is “QUALIFYING” an idea. The qualification process is comprised of four activities: Interpretation, Investigation, Analysis, and Forecasting.
Description of MANAGE Step Activities
Activities
|
Description
|
Log
|
Review recent ideas. Assess for completeness and prioritize for qualification. (If there are more than one qualifier or multi-person (team) qualifiers, assign the team.) |
Qualify
|
|
|
|
Judge the idea for clarity. As needed, speak with the author to further describe, clarify, and refine the idea.
Interpret an idea for its commercial and technical content (may contain industry, segment, and other specific vocabulary and meaning).
Review the idea for completeness, and get the idea author to provide more information.
Detect the timeframe for use of the idea (near-term, distant, event-triggered, etc.). |
|
|
Assess the information to adequately qualify for the opportunity. Identify sources of information and required methods.
Perform an investigation of the ideal opportunity. Gather information about marketing, distribution, technical development, production, customer demand, competition, and regulation. |
|
|
Analyze the opportunity for (1) technical feasibility; (2) customer appeal and purchase behavior; (3) fit with distribution channels; (4) competitive options and positioning, (5) trends and future market conditions; and (6) fit with existing product portfolio, cannabilistic impact, and marketing strategies.
Determine market(s) size or impact on customer lifetime value. Build assumptions. |
|
|
Forecast revenue stream, investment, and timing. |
Store
|
Finish documentation; update idea database. |
Archive
|
Assess the inventory of ideas for relevance. |
Feedback
|
Feed back to idea authors about the status of their submittals. (Not intended to provide direction to authors about the likelihood of an idea being used for more development.) |
Coach
|
Give support to authors to encourage submissions and enhance the completion of their ideas, including support around customer motivation, competitive choices, and tangential uses. |
SOURCE (Authoring — capturing new product ideas)
The core activity in the SOURCE step is discovering ideas, and describing them sufficiently to be added to the PCM organization. When a new product idea is conceived, it is first put to paper to describe – as well as the author can – the need for, performance, and benefits of the new product idea.
SOURCE Step Activities
Articulated ideas are added to the company’s idea database. The SOURCE step is ongoing as well as ad hoc, built of (possibly) many sources of ideas. There are three primary types of DISCOVERING activities: Invent, Gather, and Analyze.
DISCOVERING
SOURCING is the most complex, far-flung, and resource-intensive activity of the three major steps within PCM. When launched on a wide scale, SOURCING spans time (present and future opportunities), spans the organization (engineering, marketing, service, and manufacturing, e.g.), and spans the marketplace (suppliers, distributors, customers, potential customers, e.g.). Thus, SOURCING places great demands on the PCM group to properly direct, manage, and resource activities to gather new product ideas.
Description of SOURCING Step Activities
Activities
|
Description
|
Discover
|
|
√ Invent
|
Conceive ideas about problems and potential solutions. |
√ Gather
|
Observe and collect the points of view of others. |
√ Analyze
|
Compare ideas to product line gaps, competitors’ offerings, and future trends. |
Articulate
|
Express an idea in a form that gives adequate information to qualify further. |
Submit
|
Input of an idea for qualification (usually into an idea “hopper” or database). |
Motivate
|
Provide reasons to authors to build and submit ideas. Can be the design and use of incentives and performance rewards. |
Train
|
Prepare authors to invent, analyze, or gather ideas or idea fragments by providing instruction in various methods of problem/opportunity recognition and idea formation. |
Equip
|
Furnish authors with direction in the areas where ideas are desired, and by giving them tools, templates, and equipment to identify problems/opportunities, and clarify ideas. |
Our summary spares you, the reader, from many of the details found in the transformation of new product ideas. For more information, simply drop us a note at info@mgrushfaciltation.com. Our final article (3 of 3) in this series will focus on details that support the MANAGING and SOURCING steps.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[1] Business Horizons, Volume 33, Issue 3, May–June 1990, Pages 44-54, Stage-gate systems: A new tool for managing new products, Robert G.Cooper
______
Don’t ruin your career by hosting bad meetings. Sign up for a workshop or send this to someone who should. MGRUSH workshops focus on meeting design and practice. Each person practices tools, methods, and activities daily during the week. We call it the road to building high-value facilitation skills.
Our workshops also provide a superb way to earn up to 40 SEUs from the Scrum Alliance, 40 CDUs from IIBA, 40 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) based on Federal Acquisition Certification Continuous Professional Learning Requirements using Training and Education activities, 40 Professional Development Units (PDUs) from SAVE International, as well as 4.0 CEUs for other professions. (See workshop and Reference Manual descriptions for details.)
Want a free 10-minute break timer? Sign up for our once-monthly newsletter HERE and receive a free timer along with four other of our favorite facilitation tools.
Go to the Training Store to access proven, in-house resources, including detailed agendas, break timers, and templates. Finally, take a few seconds to buy us a cup of coffee and please SHARE with others.
In conclusion, we dare you to embrace the will, wisdom, and activities that amplify a facilitative leader. #facilitationtraining #MEETING DESIGN
______
With Bookmarks no longer a feature in WordPress, we need to append the following for your benefit and reference
