Meeting Facilitation Training

Meeting facilitation training can help you as a leader or manager get the most out of meetings.

YAWN! "I hate meetings!"

Sound familiar? If not, either you're getting it right, or you're hopelessly out of touch with what your team needs.

Yes, whether you know it or not, people hate meetings more than most of their work activities. In fact, many people would do anything to get out of a meeting.

So it's time to shake the boat a little. Learn how to facilitate meetings that meet objectives and leave people knowing that they have made a contribution.

These articles will give you some of the information you need to think about.

Facilitation theories,
Emerging facilitation technologies,
Lessons learned in facilitation,
Fast facilitation,
Structured facilitation,
Process facilitation,
Effective group facilitation,
Adolescent group facilitation,
Facilitation roles,
Small group presentations,
Training facilitation courses,
Facilitation skills and retreats,
Power point presentation on group facilitation.
Learn about effective Team Work.

Meeting Facilitation Objectives!

The objective of a meeting is not to give the leader/manager the opportunity to speak most of time. As the boss, you may think that pushing your agenda is what it's all about. But then you lose the value of your team's input and the chance to bring them on board. As a result, you may find, when they walk out the meeting, nothing gets done.

Be clear about the facilitation meeting objectives.

What is the final outcome that needs to be achieved?

What is the problem that needs solving?

What is the purpose of the meeting?

Is the purpose clear to everyone who attends the meeting?
How do I facilitate a meeting so members can know that they are a contribution?

Your role is to facilitate the highest level of participation so that the meeting objective can be achieved. In other words you make it easy for the team to solve the problem or come up with next best idea.

Your role is to:

Ask questions,
Encourage deeper thinking and creativity,
Bring awareness into the room,
Work with the team roles and dynamics,
Help people to stay focused,
Look for the unsaid, retain a degree of neutrality,
Provoke, listen and encourage,
And, on the rare occasion you'll add your peals of wisdom,
Or add missing information.

Effective Meeting Facilitation Training!

Do you stand in front and take a teacher or lecturer style? STOP! People learn best when they are doing, not listening.

The best training is experiential. The course needs a facilitated style not a teacher style.

People need to practise. Set up plenty of opportunity for participants to facilitate meetings in a safe way.

If you are not able to attend a course, we suggest you introduce the techniques you learn here slowly. Practice one technique at a time. A gradual start will give you the chance to learn from your mistakes, and give your team time to become familiar with a different style.

A Meeting Facilitation Scenario!

Set up scenarios in the meeting facilitation training for people to practise their facilitation skills. Create a range of meeting facilitation scenarios, from easy through to difficult. Make time for participants to give feedback.

Some scenarios you can consider are:

Encourage people to blow up the power point presentation style of leading a meeting.

And you can start by exploding your own style of leading the meeting facilitation training.

Some scenarios you can set up:

Conflict situation,
Creative brainstorming,
KPI meeting,
Crisis situation,
An angry team member,
Non participating team members,
A feedback or planning meeting.

Be bold with the scenarios. Make it safe for people to take risks. Give constructive feedback along the way.

Tips for the Meeting Facilitator

You may wear a suit to work but you don't have to be the suit.

And leave the teacher, manager and boss in you, outside the room.

Avoid boardrooms.

Big tables block communication, creativity and connection. It's the killer of all killers. Especially during the meeting facilitation training.

If you must use a table, find a round one.

Continue meeting facilitation tips and techniques in Part II

Return from Meeting Facilitation Training to Kalavati Homepage

footer for meeting facilitation training page