Tag: Facilitator

  • What is a Trainer? What is a Facilitator?

    A pet peeve of mine: Trainers who either lecture or simply read their slides, but who call themselves “facilitators”. Training and facilitation are very different animals.

    Different Roles, Different Skills

    A trainer absolutely must be a content expert. Surely, the best trainers integrate facilitative techniques to make learning easy, but at core they must “know their stuff” intimately.

    Great facilitators need not be content experts. In fact, sometimes those who run meetings the best are those who know least about the subject. Instead, they focus on the quality of the process itself.

    This chart shows the core differences between being a content expert and a facilitator.

    Con­tent Expert or Facil­i­ta­tor?

    Con­tent Expert (Tell)

    Facil­i­ta­tor (Ask)
    Presents Infor­ma­tion Guides Process; Ensures Multi-Directional Com­mu­ni­ca­tion
    Pro­vides the Right Answers Pro­vides the Right Questions
    Clear Purpose (and Learning Outcomes if Training) Clear Outcomes for the Group’s Process

    Are You a Trainer or a Facilitator?

    If you are a trainer, your best bet is to combine the roles shown in the chart. This will ensure you’re doing your job as a content expert while eliciting robust engagement and involvement.

    If you are facilitating a meeting but must impart information at some point, inform folks what you are doing. When you unexpectedly begin to tell instead of ask, confusion arises and engagement shuts down.

    Let’s make a pact right now to always be clear on what role we are embodying. Are we training? Or are we running a meeting? Our understanding makes the process more clear, and easier, for everyone.

    Give your training skills a lift with The Kite Workshop! Contact Guila today.

  • Who Cares About Facilitation Skills?

    by Guila Muir
    info@guilamuir.com

    Why Facilitation Skills are Important: A different kind of power (more…)

  • How to Prevent Meetings from Hell

    A creative business team busy at a meetingWith technology forcing constant change in our workplaces, the true “hot commodity” over the next twenty years will be meaningful, face to face contact. However, that contact must be productive. Increasing facilitation skills – of all employees – is key.

    Over 80% of my training participants tell me that the number of meetings they must facilitate has increased dramatically over the last two years. “It’s not really in my job description, but with all the team work and collaborative efforts these days, I have to facilitate – and facilitate competently,” said one participant.

    A recent article in USA Today estimates that business professionals spend between 25% to 60% of their time in meetings. They report that 50% of that time is unproductive. “So often, people get into a meeting and talk around an issue,” says Beryl Loeb, a consultant in Needham, Mass. “Then they have to meet again.” No wonder meetings are the butt of Dilbert jokes!

    Effective facilitation is the key to effective meetings. Anyone who’s participated in a focused, well-facilitated meeting can attest to its results: increased productivity, focus and accountability. The most productive meetings are often also the most enjoyable. Yet most people learn to facilitate meetings by “the seat of their pants” – and end up repeating the same mistakes.

    The Importance of Facilitator Development

    Building “in-house” facilitation skills is the way to save money on external facilitators, ensure that all meetings are productive and address the demand for increased participation in decision-making. Developing a home-gown cadre of expert facilitators pays off. Over the last three years, the Seattle Police Departments’ Community and Information Services Bureau has trained approximately 250 supervisors, managers and staff in basic and advanced facilitation skills. These facilitators currently facilitate hundreds of more effective meetings – both in the community and in the Department. Social service agencies, city municipalities, corporations, parks and recreation programs and Court Administrators are also benefiting from improved in-house facilitation skills.

    Let’s counter the cynicism and low morale bred by badly-run meetings. With the right skills, anyone can facilitate. Consider investing in developing the facilitation skill levels of all your employees!