“Facilitation: Strategies for Success”
Facilitation is a set of tools and methods that help you effectively organize the discussion of issues in a group. It means “facilitating the process”, as the facilitator moderates the discussion, helps its participants stay productive, and keeps track of the progress of the conversation. Facilitation is often used in the fields of education and psychology, although the term implies that facilitation techniques are also used in pedagogy, in press meetings, during brainstorms, and in meetings of boards of directors.
Talk about facilitation first started in 1965, when American psychologist Robert Zions experimented with cockroaches. Research has shown that when cockroaches are kept in pairs and under the supervision of other cockroaches, they navigate simple labyrinths better. But the cockroaches passed the difficult labyrinth better alone and without any supervision. This “moderation effect” interested psychologists, as a result of which they conducted several more experiments and found that moderation affects people similarly. This is how Social Facilitation began: Robert realized that working conditions affect its quality. In the 80s of the twentieth century, this theory was introduced in the field of education, and only then it was used in the field of business.
Today, meeting facilitation, of course, is not about cockroaches. It’s about knowing the rules, a positive attitude towards all participants in the process, and tuned optics and tools.
- Time Management– Time management is necessary to complete the discussion within the time limit.
- Active listening – Without this, the facilitator will not be able to moderate the sessions successfully. This skill comes under empathy skills. You have to maintain eye contact, remain relaxed and natural, as well as remain alert, and avoid evaluating the ideas expressed. This will be difficult for a person who wants to speak quickly, because the role of the facilitator lies, among other things, in not interrupting the conversation or monologue.
- Ability to ask questions – If the facilitator is afraid to ask the discussion participants anything, to interrupt them, and to clarify things, the outcome of the discussion will not be of the quality one would like to see. Questions should be such that they cannot be answered in one word “Yes” or “No”.
- Objectivity – The further away the facilitator is from the topic of conversation, the better. It is important to remain impartial and not judge critically.
- Adaptability – Due to the different personalities and motivations of the conversation participants, the conversation is likely to not go as planned, so the facilitator must be able to adapt to any situation. You can create several meeting scenarios in advance, so you won’t be confused if something doesn’t go as planned.
- Ability to communicate – You will have to interact with a variety of people, so communication skills (and the ability to not lose your temper quickly) will come in handy. By the way, this also includes the ability to use non-verbal communication: gestures and movements, facial expressions. The ability to create an environment in which participants are included in the discussion process also falls under the competence of facilitator communication.
- Understanding the dynamics of conversation – This quality will be needed to remove inequalities in the group and equalize roles. It’s important to learn to appreciate the group’s energy and maintain it, no matter how awkward it may seem. You must be able to increase or decrease energy levels, which takes training and practice.