A supervisor who also makes a good leader can be often asked to facilitate rather than instruct or chair meetings, training sessions, and other small groups. Sometimes it is difficult to make that transition to facilitator.
A facilitator’s role is to create an environment where people can do their best thinking. To do this, a facilitator must:
- Encourage full participation
- Promote mutual understanding
- Enable group members to search for inclusive solutions
- Teach new thinking or problem solving skills
They also help groups cultivate shared responsibilities and build sustainable agreements (agreements that participants will follow through with).
Most groups need support to solve tough problems on their own. The need to learn to build a shared framework of understanding. Without realizing it, most people edit their thinking before they speak. Who wants their ideas criticized before they are fully formed? Who wants to make an effort to express a complex idea if others are whispering, doodling, or watching the clock? They dread conflict and discomfort and they try hard to avoid it. They need a facilitator!
Since we often work collaboratively within our groups and even across organizations, facilitation skills are essential for leaders. To facilitate means that you understand how to present yourself as a content neutral party who doesn’t take sides or express a point of view, but instead helps the group accomplish their work (not your work) through fair, open, and inclusive methods.
Key Behaviors for a Facilitator
- Establish ground rules.
- Get agreement on process.
- Get agreement on content/outcome.
- Stay neutral and stay out of the content.
- Be positive. Adopt a win-win attitude.
- Suggest a process.
- Educate the group.
- Get permission to enforce process agreements.
- Get the group to take responsibility for actions.
- Get ownership of the agenda.
