facilitate

A facilitator is someone who helps a group of people understand their common objectives and assists them to plan to achieve them without taking a particular position in the discussion. The facilitator will try to assist the group in achieving a consensus on any disagreements that preexist or emerge in the meeting so that it has a strong basis for future action. The role has been likened to that of a midwife who assists in the process of birth but is not the producer of the end result.

Definitions

There are a variety of definitions for facilitator:

• "An individual who enables groups and organizations to work more effectively; to collaborate and achieve synergy. She or he is a 'content neutral' party who by not taking sides or expressing or advocating a point of view during the meeting, can advocate for fair, open, and inclusive procedures to accomplish the group's work" - Doyle^[1]

• "One who contributes structure and process to interactions so groups are able to function effectively and make high-quality decisions. A helper and enabler whose goal is to support others as they achieve exceptional performance" - Bens^[2]

• "The facilitator's job is to support everyone to do their best thinking. To do this, the facilitator encourages full participation, promotes mutual understanding and cultivates shared responsibility. By supporting everyone to do their best thinking, a facilitator enables group members to search for inclusive solutions and build sustainable agreements" - Kaner^[3]

Types

Business facilitators

Business facilitators work in business, and other formal organisations but facilitators may also work with a variety of other groups and communities. It is a tenet of facilitation that the facilitator will not lead the group towards the answer that he/she thinks is best even if they possess an opinion on the subject matter. The facilitator's roles is to make it easier for the group to arrive at its own answer, decision, or deliverable.

Training facilitators

Training facilitators are used in adult education. These facilitators are not always subject experts, and attempt to draw on the existing knowledge of the participant, and to then facilitate access to training where gaps in knowledge are identified and agreed on. Training facilitators focus on the foundations of adult education: establish existing knowledge, build on it and keep it relevant. The role is different from a trainer with subject expertise. Such a person will take a more leading role and take a group through an agenda designed to transmit a body of knowledge or a set of skills to be acquired.

Skills

The basic skills of a facilitator are about following good meeting practices: timekeeping, following an agreed-upon agenda, and keeping a clear record. The higher-order skills involve watching the group and its individuals in light of group dynamics. In addition, facilitators also need a variety of listening skills including ability to paraphrase; stack a conversation; draw people out; balance participation; and make space for more reticent group members (Kaner, et al., 1996). It is critical to the facilitator's role to have the knowledge and skill to be able to intervene in a way that adds to the group's creativity rather than taking away from it.

A successful facilitator embodies respect for others and a watchful awareness of the many layers of reality in a human group.

In the event that a consensus cannot be reached then the facilitator would assist the group in understanding the differences that divide it.

The International Association of Facilitators was founded in 1993 to promote facilitation as a profession.

See also

• Meeting Roles

References

Bibliography

• Ingrid Bens (Author); Facilitating With Ease!: A Step-by-Step Guidebook with Customizable Worksheets on CD-ROM, Jossey-Bass, ISBN 0-7879-5194-3, (2000)
• Sam Kaner with Lenny Lind, Catherine Toldi, Sarah Fisk and Duane Berger (Authors); Facilitator's Guide to Participatory Decision-Making Jossey-Bass; ISBN 0-7879-8266-0 (2007)
• Sandy Schuman (Editor). The IAF Handbook of Group Facilitation: Best Practices from the Leading Organization in Facilitation. Jossey-Bass, 2005. ISBN 0-7879-7160-X
• Sandy Schuman (Editor). Creating a Culture of Collaboration: The IAF Handbook. Jossey-Bass, 2006. ISBN 0-7879-8116-8
• Roger Schwarz (Author); The Skilled Facilitator; Jossey-Bass ; ISBN 0-7879-4723-7 (New & Revised July 2002)
• Michael Wilkinson (Author); The Effective Facilitator; Jossey-Bass ; ISBN 0-7879-7578-8 (2004)

External links

• The International Association of Facilitators Methods Database
• The Global Facilitators Network
• The National Facilitator Database
• Glossary of Terms frequently used in structured workshops
• Coalition of Dialog and Deliberation
• International Association for Public Participation