FACILITATION - THE CHOICE FOR LEADERS OF TODAY

• Are you at your wits’ end when considering how to get your team on track to deliver their best performance? 
• Do you sometimes wish you could get into the minds of your colleagues to know what helps or hinders them when faced with a workplace challenge?
• Are you challenged sometimes when asked to lead meetings where there may be individuals or groups with very divergent needs and interests?

IF YOU HAVE RESPONDED YES TO ANY OF THESE QUESTIONS – YOU ARE INVITED TO READ ON AND DISCOVER THE BENEFITS OF USING PROFESSIONAL FACILITATION PRACTICES WITH YOUR TEAMS AND WORK GROUPS…..

LOOKING BACK…

In the 90’s and earlier, when working with groups and individuals in the area of performance improvement some organisations have traditionally used the following methods:

1. Repeated skills training – to raise awareness and emphasise importance of desired behaviours and attitudes,
2.  Implicit behaviour modification through a combination of rewards, and punishments,  and/ or
3.  a strict authoritarian approach of rules and penalties.

Whilst skills training and Experience shows us that there are times when these are not sustainable measures – and, indeed, seldom result in a good return on investment of resources spent.  The workforce of today has had a surfeit of external messages beamed at them <from various media and knowledge resources.   They are cynical and worldly wise when faced with prescribed rules and modes of behaviour.  They continually challenge and ask WHY?

FACILITATION  & THE KNOWLEDGE WORKER  OF THE 21^ST CENTURY

The Skill of Facilitation

Facilitation is the process of drawing out the best from individuals and groups. It is based on the premise that every group or person holds the answers to their issues within themselves.  The task of the professional facilitator is to enable the group to explore the various elements of the issue in a collaborative manner and come to a decision about the next course of action that would help them to achieve their desired objectives.  

In doing this, the facilitator does not provide content or additional information – but focuses on working a process that allows the group to reach agreement with a sense that all have been heard and consensus has been reached.   The group then may decide on who will take on the next steps identified in their discussion, and set a follow-up date to check progress.

Though the facilitator seems to take a background seat in this process – it is a delicate skill that is needed to assist groups to share opinions,  avoid all out confrontations between conflicting views – and yet, come to an agreement that is subscribed to by all present.  

To achieve this result the facilitator needs to be self aware at all times not to be partisan to any of the positions voiced by the group – and yet, able to invite views from all positions on the matter.   A master facilitator will do this seamlessly, resulting in the group having a great sense of achievement that they have resolved their outstanding issues amicably and productively.

The International Association of Facilitators certifies professional facilitators based on their demonstration of the following competencies:

©IAF- see www.iaf-world.org

2.            Facilitating Work Groups of Today

The term facilitation is sometimes used to denote the coordinating task of enabling physical infrastructure and logistics.  This is the work of event coordinators and organisers – and occasionally, we see them having the title of event facilitators.  They facilitate, i.e. enable the event by ensuring logistics and resources are available.  A more apt word perhaps may be the title Event Managers.

We need to be clear that professional facilitation as it used in the context of this essay has to do with enabling and inviting thought, discussion and consensus among individuals and groups of differing backgrounds and interests, yet working towards a common objective.   

Having accepted that the worker of the 21^st century is a quite different individual from earlier generations of workers – it is key to note that professional facilitation has a lot to offer to organisations and countries that are faced with the growth of the internet generation (Gen Y) and their immersion into the workforce,  political society and community groupings. 

This generation has access to thoughts, practices and developments of the world’s best and brightest  - both now and throughout history – available to them at the click of mouse.  They are knowledgeable, resourceful and articulate.  They want to have a say in decisions that affect their lives and work.  When these individuals come together for discussions – the presence of a skilled facilitator will do much to keep the group on track, ensure discussions are participative and collaborative – and lead to an outcome that is actionable and agreed on by all parties present.

3.                  The Choice for Leaders and Managers

Facilitation is a necessary skill for leaders and managers of today.  Skilled communicators may have happened upon the practice by sheer coincidence or practised deliberately the art of inviting thought and responses from the doubtful and sceptical.  More than ever, this skill of drawing a response from those who choose to remain silent or non-participative, is something that leaders must master and have on hand when working with diverse group interests and challenging situations and individuals.

The good news is that facilitation is a skill – and one can learn it.  Like most skills it needs practise, and has levels of difficulty and expertise that differentiate the occasional and accidental user from the expert professional who uses it with forethought and considered outcomes.  Like other higher level skills – there is also an art and wizardry to facilitation that differentiates the master practitioner from the occasional user.

The 6 competencies of a professional facilitator listed by the International Association of Facilitators are a comprehensive measure and guide to the areas of development one needs to consider to achieve competence in professional facilitation.  

For the discerning facilitator who wants to achieve mastery – the sky is the limit – in the ability to work with groups of diverse backgrounds and situations that demand skilled navigation of interests, personalities, communication styles and conflicting personality types.   The variation is endless as it depends on who makes up the client group. 

Finally….

As one who has begun the journey of facilitation,  grasped the competencies and committed to the practice of facilitation whenever and wherever the need arises – I can only say that I expect it to be a joyous adventure of learning as the process allows me to work with groups and individuals of amazing  diversity, originality, and experience.  It is an invitation to see the world through different eyes – to know life in all its richness.  It is at once profound , humbling and gratifying.