Aug 08, 2016

Facilitative behaviours and skills are essential for anyone who wants to work collaboratively in groups or organisations today.

Facilitative skills honour, enhance, and focus the wisdom and knowledge that lies dormant in most work teams. They are critical skills for developing what we have come to think of as the learning organisation.

Here are the four skills levels of facilitation…enjoy the journey.

Level 1

Understanding concepts, values and beliefs; the use of facilitative behaviours such as active listening, paraphrasing, questioning, summarising, managing time; encouraging participation; keeping clear and accurate notes; using basic tools like problem solving and action planning.

Level 2

Mastering process tools; designing meetings; skilled at using the right decision making method, achieving consensus, and getting true closure; handling feedback activities and conducting process checks; using exit surveys; good at managing meetings in an effective manner; able to help a group set goals and objectives that are measurable; skilled at checking assumptions and challenging ideas.

Level 3

Skilled at managing conflict and making immediate interventions; able to deal with resistance and personal attacks; making design changes on the spot; sizing up a group and using the right strategies for its development stage; managing survey feedback exercises; able to design and conduct interviews and focus groups, design and implement surveys; consolidating ideas from a mass of information into coherent summaries.

Level 4

Design and implement process interventions in response to complex organisational issues; use tools to promote process improvement, customer intimacy, and overall organisational effectiveness; able to support teams in the various stages of team development.

In summary, “to keep pace, tomorrow’s leaders need to be coaches, mentors and teachers. At the core of each of these new roles is the skill of facilitation” – Ingrid Bens.

To learn more about our workplace performance programs please visit our Professional Development portfolio of courses.

Until next time…stay in shape, stay in control and stay calm.

Stan Thomas