Craig's Weekly - Meeting Facilitation

Ideas and tips to get along and get stuff done---------f----- May 4, 2021

Why meeting facilitation?

In principle, groups work best when a facilitator manages the process. When it is someone’s job to look after the group’s process, everyone else can focus on substance. When I know that someone is managing the order of speakers, I can pay full attention to what is being said.

When there is no objective facilitator and group members can manipulate the process, it tilts power toward a few, limits creativity, and clogs efficiency. It is typical for Congress, state legislatures, and town governments, for instance, to spend.....

Hey folks this is Michael Wilkinson,

expert facilitator and mentor for many like me.

Michael is CEO and Managing Director of Leadership Strategies based in Atlanta, the largest provider of professional facilitators and facilitation training in the country. He has written several books about meeting facilitation and, like me, has provided many free resources over the years.

Here's a link to an early piece he wrote,

one of my favorites:

The Seven Separators of Great Facilitation

What separates top facilitators from average ones?

I met Michael once at a conference once and it was a great inspiration for me.

Here's a more contemporary piece.

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The 8 Roles

of a Facilitator

1. Guide

2. Bridge Builder

3. Praiser

4. Taskmaster

5. Motivator

6. Clairvoyant

7. Peacemaker

8. Active Listener

Craig's Four Essential Functions of Meeting Facilitation

1. Provide structure

2. Encourage participation

3. Reflect the group

4. Move the group forward

In this handout at my website there's a bulleted outline of what I think are the four essential functions of good meeting facilitation. Above is Michael's list of eight. Here's Craig's list of four!