Facilitation

Facipulation time

Lots of contracts require some kind of group feedback: a presentation and Q&A session.  But the jobs outlined below all required specific facilitation skills and processes which are a bit more developed than managing a simple workshop.

In addition to facilitation as a component of a contract,  I’ve increasingly been contracted to facilitate a large and tricky meeting – to stimulate debate, manage conflicting positions, generate consensus and steer participants towards a common set of actions.  And sometimes, the need for this has become apparent during the course of the consultancy process, and I have offered to play this role.

Either way, facilitation (or as consultants like to joke, facipulation – getting the result you want out of a group of people) is a specialised skill.  You need to manage time, process, egos and agendas, and always keep the purpose of the event at the front of your mind.  It’s fun, too.  And exhausting.

And no, the picture isn’t relevant.  I wasn’t about to put a boring picture of people in a room playing with sticky notes up there.  It’s a pretty raised path / flood prevention scheme from Bangladesh.

Facilitation contracts, and other jobs where formal facilitation was necessary

Urban feedback on Sphere revision

2017 – Facilitator – Habitat for Humanity GB
Role: Facilitate a gathering of urban experts to provide feedback on the first draft of the revised Sphere Standards