Facilitation Skills for Managers

Meeting Facilitation Skills – a 21st Century “Must Have” Skill for Managers

 

The 21st century demands that managers be effective in running meetings and planning sessions that produce results, build consensus and move projects forward. Facilitation skills help you as a managers to get employees working together, hold them accountable, permit them to surface their concerns, voice their opinions, and build consensus.

Your ability to run an effective meeting, to build support for decisions, and your skill in reducing conflict  all improve once you learn facilitation skills. As you internalize and use techniques, you will experience an unprecedented jump in professionalism and personal power as a manager.

Running productive meetings was a great course. I plan on prioritizing agenda’s, listening to everyone’s ideas, and seeing the gifts in everyone’s personalities. There are many golden nuggets in the class.

Sherri Hatch, PHR, SWP, Human Resources Manager at CSA Group, Architects and Engineers

Participants in Facilitation Skills for Managers learn the intricacies of:

  • Setting up successful meetings
  • Involving every participant in the discussion
  • Building consensus
  • Handling difficult attendees
  • Working through disagreements
  • Following up on assignments
  • Holding employees accountable

This Facilitation Skills for Managers workshop is two days of energizing, hands-on experiences limited to 12-15 people. Managers learn how to facilitate,  rather than control the group decision-making process.

Comments from a Facilitation Program at Siemens: “I wish all training was this much fun.” “How great it is to practice in such a supportive, non-threatening environment. Some training is geared to build facilitation skills in theory, We focused on practice.” “When we started, the group knew what training was and what being the leader of the meeting meant, but were unclear on what facilitation was. By the end of the instruction, they knew hoe facilitation was different.”

Learning Topics Include:

  • Distinguishing facilitation from instruction and training
  • Becoming the manager who knows how to facilitate the process of teams
  • Establishing ground rules
  • Sticking to agendas
  • Separating content and process
  • Taking advantage of different types of thinking
  • Dealing with controversial issues and divergent perspectives
  • Honing communication skills
  • Listening for common ground
  • Giving effective feedback
  • Dealing with difficult dynamics
  • Finding consensus
  • Building sustainable agreements
  • Using analysis tools
  • Dealing with difficult personalities
  • Tips and techniques for keeping energy high

Practice

This program is not about theory, it is about learning from doing. Participants are divided into groups and using a topics of their choice, they practice facilitation. They receive detailed feedback and coaching.

All of our managers LOVED the program. Thank you so much for this experiential experience.

Gwen Baker, COO, South Carolina Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy

Bring this program to your organization and help managers improve their ability to successfully run a meeting, build a team, and solve daily challenges.

We'd love to speak with you directly. Call 770-923-0883 or fill out the form below and we'll connect very soon.