The  Art  of  Facilita/on

Nathaniel  Cadwell Agile  Eastern  Europe  2012

Welcome!

Please  introduce  yourself  to  your  neighbor  and  discuss:

• What  is  the  worst  mee/ng  you’ve  ever  been  in  and  why?

Agenda

1. Worst  Mee/ng  Discussion

2. Introduc/on

3. The  Facilitators  Mindset

4. Planning  a  Collabora/ve  Mee/ng

5. Facilita/ng  a  Collabora/ve  Mee/ng

6. Conclusion

Why  collabora/on?

Benefits  of  group  decision  making:

1. BeRer  thinking

2. BeRer  “buy-­‐in”

3. BeRer  decisions

Facilitator’s  Guide  to  Par1cipatory  Decision  Making,  Sam  Kaner

Guernica,  Pablo  Picasso  -­‐  1937

Art

1.      skill  acquired  by  experience,  study,  or  observa8on  <the  art  of  making  friends>   2.  a  :  a  branch  of  learning:  (1)  :  one  of  the  humani/es  (2)  plural  :  liberal  arts  

 b:  archaic  :  learning,  scholarship 3.      an  occupa8on  requiring  knowledge  or  skill  <the  art  of  organ  building>   4.  a  :  the  conscious  use  of  skill  and  crea/ve  imagina/on  especially  in  the                                produc/on  of    aesthe/c  objects;    also  :  works  so  produced  

   b  (1)  :  fine  arts  (2)  :  one  of  the  fine  arts  (3)  :  a  graphic  art  

5.  a:  archaic  :  a  skillful  plan  

 b:  the  quality  or  state  of  being  ar`ul   6.      decora/ve  or  illustra/ve  elements  in  printed  maRer   Meriam  Webster  ‘s  Dic/onary

Art

 1.      skill  acquired  by  experience,  study,  or  observa/on  <the  art  of  making  friends>  

3.      an  occupa/on  requiring  knowledge  or  skill  <the  art  of  organ  building>   Meriam  Webster  ‘s  Dic/onary

Facilita/on

Group  facilita1on  is  a  process  in  which  a  person  whose  selec1on  is  acceptable  to  all  the  members  of  the  group,  who  is  substan1vely  neutral,  and  who  has  no  substan1ve  decision–making  authority  diagnoses  and  intervenes  to  help  a  group  improve  how  it  iden1fies  and  solves  problems  and  makes  decisions,  to  increase  the  group’s  effec1veness.

           The  Skilled  Facilitator,  Roger  Schwarz  

The  Facilitator’s  Mindset

Exercise: Working  with  your  neighbors  in  pairs  or  groups  of  three,  define: • 3  aRributes  of  a  good  facilitator  based  on  Schwarz’s  defini/on  of  group  facilita/on  and  your  own  discussion. Group  facilita1on  is  a  process  in  which  a  person  whose  selec1on  is  acceptable  to  all  the  members  of  the  group,  who  is  substan1vely  neutral,  and  who  has  no  substan1ve  decision–making  authority  diagnoses  and  intervenes  to  help  a  group  improve  how  it  iden1fies  and  solves  problems  and  makes  decisions,  to  increase  the  group’s  effec1veness.            The  Skilled  Facilitator,  Roger  Schwarz  

The  Facilitator’s  Mindset

• Neutral. • Self-­‐Aware. • Servant  to  the  group. • Helps  with  the  collabora/ve  process,  not  the  content.

Planning  a  Collabora/ve  Mee/ng

Exercise:

Move  from  where  you  are  and  find  someone  to  work  with.    

• You’ve  been  asked  to  facilitate  a  collabora/ve  requirements  gathering  mee/ng  for  a  project. • In  pairs,  come  up  with  2  ques/ons  you  would  ask    yourself  or  stakeholders  as  you  prepare  for  the  mee/ng.              

Planning  a  Collabora/ve  Mee/ng

• Why  are  we  geing  together?

• Is  this  a  collabora/ve  mee/ng?

• Who  is  coming  to  the  mee/ng?

• What  topics  are  we  covering  (agenda)?

• Do  we  have  enough  /me  to  cover  everything?

• What  kind  of  room  layout  do  we  need?

• Do  we  need  ground  rules?

• What  are  we  trying  to  decide  on?

• Who  do  I  need  to  communicate  all  of  this  to  the  group  prior  to  mee/ng?

• What  “homework”  do  I  need  to  request  before  mee/ng?

Facilita/ng  a  Collabora/ve  Mee/ng

Facilitator’s  Guide  to  Par1cipatory  Decision  Making,  Sam  Kaner

Steps

• Prepare  –  Provide  par/cipants  with  all  the  instruc/ons  and  materials  they  need  to  complete  their  work. • Prompt  –  Deliver  a  concise,  clear  ques/on  that  s/mulates  the  informa/on  gathering. • Gather  –  Guide  par/cipants  in  crea/ng  and  gathering  their  responses  through  the  par/cular  informa/on  gathering  process. • Process  –  Lead  par/cipants  using  their  informa/on  to  formulate  ac/onable  decisions.

Collabora1on  Explained:  Facilita1on  Skills  for  SoJware  Project  Leaders,  Jean  Tabaka

Tools  /Processes  

• There  are  many. • Match  to  the  type  of  facilitated  mee/ng.   • Try.  Inspect.    Adapt. • Vary  things  over  /me.

References  (Books)

• Facilitator’s  Guide  to  Par1cipatory  Decision  Making,  Sam  Kaner • hRp://www.amazon.com/Facilitators-­‐Par/cipatory-­‐Decision-­‐Making-­‐Jossey-­‐Bass-­‐Management/dp/0787982660/ • The  Art  of  Focused  Conversa1on:  100  Ways  to  Access  Group  Wisdom  in  the  Workplace,  R.  Brian  Stanfield  (editor) • hRp://www.amazon.com/Art-­‐Focused-­‐Conversa/on-­‐Access-­‐Workplace/dp/0865714169/ • Collabora1on  Explained:  Facilita1on  Skills  for  SoJware  Project  Leaders,  Jean  Tabaka • hRp://www.amazon.com/Collabora/on-­‐Explained-­‐Facilita/on-­‐Soqware-­‐Project/dp/0321268776/

References  (Training)

• Interna/onal  Associa/on  of  Facilitators            hRp://www.iafworld.org/index/ToolsResources/TrainingDirectory.aspx

• Ins/tute  of  Cultural  Affairs              hRp://www.top.ica-­‐usa.org/index.php?pr=coursestop  

• Soqware  Team  Specific                                                      See  me!                          

Conclusion

Exercise:

Discuss  the  following  ques/ons  with  your  neighbors:   • What’s  the  most  important  concept  you  learned  today?   • How  will  you  use  this  informa/on?          

Celebra/on

Thank  You!

The  Art  of  Facilita/on

Nathaniel  Cadwell Agile  Eastern  Europe  2012