1400 North 14th Street, 12th Floor

Arlington, VA 22209

t: 703-387-3048

www.leanconstruction.org

1.0 Why

2.0 How Preparation

TypicalEventFormat

Roles

Techniques

References/SourcesHumble Inquiry, byEdgarHSchein,https://www.google.com/#q=Humble+Inquiry

Just Listen byMarkGoulston,https://www.google.com/#q=Just+Listen

A More Beautiful Question byWarrenBerger,https://www.google.com/#q=A+More+Beautiful+Question

http://facilitatoru.com/

Facilitation

“AFACILITATORISTHE

CUSTODIANOFTHE

CONSENSUSPROCESS,A

SERVANT-LEADERWHOSE

PURPOSEISTOHELPTHE

GROUPMAKETHEBEST

DECISIONSPOSSIBLE.”| Beatrice Briggs |

A collaborative presentation from over a dozen experienced Lean IPD practitioners.

© 2015 Lean Construction Institute

FACILITATION | 2

1.0 Why

EstablishingastrongteamcultureiskeyforLean/IPDprojectsuccess.Havingagoodfacilitatoronboardwillhelpestablishandmaintain that strong culture. Lean/IPDprojectsoutper-form traditional project delivery projects because they arewell-plannedandinvolvekeystakeholdersearlyintheproject,thusincreasingparticipantengagement.Thisengagementcanleadtomoreparticipantsinmoresessionsthanontraditionalprojectdeliveryprojects.Effectivefacilitationofteamsiscrit-ical to this success. Facilitate is defined as “tomake easy”or to “help something runmore smoothly and effectively.”Aneffectivefacilitatorbringsoutthebestinindividualteammembers and the group as a whole by encouraging deepthinking,activeparticipation, collective learning,andbuy-infromeveryoneinvolved.Byfosteringanenvironmentwhereideas,solutions,andsuccessfuloutcomesflow,agoodfacili-tatorkeepstheteamontasksothattheyproduceexceptionalresults.

Facilitator Competencies

Aneffective facilitator is keenlyobservant, insightful, andtactful–andhasexceptionalinterpersonalskills.Heorshemustmaintainaproductiveandsafeenvironment,knowswhentolead,whentointerveneforcoursecorrection,andwhentobeneutralandtakeabackseat.Aproficientfacil-itatordesigns,plans,guides,andcontrols themeetingbyfocusingonthegroupprocessandoutcomes,ratherthanfocusingonspecificcontentandopinionsinvolved.Afacil-itatorisnotanactivegroupcontributor;however,ifafacil-itatorfeelsitisnecessarytocontributetoaconversation,itisimportantthatheorsheannouncetheyaretemporarily“steppingoutof facilitator role,”make their contribution,andannouncewhenreturningtothefacilitator’srole.

Facilitatorsshould:

• Havestrongcommunicationskills• Makedistributedeye contactwitheveryone in group

anduseparticipantnames• Be familiarwith the subjectmanner (This is not nec-

essaryifheorsheisabletorelyonteammembersforcontentexpertise)

• Respect all participants and enable a respectfulenvironment

• Askopen-ended,impactfulquestions• Listenthoughtfullyandparaphrasecomments• Encouragefullparticipationfromallattendees• encouragequestionsandconversation• Demonstrateanenergeticandpositivepresence• Beabletoconnectwithmultiplelearningstyles,varied

personalities,anddifferingsubjectmatterexpertiseoftheparticipants

• Servethegroup’sobjectiveratherthanhisorherownpersonalobjective(facilitatenotparticipate)

• Stay neutral by focusing on the process and not thecontent

• Havetheauthoritytoconfrontandstopunproductiveconversationsandbehaviors

• Manage the room by keeping participants focused,on-task,andontime

• Createasupportivelearningclimate• Facilitate agreement and manage conflicting

perspectives• Usehisorhervoiceandbodylanguageeffectivelyby:

• Voicevarietymatters• Varyingvocalpitchtohighlightkeyideas• Pausing frequently to allow contributions from

others• Projectingwithconfidence• Usingtheroomtoadjustdistancefromparticipants

^

FACILITITATION | 3

Event Structure

Tofacilitateaneventwell,itiscrucialtounderstandthegroup’sdesiredoutcomeand thebackgroundandcon-text of themeetingor event. Facilitators should thinkabouttheprocessandagendaforthemeetingandinvestinadvancedpreparationtotaketheeventthroughtoasuccessfulconclusion. Greatfacilitationisagrouppro-cessthatflowsfromanagendatoaconclusionandcre-atesanenvironmentwherethegroup’sideas,solutions,anddecisionsfloweffectivelythroughtheevent.

Preparation:

• Things toconsiderwhendesigning theagendaandeventprocess:

• Inwhatordershouldthetopicsbeconsidered?• Howwillparticipantsgettoknoweachother?What

willbetheicebreaker?• How will they reach agreement on the meeting

objectives?• Howmuchtimewillbeallocatedtoeachitem?• Willtherebesmallerbreak-outgroups?• Whenwillrecapandsummarizeoccur?• Howwillthemeetingplus/deltasbecaptured?• How will the event be closed? How will the next

stepsbedetermined?• Other things to considerwhenplanning ameeting

orevent:• Whatdoparticipantsneedtoknowbeforethemeet-

ingorevent?Howwillthisbeprovidedandwhen?• Whatroomset-upwillbestencourageparticipation?

Areseparateroomsneededforbreak-outgroups?• What supplies and materials are needed? (Pens,

charts,post-it-notes,projectors,etc.)• Willrefreshmentsbeprovided?• Willparticipantsbegivenawardsorother typesof

recognition?

Typical Event Format

• Ifdeemednecessary,begin thesessionwithan icebreakerevent

• Review Event Purpose and Expectations for themeeting• Clearlystatethepurposeofthemeeting• Clearlystatetheexpectationsofthemeeting

• ReviewandAlignonMeetingAgenda• Ifpossible,publishinadvance• Reviewatthestartofthemeeting,adjustifgroup

providesstronginput• Consider asking for hot topics from the

participants and how theymay inform theagenda

• Allocatetimeforexternale-mailorcommunica-tionandkeepthatpromise(thisallowsforstrictenforcementofthenomulti-taskingpolicy)

• Develop meeting Code of Conduct/Ground Rules(someexamplesarelistedbelow)• StayonTime–thisincludesstarttime,endtime,

breaktimes• Safe Zone – everyone is encouraged to speak

theirmindwithoutconcern forembarrassmentorridiculebyothers

• Behavior–respectforallparticipantsandopendiscussionamongattendees

• NoStripes–everyonehasequalstatusandsayinallmatters;noonepersonhasmoreauthoritythanothers

• SpeakUp–everyoneagreestostayengagedinconversationandshareideas

• ListentoOthers–focusonwhatothershavetosayandtheirpointofview

• NoSide-BarConversations–onlyhaveonemeet-ingsothatopinionscanbesharedandheardbyall(unlessdesignedforbreak-outsessions)

• TurnOff/MuteCellPhones–helpkeepthemeet-ing and participants on track by eliminatingphonedisruptions

• NoMulti-tasking–everyonestaysfocusedonthemeetingandshowsrespecttoparticipants(thisincludesrestrictinguseoflaptopsandPDA’s)

2.0 How

^

FACILITITATION | 4

Define roles for meeting activities

• Facilitator – leader/facilitator of the meeting isresponsibleforthefollowing(orassigningvolunteersfromattendees):• Stating their role of a facilitator as “neutral vs

contributor”andas“responsibleforkeepingthesessionandattendeesinbalance”

• Scribe – person responsible for capturing theconversation and ideas generated during theevent and for consolidating fordistribution thegroup’sfinaldecisionsandactions

• Timekeeper/Gatekeeper – person responsibleforstartingandendingontime,aswellaskeep-ingthingsontrack

• Parking Lot – person responsible for capturingimportant items that arise in themeeting andare not on the agendabut should be capturedforreviewoutsidethemeeting.

• Guideandcontroltheeventtoensurethemeetingkeepsprogressingtowardsasuccessfuloutcome• Keep up the team’smomentum and energy. If

energy levels decline, consider taking a shortbreakorstretch

• Listen, engage, and include all teammembers.Stay alert, listen actively, and remain engaged(thissetsagoodexample)andfocusonengag-ing others who may be less involved in theconversation

• Monitorcheckpointsandsummarize.Controltheagenda, sharewhat has been achieved,what’snext,andsummarizeoften

• Interveneonlyifrequired• If there is unresolved conflict, anger and

disagreement• Ifthereareobviouspersonalattacks

• Keeptheeventflowingandpositive• Watchforandclosesideconversations• Knowwhen to end a conversation if it isn’t

reachingatimely,naturalconclusion• Be on the lookout for people who are not

fullyparticipating• Payattentiontogroupandindividualbehav-

ior,bothverbalandnon-verbal

• Summarize,RecordandAssignAction• Review captured outputs of the event and

ensure they are understood, agreed upon,andareactioned

• Developnextstepsforownersandduedatesonallactionitemscaptured

• PerformPlus/Deltaofmeeting

After Event

Askatrustedcolleaguewhoparticipatedintheeventtoprovide open, honest feedback on facilitation skills forcontinuousimprovement

Common Techniques

Several simple yet effective facilitation techniques areavailableandencouragedtoadvancetheflowofthecon-versation. Someexamples (but not limited) are notedbelow:• Icebreakereventatthebeginningofthemeeting• Using“roundrobin”togeteveryone’sparticipation• Askingappropriatefocusingquestions• Directing the group to takeone to twominutes to

individuallywritedown ideasor answers and thensharethemwiththegroup

• Asking follow-up questions that clarify, probe andredirect

• Drawingoutclarificationswithphraseslike“canyousaymoreaboutthat?”

• Rephrasingaparticipant’spointandasking ifthat’swhattheymeant

• Identifyingandverballysummarizingagreements• Declaringa“lightninground”togenerateideasand

re-energizethegroup

2.0 How

Return to Learning Laboratory >>

^