2
The Facilitation
Process

Learning Objectives

By the end of this chapter, you should be able to:

• Describe the importance of content knowledge.

• Describe the importance of process knowledge.

• Explain the six-step facilitation model.

• Identify ways to apply the model to specific facilitation assignments.

Effective facilitators are mindful of more than just the specific subject or problem being discussed as they work with individuals and groups. They succeed because they balance their facilitation focus between content and process. They also use a specific model when facilitating individual or group situations that enables them to maintain control and provide direction. This chapter deals with how to ensure a balanced focus and maintain control so that the facilitation process achieves the desired outcome.

FACILITATION FOCUS

Effective facilitation has two key areas of focus: content and process. Both are identified in our definition of facilitation: the art of helping a group or an individual determine and achieve objectives for solving a problem or completing a task. The content refers to the “problem” or “task.” The process, on the other hand, involves “helping a group or an individual determine and achieve objectives.” Effective facilitators, whether internal or external, need to balance their focus on content and process to ensure a successful facilitation process. See Exhibit 2-1.

Content Knowledge

Content deals with understanding the problem or task. Although too much knowledge can sometimes lead to bias on the part of the facilitator, the lack of content knowledge can limit the facilitator’s ability to help the group or individual. Internal facilitators are expected to have a thorough understanding of the content. They tend to lose credibility more quickly than external facilitators if they lack basic knowledge about the organization that everyone assumes they should have. External facilitators are often given the benefit of the doubt in the beginning because they are outsiders.

For example, when facilitating a discussion about the best way to launch a new product, an internal facilitator would be expected to know the names and responsibilities of key individuals involved in the launch decision. An external facilitator, on the other hand, would be given time to gain the same knowledge. If the external facilitator learns the names and responsibilities quickly, he or she may be viewed more favorably than an internal facilitator who is not able to demonstrate the same ability to learn.

There are three areas the facilitator needs to be knowledgeable about if he or she wants to be effective when dealing with content issues. They are the:

• Problem or task

• Organization

• Environment

Problem or Task

Effective facilitators learn as much as they can about the problem or task to be addressed. As they are learning, they try to remain objective and open. They avoid the tendency to dissect the situation and come up with their own game plan. They understand that the task is the group’s or individual’s job and that their role is to help the group or individual accomplish the task.

Effective facilitators focus on getting a clear definition of the problem or task. Although this is also an important part of the process when they meet with the group or individual, they realize the need to understand the problem or task as well as possible before attempting to help others clearly define the problem or task. As they are studying the content, they try to get some idea of why people think the problem exists or why the task needs to be done.

Understanding the numerous perspectives and preconceived ideas that people have can help during the facilitation process. For example, if a facilitator knows that two people have varying opinions about why a particular problem exists, he or she can be prepared to address those differences at the beginning of the facilitation assignment.

Organization

The more the facilitator knows about the organization, the more effective he or she will be when the work begins. Walking into a situation without any prior knowledge of the organization can have disastrous results. For example, the best facilitators make it a point to learn as much as they can about an organization before they accept a facilitation assignment. They learn about the organization’s products or services and how those products or services are researched, developed, produced, distributed, and used by the customer. Facilitators who lack a clear understanding of what the organization is all about will have difficulty when trying to establish credibility.

An uninformed facilitator may inadvertently say something that offends the individual or the group. Or, the facilitator might say things that lead the group to question his or her competence or credibility. Once that happens, the facilitator’s influence with the group will diminish or perhaps disappear altogether. Consider this unprepared and uninformed facilitator.

Bob (Facilitator):	Does it create a problem when a lot of customers come into the store at one time?
Joe (Participant):	No, because we see customers by appointment only. We control how many there are and when they are there.
Bob:	But if they did come into a store all at once, would that create a problem?
Joe:	It’s a moot point. They don’t come in all at once and we don’t plan to change the way we do business.

A little bit of research up front could have prevented Bob from losing credibility in this situation. He could have asked more appropriate questions had he taken time to learn about the organization beforehand.

Effective facilitators tap numerous sources of information to learn about the organization. They read the current and previous years’ annual reports. They obtain copies of the mission statement and any written goals. They meet and talk to as many people as possible to get their thoughts and feelings about the organization. Exhibit 2-2 lists some questions a facilitator should ask to learn about the organization. Knowing the answers ensures proper preparation for a facilitation session.

Environment

Facilitators need to have knowledge of both the external and internal environment in preparing for a project. It is important to remember that what is happening outside the organization often affects what is happening on the inside.

The primary external environmental factors to consider are the competition, market share, government regulations, and the state of the economy. Competitive pressures might be behind the reason a facilitator is asked to lead a work session. In this situation the facilitator needs to find out what the organization’s current market share is and how it has changed in the past six months or year. He or she will also consider the effects government regulations and the general economic condition may be having on the organization either directly or indirectly.

Effective facilitators understand the corporate culture and how things work. Cultural considerations surrounding such things as dress, work hours, and the use of job titles can affect the tone of a facilitation session. The best facilitators are also aware of any politics that exist within the organization so they can deal with any potentially explosive situations that may come up. Effective facilitators take time to find out about working relationships among departments and department heads. They learn who has the influence and pull within the organization. They also find out if there are any power struggles or if everyone gets along well together. A conscious awareness of the internal environment is crucial to conducting a successful facilitation session.

Process Knowledge

Process knowledge is what the facilitator uses when “helping a group or an individual determine and achieve objectives.” Excellent process knowledge is critical to success as a facilitator. External facilitators can come up short on content and still be successful if they have mastery of the process. On the other hand, no amount of content skill can overcome a failure to keep the group on track and move toward consensus and action. If there are no acceptable outcomes (an agreement to do nothing may be an acceptable outcome) as a result of the facilitation, the facilitator has not done the required job.

There are three areas that effective facilitators need to be knowledgeable about when dealing with the process:

• Relationship building

• Obtaining resources

• Facilitation skills

Relationship Building

Successful facilitators have the ability to develop rapport with the group or individual. They understand the importance of getting to know something about the people with whom they will be working. They know that the more they know about someone, the more interest they are likely to take in that person. Likewise, the more they know about those they will be working with, the more empathetic they will be. As a result, they will be more committed to helping the individual or group solve the problem or deal with the task at hand.

External facilitators do several things to build positive relationships. First, they arrive early and stay late to meet participants individually. Second, they structure introductions at the beginning of a meeting that allow people to reveal something about themselves. They know this information will help them learn about the group and the organization and will be of help during the facilitation session. Third, facilitators who are selected by a third party can ask that person to provide them with information about the members of the group. The best facilitators are somewhat cautious with this approach because what they will hear is based on the perspective of the person providing the information. Therefore, they make special efforts to get to know the participants first hand and develop their own perspective.

Internal facilitators should not take it for granted that they know everyone. Many people work together for years without really learning much about one another. The same three techniques used by external facilitators can be used by internal facilitators to develop personal relationships with internal clients.

Obtaining Resources

Effective facilitators know what resources will be at their disposal before, during, and after the facilitation session. Resources normally fall into three categories: human, physical, and financial. Effective facilitators find out what resources are available before beginning the facilitation process and know how to tap into those resources whenever needed.

Human resources can include people both inside and outside the organization. There may be times when facilitators need to obtain answers to specific questions from other people within the organization. For example, when facilitating a session with sales staff to identify ways to improve their effectiveness, the best facilitators know they may need information from the product development group about what new products or services are being planned. These facilitators will also seek input from the marketing department about any incentives or advertising support that is being planned to support specific products or services.

There may be times when facilitators will need human resources from outside the organization. For example, it may be determined that a content expert needs to be brought in to deal with certain aspects of a particular topic. Or, due to the nature of the assignment, the facilitator may need someone else to assist with the process. It is important to determine ahead of time how the organization or individual views the use of external human resources. Effective facilitators find out who will be expected to pay for such additional resources—themselves or the client.

Here’s an example of how a facilitator might bring up the need for an additional resource person:

Sheila (Facilitator):	I think it would be helpful to begin tomorrow’s session with a short presentation on how the company measures its marketing success.
Bob (Client):	I think that’s common knowledge.
Sheila:	I’m not so sure based on some of the comments I heard today. It seemed to me that Tim and Julie were a little confused by some of the terminology that was used. Some of the others had puzzled looks as well.
Bob:	I was a little surprised myself. You may be right. Let me see if Dave has time to do a brief presentation for the group.
Sheila:	Good idea. Then we’ll all be speaking the same language.

Physical resources can include anything from the space to be used to the materials needed when facilitating. A few questions that have to be answered are: Where will the meeting be held;—at the facilitator’s offices, at the organization, or at a neutral location? Is the room big enough to accommodate all the participants? Is the location easily accessible to everyone who will be involved? Are materials such as flip-charts, markers, note pads, pens, or pencils needed? Who will provide the materials and ensure they are there when needed? The whole concept of the physical environment is discussed in detail in the next chapter, “Preparing to Facilitate.”

Additional financial resources may be needed at some point in the facilitation process. Facilitators need to know before they start if the client is open to making financial investments beyond the facilitator’s involvement and the worktime of employees who will be participating. If additional investment is acceptable, the facilitator needs to know how much latitude is allowed in making those decisions and what, if any, budgetary constraints may exist. Not knowing the rules ahead of time can lead to unnecessary conflict and derail the facilitation process.

Facilitation Skills

Effective facilitators possess a variety of skills that enable them to succeed. Because of the importance of these skills, they are covered in detail in Chapter 4, “Interpersonal Facilitation Skills.” Here is a brief summary of these critical facilitation skills.

Effective facilitation requires maximum involvement by the participants. One of the best ways to get involvement is to ask questions. Facilitators have to know how to phrase questions so they obtain quality responses. After asking a question, they have to know how to listen so they hear what is being said and do not misinterpret the comments. While asking questions and listening, they are also aware of the what is being communicated by their body language. Without this knowledge, the facilitator may inadvertently affect the outcome of the facilitation process.

Effective facilitators also have to be able to provide both positive and corrective feedback when necessary. The way the feedback is delivered will affect the amount of participation obtained later in the session. Positive feedback can encourage more participation. Corrective feedback, if not handled properly, can reduce the quantity and quality of participant involvement.

No matter how well facilitators work with the participants, conflicts may occur. Facilitators have to be able to determine the cause of any discord and work with participants to resolve conflicts and keep the process moving forward. At the other end of the spectrum is the need for facilitators to encourage commitment. Participants have to make a commitment to taking action or making changes as a result of the facilitator’s involvement. Thus, effective facilitators must possess the skills needed to resolve conflicts, to bring people together, and to encourage their commitment.

Knowing how to use small groups is also an important skill. There may be times when breaking the main group into smaller subgroups will be more productive. Smaller groups can be used to increase the involvement of people who may be reluctant to participate in larger groups. Smaller groups may also be able to reach consensus sooner. Facilitators have to know when to switch to small groups and how to organize them to move the facilitation process forward.

THE FACILITATION MODEL

The facilitation model (see Exhibit 2-3) provides a framework for guiding facilitators in either individual or group situations. The model provides a foundation for the content and process focus discussed in the first part of this chapter.

The model consists of six sequential steps:

1. Define purpose and ground rules.

2. Specify objectives.

3. Analyze the situation.

4. Identify options.

5. Prepare and implement the action plan.

6. Follow up.

These steps need to be completed in order as the work completed in one step lays the groundwork for the work required in the following steps. For example, before facilitators can analyze a situation (Step 3), they need to know what the objectives are (Step 2). However, from time to time facilitators may have to back up to ensure the discussion is remaining on target. For example, as the action plan (Step 5) is being prepared, effective facilitators will want to make sure that it meets the stated objectives (Step 2). Effective facilitators know what is involved in each step and understand the relationships among all six steps.

The discussion and examples that follow focus on facilitating a problemsolving group. However, the steps in the model apply to any of the facilitation situations described in Chapter 1; they also apply when working with an individual. The facilitator’s role in all steps in the model is to involve the individual or group in the discussion. The facilitator does not define the purpose and ground rules; instead, the facilitator helps the individual or group establish a purpose and ground rules. Involving the individual or group in the decision making process will increase acceptance of and commitment to the rest of the process.

1. Define Purpose and Ground Rules

This first step is crucial for establishing expectations for the problem-solving group and the facilitator. The purpose of the group and its level of authority must be clearly defined for everyone involved. Some immediate questions that need to be answered are:

• What is the purpose of the group? Has the group been formed to make recommendations or to make decisions and carry them out?

• How much authority does the group have? Does it need to get permission to take action or can it act on its own?

• Is there a budget? If so, how can it be accessed?

• What other resources are available?

• Who needs to be informed of the group’s work?

• What are the time parameters? How long does the group have to work on the problem?

The group also needs to decide how it will be organized. Will other people help the facilitator to keep the group functioning? Will the facilitator use a recorder—someone to write notes on a flip-chart as the facilitator leads the session? Will another individual be designated to notify people of meeting times, set up meeting rooms, and report results to others? Should there also be a recording secretary to keep minutes of meetings and distribute them after each session? Assigning members of the group to some or all of these roles will increase involvement, which in turn helps increase commitment. Involving others will also allow the facilitator to monitor his or her adherence to the facilitation model and to keep a balance between content and process.

At the first meeting, the facilitator should also establish additional ground rules by which the group will function. These ground rules should be as specific as possible because they help establish expectations for the group. These additional ground rules should include:

• How often the group will meet

• Where it will meet

• How long the meetings will be

• What happens if someone is absent

• Whether written reports will be required

• How to add new group members

The time spent up front will be a wise investment. One of the worst things to happen during the facilitation process is for the group to stop and be distracted by decisions involving ground rules. Defining the purpose and ground rules up front will make for smoother sailing later.

2. Specify Objectives

In Step 1, the facilitator defines the purpose of the group and establishes some expectations. By Step 2, it is time to get down to specifics. Now the group needs to clearly state the objective or objectives that need to be accomplished. At a minimum, objectives should answer these questions:

• What will be the end result of our work?

• Who or what will be affected?

• What is the timeline for solving the problem? How much money will be invested/saved/earned?

The more specific the objective the better. For example, assume that in Step 1 the purpose of the group was defined as “to recommend ways to improve the profitability of new products.” Although that statement does provide direction, it does not describe any specific ways to measure success. What will be the end result? Who will be affected? What is the timeline? Profit is to be improved, but by how much?

Effective facilitators will help the group redraft the purpose statement into a specific objective or set of objectives. Getting the group to answer these questions would make the purpose statement more specific:

• How many ways should be recommended?

• How much should profitability be improved?

• Who will be affected?

• When will the recommendations be made?

Answering the above questions might lead to a more specific objective like this: Recommend five ways to improve the profitability of new products by ten percent or more. Send written recommendations to senior management by February 17th.

Now the group has an objective that can be measured. An important facilitator role is to keep the objective in front of the group at all times. As the group moves on to following the other steps in the model, the facilitator has to be sure that any decisions made or actions taken will help accomplish the defined objective. To maintain awareness of the objective, the facilitator might do one or more of the following: post the objective at the front of the room at every subsequent meeting; have the objective printed as part of the minutes of every meeting; print up cards with the objective on it and give a card to each member of the group; or ask the group to memorize the objective.

The stage of specifying objectives should not be rushed. Effective facilitators take the time necessary to develop a specific objective statement. They encourage the involvement of everyone in the group. They explore all the possibilities and come up with a statement with which everyone can agree. The next two steps in the model—analyzing the situation and identifying options—will be easier when there is a clearly stated objective.

3. Analyze the Situation

By the time the group reaches this point, they will probably be getting restless—especially if they have been in facilitation groups that have not been successful. That’s because without an effective facilitator, groups often start at Step 3. They charge ahead and don’t worry about defining purpose, authority, ground rules, or objectives—they just begin analyzing the situation. As a result, they often have to “double back” later in the process or make up rules and objectives as they go along.

It is common for groups to want to rush through the analysis stage to get to the solution step. Members may think that since their task is to solve a problem, getting to the solution step is more important than taking time to analyze the current situation. They may think they already fully understand the situation. Effective facilitators know that although they need to maintain the group’s enthusiasm, they also must keep the group focused and work through each step in the model.

Analyzing the situation often requires that facilitators perform tasks outside of group meetings. Before the first session, effective facilitators take time to identify what factual data they think the group will need. At the first session, they will ask the group to identify information they think they will need; but they will add their own ideas to the group’s list if necessary. Once they have agreement on all data required, facilitators may ask for volunteers or assign members of the group to gather the information and present it to the group.

In order to meet the objective in the example to “improve profitability by 10 percent or more,” the group needs to know what the current profit levels are. Someone from the group could be assigned to research recent new product introductions and report back to the group. The report might be written or oral, depending on what was decided when establishing the ground rules. Someone else might be assigned to determine what type of marketing and advertising support was given to the product introductions.

Group members themselves are another important source for analyzing the situation. Members should have been selected because of their experience and knowledge of the situation. The facilitator’s job is to get them to open up and share their thinking with the entire group. Once they realize that their input is welcome, group members will start to become more committed to the facilitation process. There are a variety of techniques facilitators can use when analyzing the situation, such as asking questions and brainstorming. These techniques are discussed in detail in other chapters.

4. Identify Options

Now the group is where it wanted to be all along—identifying options and proposing solutions. The quality of the input received at this stage will be a reflection of what has been accomplished up to this point.

If the objective was clearly defined, each proposed solution can be viewed in light of the objective. Using the example situation, as each option is discussed, the group should be able to answer yes to the question: Does the proposed option result in a 10 percent or more increase in profitability? If the answer is no, there is no point in spending time discussing the option because it does not meet the group’s defined objective.

Likewise, if the analysis of the situation is correct, the options recommended by the group should be on target. Each option should tie back to the analysis. For example, assume that one of the reasons for low profitability was a lack of advertising support. However, research during the analysis stage determined that the company had a limited budget for advertising new products. Any options suggested should be in line with that knowledge.

It would not make sense to propose a $100,000 advertising campaign if the company would only set aside $40,000 for new product introductions. On the other hand, if the group could demonstrate that additional dollars spent on advertising would result in increased profit, then it might make a recommendation to increase the budget for new product introductions. The identified options (Step 4) have to fit with the reality of the situation—and the only way to know if they will fit is to do some up-front analysis (Step 3).

Chances are that participants will be most vocal when the group begins identifying options. Most participants are likely to have an opinion on how to solve a problem. Even if they do not have a strong opinion, they are still likely to offer ideas because they think they are expected to contribute. The facilitator’s role during this stage is to get involvement from the group by asking for their input and encouraging their suggestions. Techniques such as brainstorming and the nominal group technique (see Chapter 5) will help ensure active involvement. At the same time, the facilitator must make sure that proposed options relate to the specific objective and the previous analysis of the situation. When that happens, facilitation efforts will be successful.

5. Prepare and Implement the Action Plan

After identifying options, the facilitator and the group are ready for what can be the most difficult part of the facilitation process—transforming analysis and options into a workable action plan. The ease at which this step is completed will depend on the quality of the work done thus far. If the options identified in the previous step are realistic, then preparing and implementing the action plan will be less taxing.

The plan should answer these questions:

• What action is required?

• Who will do it?

• When will it be done?

• How much will be budgeted?

The action plan format shown in Exhibit 2-4 will work for most facilitation situations.

Some of the details of the action plan for the example situation are spelled out in the objective: “Recommend five ways to improve the profitability of new products by 10 percent or more. Send written recommendations to senior management by February 17th.” The questions that must be considered to develop an action plan are as follows:

• What is the action required? The action required is to provide written recommendations of five ways to improve profitability. These recommendations would have been identified in Step 4—identifying options.

• Who will do it? This needs to be defined. Will it be the task of the facilitator, a group leader, or some other member of the group? Will the same person who writes the recommendations make an oral presentation to senior management? Will one person write all five recommendations or will they be divided among group members?

• When will it be done? This is specified by the objectives as February 17th. At least this is when the recommendations are due. If the recommendations are accepted, another action plan would be developed to put the recommendations into action—if that is also the group’s responsibility.

• How much will be budgeted? This question should have been answered during the previous step. In the example, the budget amount should be the dollars set aside for preparing the recommendation. The investment of implementing each of the five ways should be spelled out in the written recommendation.

The content and nature of the action plan varies depending on the situation and the authority of the group. If the group had been assigned to implement a new product (rather than make recommendations), their action plan would have been different and most likely more detailed. However, the group would still need to answer the same questions. The action plan form shown in Exhibit 2-4 would still be used.

6. Follow Up

Follow up is the last step in the model, but not necessarily the end of the process. Follow up may indicate that the options chosen are not working and that new options need to be identified. Or, the follow up may indicate that the analysis of the situation was faulty, which in turn resulted in identifying faulty options.

The primary purpose of follow up is to evaluate what happened when the action plan was implemented. Effective facilitators lead the group in an analysis of the results. They analyze what worked and what did not work. The best facilitators have the group identify some things that could be done differently next time. Follow up allows the team the opportunity to learn from mistakes so they are not repeated in the future.

In the example, assume two of the recommendations were not accepted by senior management. The group would want to analyze what was different between the ones that were accepted and the ones that were not accepted. At least some of what they discover through their analysis will likely be used the next time they prepare recommendations for senior management.

If the follow up indicates that the facilitation process was successful, the group is still not quite finished. Two other actions will bring the process to conclusion—thanking the group members and celebrating their accomplishments.

Effective facilitators take time to thank those who have given their time and energy to the facilitation process. They let participants know that their contributions are appreciated. The simple act of saying “thank you” can mean a great deal to the people involved and make them more willing to participate in the future.

A celebration after all the work is done is another way to recognize and reward the contributions of group members. The celebration can range from the basics, such as coffee and donuts, to a lavish party. Such celebrations bring closure to the facilitation process and give those involved an opportunity to pause and enjoy their success.

Effective facilitators are aware that they must continually focus on both content and process. They are knowledgeable about the three aspects of the content: (1) the problem or task, (2) the organization, and (3) the environment. They are equally well informed regarding the process issues: (1) relationship building, (2) obtaining resources, and (3) interpersonal facilitation skills. The facilitation model provides a method for facilitating individual or group situations. It also serves as a foundation for supporting the content and process issues. The model consists of six sequential steps: (1) Define the purpose and ground rules, (2) Specify objectives, (3) Analyze the situation, (4) Identify options, (5) Prepare and implement the action plan, and (6) Follow up.

The best facilitators understand that no matter where they are in the six-step model, they still have to balance their focus on process and content. For example, as they facilitate an analysis of the situation (Step 3 of the model) they are aware of the organization (content) and the relationship between themselves and the group as well as the relationship among group members (process). In order to succeed, effective facilitators have to be adept at juggling all these factors at the same time.

Review Questions

1.	Effective facilitators have to maintain their focus on both_______and______.	1. (b)
	(a) skills, organization
	(b) content, process
	(c) content, environment
	(d) skills, process
2.	Which of the following is an example of an external environmental factor that can affect a facilitator’s success?	2. (c)
	(a) Reporting relationships
	(b) Financial resources
	(c) Government regulations
	(d) Organizational culture
3.	According to the facilitation model, group expectations are established when the group:	3. (a)
	(a) defines its purpose.
	(b) specifies objectives.
	(c) analyzes the situation.
	(d) identifies options.
4.	According to the facilitation model, research and data gathering are done when the group:	4. (b)
	(a) specifies objectives.
	(b) analyzes the situation.
	(c) identifies options.
	(d) prepares and implements the action plan.
5.	The “Follow Up” step in the facilitation model should include:	5. (c)
	(a) competitive analysis.
	(b) discussing options.
	(c) evaluation of results.
	(d) action plan implementation.