The Role of the Facilitator


Overview/Description
Target Audience
Expected Duration
Lesson Objectives
Course Number


Overview/Description
Are you tired of wasting time at meetings that take too long and get too little accomplished? Learn to facilitate meetings that are both productive and time efficient. In this course, you will explore the foundations of the art of group facilitation. You will define the role of a facilitator, so that you can easily differentiate between facilitated groups and democratic or autocratic groups. Identifying the skills, attitudes and emotions needed to facilitate groups will help prepare you for taking on the task of changing your work group structure. Understanding the responsibilities of the facilitator will help establish the boundaries of what you can and cannot control when working with groups. Finally, you will learn ways to measure your successes through self-assessment.

Target Audience
Managers, team leaders, anyone who will conduct/lead meetings or workgroups.

Expected Duration (hours)
2.5

Lesson Objectives

Defining Facilitation

  • recognise the beneficial goals of facilitated groups.
  • recognise the key characteristics of facilitated groups.
  • select appropriate facilitators for specific groups.
  • identify the core values and goals of group facilitation.

    • Skills and Characteristics of Effective Facilitators

  • recognise the importance of developing specific skills and awareness of specific pitfalls for effective facilitation.
  • identify the skills needed to facilitate groups.
  • match the definitions to the following terms: acceptance, projections, past experiences and trust, as they relate to group facilitation.
  • identify the components of self-assessment.

    • Responsibilities of the Facilitator

  • recognise the benefits of the facilitative process in preparing for, conducting and concluding a successful group session.
  • define the mission of a meeting and the participants' viewpoints in order to prepare an agenda.
  • clarify the facilitator's role and expectations in order to define the meeting rules.
  • recognise the role of the facilitator during a group meeting.
  • specify the actions that successfully conclude meetings.

    • Getting Group Results

  • differentiate between the characteristics of participatory and conventional groups in order to determine which is appropriate for the assigned task.
  • differentiate between the circumstances where an internal facilitator is appropriate as opposed to an external facilitator.
  • identify the characteristics of participatory groups.
  • identify the characteristics and uses for conventional groups.

    • Course Number:
    MGMT8231