Facilitating Challenging Situations


Overview/Description
Target Audience
Expected Duration
Lesson Objectives
Course Number


Overview/Description
How do you deal with the group that has an exceptionally dominant person who doesn't let anyone else have a say, or trivialises the contributions of others? How do you prevent a faction from taking over? What is the best means of handling direct challenges to you or the group? What do you do when you know someone is deliberately trying to derail your meeting and/or success? What is the best way to clear the air when there is tension? Welcome to the difficult bits of facilitation. In this course you will learn to recognise and deal with the most difficult aspects of facilitating groups. You will explore typical trouble spots, like dealing with private conversations. Discover ways to maintain and channel enthusiasm with high-participation groups and resolve low-participation situations. Learn techniques to help you handle sabotage and passive/aggressive behaviour. Capitalise on confrontation by switching your analysis from "what's wrong to assessing what is really going on. You will also learn the benefits of conflict and apply tips to transform chaos into creativity.;You will isolate, identify and address the most challenging situations that arise in facilitation. You will be able to recognise disruptive behaviour like sabotage and heckling, distinguish typical trouble spots like factions and deference, and evaluate high- and low-participation issues. You will also apply a variety of tools and techniques to transform conflict and tension into creativity.;The Role of the Facilitator Facilitative Fundamentals: Techniques and Tools Facilitating Work Groups and Meetings

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

Expected Duration (hours)
3.5

Lesson Objectives

Disruptive Behaviour

  • recognise the importance of being able to handle disruptive behaviour.
  • arrange the steps of the intervention model in sequence to handle two people locking horns.
  • identify methods of diminishing the impact of prophets of doom and hecklers.
  • identify the telltale signs of passive/aggressive behaviour.
  • match the steps in the intervention model with examples of these steps in dealing with saboteurs.

    • Typical Trouble Spots

  • recognise the benefits of dealing effectively with distractions, deference, factions and group-think.
  • select the best ways to troubleshoot distractions like private conversations.
  • identify optimum questions to diagnose deference effectively.
  • identify methods to defuse factions.
  • identify troubleshooting techniques to challenge group-think.

    • Participation Pitfalls

  • recognise the value of generating active participation in facilitated groups.
  • choose effective ways to troubleshoot three types of high-participation behaviour.
  • select ways to intervene effectively with various types of low-participation issues.
  • identify techniques to handle and respond effectively to challenges.

    • Clearing the Air

  • recognise the importance of clearing the air to release tension and get a group back on track.
  • identify ways to help a group let off steam, as one technique to clear the air.
  • identify reframing techniques to help a group clear the air.
  • identify ways to use the clear-the-air technique called listing the options.

    • Course Number:
    MGMT8234