|
Greetings!
|
 Collaborative Connections is expanding our Facilitation Services. We have added six very experienced facilitators to our cadre and are in the process of adding one or two more. Our goal is to be your source for facilitation services and facilitation, leadership and team training. If you are looking for a Professional Facilitator for the following situations we have the right person for you: - Large or small group facilitation
- Leadership Teams and Boards of Directors
- Strategic Planning
- Public or Private Sector
- Federal, State or Local Government experience
- International and multicultural expertise
- Community Involvement / Development
- Multiparty Disputes
- Team Development
- Methods such as Appreciative Inquiry, World Cafe, Open Space, ToP (Technology of Participation)
- Virtual Meetings which are highly engaging and participatory
In the next few months we will continue to introduce you to our expanded services and Professional Facilitator's as we begin sharing success stories. Notice our new look? We have revamped our newsletter. Our goal is to provide tools, tips and information you can use immediately. Our focus is on ideas to help you be a better facilitator, leader, and team member. Please let me know what you think of our new format or if you have suggestions. You can click this link to provide feedback click here
|
| Do You Need a Facilitator, Coach or Trainer?
|
 Are you confused about which type of consultant you need to help your organization, department or team achieve the results you desire. Keep the following points in mind:
When You Might Need a Facilitator
Facilitation is about helping a group of people decide what results they want to achieve together, how they want to achieve them and it may include helping them achieve them. Professional facilitators are group process experts. The conditions that often exist that require a facilitator include:
- When you need ongoing trust, commitment, and participation from the group. The buy-in of members comes from knowing that their beliefs and opinions are being solicited and valued. This can be especially important when a diverse group will be involved or impacted. The essence of facilitation is to bring out those beliefs and opinions and to help members decide what they want to do and how they want to do it.
- When working to address complex problems or major goals. The most accurate understanding of priorities in an organization often come from considering the perspectives of as many people as possible. The most relevant, realistic, and flexible strategies to address those priorities are developed and implemented from the active participation of members. Facilitation is the most powerful role from which to cultivate that participation.
When You Might Need a Coach
You might choose a coach when the following conditions exist:
- An individual on the team seems stalled or troubled. Coaching can be a powerful means to guide and support an individual to clarify current challenges or priorities, identify suitable strategies to address the challenges, and then to actually implement the strategies.
- To maximize an individual's learning from experience. Individuals learn differently. Coaching is a powerful means to guide and support individuals to reflect on their experiences and then use that learning to improve effectiveness.
When You Might Need a Trainer
Training events are activities to help learners develop or enhance knowledge, skills, and attitudes to improve their performance on current or future tasks or jobs. Effective trainers understand adult learning theories and use them. They may or may not be subject matter experts. You might bring in a trainer when the following conditions exist.
- Expert knowledge needs to be conveyed in a concise and timely manner. There may be times when people need to learn certain expert-based knowledge and need to do so in a highly focused and efficient manner. This knowledge may be any form of expert-based knowledge.
- Knowledge needs to be conveyed to a group of people. Training is often most useful when a group of people need to learn new skills and knowledge. This can include topics such as team development skills, the nature of organizational change or methods of data collection. It can be technical knowledge or skills for working more effectively with people.
Knowing what you need to accomplish determines what kind of professional consultant you need.
This article was adapted from Carter McNamara, MBA, PhD, Authenticity Consulting, LLC.
|
The DiSC Corner
Are You DiSC Savvy?
|
Do you have team
members who have a strong dominant behavioral style? These "D" styles are fast-paced, results
oriented, motivated by challenges and have high ego strength. They help us get things done and keep our teams moving forward, however, they can be challenging if you don't understand how to work with them. When
working with the D's remember to be clear, specific and to the point.
Stick to business and don't waste their time on chit chat. Show a
desire to help them get the results they want. Remember D's like power
and authority and often strive for leadership positions. They like challenges and opportunities for advancement. If you are a "D" style you can increase your flexibility by developing your team skills, slowing down and practicing active listening, and by showing your interest and concern for others.
|
Quotes to Ponder:
"To understand the heart and mind of a person, look not at what he
has already achieved, but at what he aspires to."
- Kahlil Gibran
"If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader."
- John Quincy Adams
"Transformation is the process of shifting our basic
assumptions and reorganizing our views of the world, our goals, and our
behaviors."
-Dr Shirley McCune;
A Guide to Strategic Planning for Educators
|
|
 |
Public Workshop in Denver:
Herding Cats Basic Facilitation
|
 Are your meetings like Herding Cats?"
In these tough economic times are ineffective
meetings costing you time and money? If you
want your meetings to be engaging, focused, purposeful and to produce the
results you want this workshop is for you.
Date: May 14-15, 2009
For more information or to register click here
|
| Facilitator's Toolkit |
Ever start a meeting and find people are distracted and hard to get focused because they have too much on their mind? Consider using this technique to get them focused. CLEARING THE SPACE"Clearing the Space" helps them let go of concerns or worries and focus in order to be present in your meeting. It can also help people get to know and appreciate each other more which builds relationships and trust.
Steps:
1.Plan for clearing time in your agenda at the beginning of the meeting - 5-10 minutes max.
2.Allow all meeting participants to get a turn if they want, if someone doesn't have anything to share they can pass.
3.Make sure everyone understands the purpose is let go of what's on your mind and be present.
4.In one minute or less each person gets an opportunity to share what's on their mind. It can be anything, something personal or professional. How they spent their weekend, a death in the family, how backed up they are with work, or anything that will allow them to share and let it go so they can focus.
5.Other participants listen only without giving advice. |
Technology Tools & Tips Corner
|
There are many cool online collaboration tools available today. We will share some of them in this section.
Mind Mapping is a great tool for organizing ideas. It can be used individually or with a group. For a great online mindmapping tool go to www.mindmeister.com. They have several packages depending on your needs, including a free version.
I recently used this tool to create my company's marketing plan it helped me identify, sort and organize my ideas.
In a virtual team we used it to identify the main action items in an action plan. We worked in small teams to brainstorm ideas synchronously and brought all of the small teams ideas together with the whole group.
The next time you need to brainstorm and organize your ideas try Mindmeister.
|
|
