FEATURE ARTICLE - Facilitation - Helping your group find their way

Facilitation differs from training and presenting. Instead of providing information to the group, a facilitator helps the group discover the information within each other.

A facilitator is responsible for focusing the group's efforts and providing a structure that guides the group's efforts to achieve its goals. The facilitator is there to support everyone to do their best thinking. To do this, the facilitator encourages full participation, promotes mutual understanding and cultivates shared responsibility.

When groups are faced with solving a problem or need to plan for the organization a number of things usually happen:

1. Members of the group attempt to close the discussion and reach a solution too early. This is because the early part of any discussion is spent exploring familiar information and opinions. Before the discussion has the chance to get too complex or deep, a solution will be suggested and the group will choose it since it appears to solve the problem. However, the problem probably hasn't even been properly identified yet, nor have all possible solutions been explored because the discussion was too short.

2. If the group does begin to explore the issue more thoroughly, they will begin to look at new ideas, new ways of looking at things. Some controversial opinions may be expressed which may cause the group to be uncomfortable or disagreeable. Other members of the group may offer ideas that aren't fully developed. During this time the group doesn't usually know how to handle these new or uncomfortable ideas, analyze them and then bring them together so a viable solution is found. The discussion may then dissolve into general confusion.

With a facilitator helping the group, the discussion is allowed to continue so that new ideas are brought forward. The facilitator is able to guide the group forward as they explore these ideas and arrive at a solution.

To do this the facilitator can use many techniques such as:
a) paraphrasing
b) drawing people out
c) mirroring
d) gathering ideas
e) stacking
f) tracking
g) encouraging
h) balancing
i) making space
j) using silence
k) listening for common ground
(To learn Effective Group Facilitation Skills check out Volunteer Manitoba's Training Calendar)

These techniques sound simple but take a great deal of practice. It is particularly difficult when the discussions become emotional, the opinions are diverse, and/or the members of the group represent many different segments of our community. To keep the group focused, the facilitator must have the ability to stay focused themselves on the goal of the group while knowing when to use the best technique to keep the group moving forward.

As the non-profit sector continues to utilize and promote teams, collaborations, community consultations, etc. facilitation is critical so that these groups work as effectively as possible.