Facilitator

A Facilitator is someone who is skilled in helping a group of people move towards reaching a consensus on a topic without themselves taking any side of the argument.

The role has been likened to that of a midwife who works hard to assist in a process of creation but is not the producer of the end result.

The basic skills of a facilitator are about following good meeting practise of following an agreed agenda, timekeeping and keeping a clear record.

The higher skills are about watching the group, its individuals and their process and knowing the art of intervening in a way that adds to the group’s creativity rather than lowering it.

The qualities of respect for others and a watchful awareness of the many layers of reality in a human group are key to a successful facilitator.

The International Association of Facilitators was founded in 1993 to promote Facilitation as a profession.

Table of contents

1 What a facilitator does 2 References 3 External link 4 Other meanings of 'facilitator'

What a facilitator does

• Some of the things Facilitators do which can assist a meeting:
  • Reminding the group of the amount of time remaining
  • Helping the group decide what ground rules it wants to follow and reminding them of these where they are not followed.
  • Reminding the group of the objectives of the meeting or session
  • Tentatively paraphrasing individual contributions to check understanding and ensure they are heard by the whole group
  • Tentatively summarising a recent part of the discussion
  • Recording agreements reached in large script on the wall so all can see and agree the wording
  • Recording the current issues within the group in large script on the wall using phrases agreed by the group.
  • Offering a possible wording for an unspoken question that may currently beset the group
  • Ensuring the group doesn’t settle for the first thing that they can agree on because they find it painful to go on disagreeing with each other.
  • Offering opportunities for less forceful members to come forward with contributions
  • Ensuring that actions agreed by the group to carry out its decisions are written up in a large script on the wall for all to see and are assigned to individuals.

• Some things which Facilitators don’t do.
  • Back a particular opinion voiced in the group
  • Offer their own opinions
  • Let the group unconsciously shy away from a difficult area
  • Lead the group towards what they think is the right direction

References

Roger Schwarz (Author); The Skilled Facilitator; Jossey-Bass ; ISBN: 0-7879-4723-7 (New & Revised July 2002)

External link

• The International Association of Facilitators

Other meanings of 'facilitator'

The term Facilitator is used in Psychotherapy where the role is more to help the group members become aware of the feelings they hold for one another.

The term Facilitator is also broadly used to describe any activity which “makes easy” the tasks of others.