Have you ever been in a meeting that lasted forever?  Or one person dominated the discussion?  Or hijacked the team to go in a completely different direction?  Or a meeting that was a waste of time because there were no clear agreements made?

That’s because no one was responsible for watching the “process”: Clarifying the objective, creating a plan or agenda to achieve the objective and then following the plan!

It is always helpful to designate one person on the team to be at the very least a “process observer” – someone who can remind the group when they aren’t following the agenda, timeframes or stated ground rules.  Often times, participants get all caught up in the “content” of things and are quick to scurry off into rabbit trails of interesting information – which doesn’t contribute one cent to the meeting objectives.

For your more typical meetings in the workplace, you may want to have a facilitator on the team.  It’s a bit more than a simple process observer as a facilitator has developed process skills to assist the group from getting from the current state (Point A) to the desired state (Point B).  For a highly developed team, the facilitator role may rotate amongst team members.

You can also use an internal facilitator – someone from within your company who is trained in facilitation and management.  Many of my clients develop a cadre of facilitators scattered throughout their company (many of them trained by me!) or aligned with the Organizational Development department.  Optimally, this person should NOT be part of your team.  Why?  Because it is a lot easier to get dragged onto one of those rabbit trails when you have content knowledge and a vested interest in the outcome.

And then there are the high stakes meetings – REALLY important meetings that you can’t afford to mess up.  When time is of the essence and commitment is paramount, it makes sense to invest in a professional facilitator to make sure you achieved your desired outcomes.  You use a professional facilitator when it is important to you to achieve the results, to have an unbiased, non-partial, objective person guiding the process so that all can participate and put their fingerprints all over the final product.  People will execute that which they have created, and professional facilitators are all about having the group create sustainable agreements that each team member is willing to deliver.

So is brainstorming a waste of time?

Yes…and no.

Here’s the “yes” part of the answer: I think businesspeople misuse brainstorming.  Developed in the 1950s by advertising executive as a way to leverage the creativity of his advertising team, brainstorming is used to incite energy and a TON of ideas.  It’s an absolute free flow of information where all ideas are voiced, and the evaluation of those ideas is done later. It’s about quantity, not quality.

Okay, so let’s be real, here.  When was the last time you went to a “real” brainstorming session?  Probably few and far between.  What typically happens one of three things:

1) We are really “listing” things that we know in the finite universe vs. leveraging any sort of creativity.  For example, you “list” the 31 flavors to Baskin-Robbins; yet you “brainstorm” potential new Ben & Jerry flavors.  There is no real creativity in creating a list.  So stop calling it a brainstorming session.

2)  We “brainstorm” and evaluate at the same time.  This gets really frustrating for everyone at the table….and you’ll hear such clues as “we’re just brainstorming here, right?” or “I’m just talking off the top of my head” because you know that in another minute or so, someone will tell you that your baby is ugly and you move on to the next idea.

3)  The brainstorming meeting was called at the last minute and you sat there like a deer in the headlights expected to come up with something brilliant – or you neglected to give the topic any thought before you got there.

And here is where I agree with Dr. Furham.  Prior to any brainstorming session, each person should tap into their own wisdom about the topic and come prepared to offer ideas and suggestions. Yes, creativity occurs on an individual level and then can be enhanced, sharpened and explored more at the team level.

The key to successful brainstorming is to get all the ideas out on the table.  The ones you bring with you and the ones you create as a result of the team dynamic – the energy in the room.  Then step back.  Does something jump out at you?  Is there a theme? Is there a combination of ideas?  Here’s the messy part – the evaluation of the ideas where some ideas are left behind.  Each person must be willing to let go of the individual contribution (the baby!) and see the team’s bigger objective.

It is the evaluation of these ideas where teams get stuck.  True brainstorming can be seen as “inefficient” as it takes a bit more time, can bruise egos (my baby!), or even worse, the team can settle into groupthink.

Here’s the “no” part of the answer: Done correctly, brainstorming can tap into the creativity of the group, provide an even better result that everyone on the team is committed to implement.  That’s why it is helpful to have a skilled meeting facilitator to guide the group through this potentially messy process of generating ideas so the team can make a decision to take action.  And isn’t that really what it is all about?  Making a group decision that everyone can support and implement?

One of the things we looked at was their “gift”.  Each of us has a strength – a depth and breadth of expertise, experience, or ability that would contribute to the board.  For example, my “gift” is around process.  I think process steps and can articulate a clear path between the current state (point A) and the desired state (point B).  this has been particularly helpful during our strategic planning process and process improvement efforts.  You need that clarity of process on a board, much like you need financial acumen, marketing skills and technological savvy.

As we were interviewing the candidates, we were looking for their gift – and how that gift would align with the mission and vision of the organization.

So what’s your gift?  How does your gift contribute to accomplishing your team’s goals?

Naw, that doesn’t happen, does it?  Oh yeah.  It does.  That’s one (among many) reasons you have a facilitator in the room to ensure the group stays focused and on track.  One of the best ways to gracefully intervene to keep the dogs and horses at bay is to use the humble flipchart.

A simple, yet elegant tool, it allows you to capture the comment the first time it comes up, and then you can refer to it along the way.

A few years ago, a fellow IAF colleague of mine, Ned Ruete, came up with a list of the top ten things to do with a flipchart:

• Write it down and hang it on the wall.
• Work on one issue at a time.  Let the group choose and work the issue.
  Write it down and hang it on the wall.
• Agree on how to work on that issue.  Tap the group wisdom for how to work before offering your own process.  Write it down and hang it on the wall.
• When someone offers an idea, write it down and hang it on the wall.
  If they offer it repeatedly, point to where it is, written down and hanging on the wall.
• If someone attacks a person for a “dumb” idea, ask them where the idea is written down and hanging on a wall.  Move to it.  Move the discussion to the idea, away fro the person who offered it.  If additions, qualifications, clarifications, or pros and cons are offered, write it down and hang it on the wall.
• When the group is discussing, voting on, or coming to consensus around a solution, write it down and hang it on the wall.
• When the group moves away from the agreed-to issue, go to where you wrote it down and hung it on the wall, call their attention to it, and give them the choice to change the issue, go back to the one they agreed to, show how this one affects the one they agreed to, or put a time limit on the digression.  Whatever they decide, write it down and hang it on the wall.
• When the group moves away from the agreed-to process, go to where you wrote it down and hung it on the wall, call their attention to it, and give them the choice to change the process, go back to the one they agreed to, show how this one affects the one they agreed to, or put a time limit on the digression.  Whatever they decide, write it down and hang it on the wall.
• When someone says, “We ought to _____,” find out who will.  Then write it down and hang it on the wall.
• Before breaking up, find out when the group will get back together.  Write it down and hang it on the wall.

Similarly, I have been reorganizing my office.  Some people do a “spring cleaning”.  I do a “first month of the new year” cleaning where I throw out old files etc. – essentially decluttering my life.  We have been in our Scottsdale, AZ house for about 3 years now, and the bookshelves were starting to overflow, CDs and DVDs were on different bookshelves – I think you are getting the idea.  So this past week, I have been reorganizing the office – typically in the evening when I don’t have many brain cells left and can’t do any “real” work!

And I got stuck.  I have various options (move this here, add another shelf there) and I decided to wait until my husband came home from a business trip.  When I started to explain my problem to Joseph, the answer emerged from my subconscious, and we agreed on the path forward.

It’s the same kind of experience.  Talking it through to another person you respect helps you crystalize your ideas.

So, when you get stuck, find someone you respect.  Someone whose opinions you value, and just talk it through.

While typical for many meeting venues, and perhaps most comfortable for you, the presenter, meeting planner, or hotelier, it is NOT the best seating arrangement for an audience-centered presentation.

So what’s wrong with straight rows?

1.  Focus.  The seats directly in front of the speaker are the only decent seats in the house.  Everyone else has to adjust the view to get a direct line of sight to the presenter.  And yet we give up this prime real estate to a multimedia projector table or vacant space for a center aisle.  Whenever possible, place the chairs in front of you, the speaker:

2.  Energy Drain.  Any feng-shui expert will tell you that the energy flows out of the room through a center aisle.  Wherever possible, keep the straight row center section right in front of you, with an aisle in between each outer seating section.

4.  Safety.  You may want to have some ability for people to get in and out of their seats, so you can modify the seating with some extra aisles starting a third of the way from the stage.  This way, the energy won’t flow out of the room!

5.  Blocked View.  Unless you are sitting in the front row, there will always be somebody taller or wider in the seat in front of you.  If you are lucky, you will have a semi-obstructed view of the presenter.  Worst case, you have to lean one way or the other just to get a clear view. Wherever possible, stagger the chairs so they aren’t lined up like soldiers behind each other.

6.  Pain.  Unless you are sitting right in front of the presenter, chances are you must turn your neck slightly to see the presenter.  If you are on the far reaches, then you are probably putting more weight on one butt cheek than the other and are constantly readjusting your seat!  Do this for an extended period of time, and it starts to hurt!  Wherever possible, angle the chairs toward the presenter.

7.  Disconnect. If you want to connect with the audience, the best way is to enable the audience to connect with each other.  They simply can’t connect with each other if they can’t see each other. Straight rows allow each person in the row to see only one person on either side (and the back of somebody’s head – but that doesn’t help connection!)  Wherever possible, curve the seating around the presenter, so the audience can see each other.

Finally, if you can, ask for the overhead screen to be placed on the left, looking at the front of the room (otherwise known as upstage right!).  Since we read from left to right, make it easier for the audience to “read” what you are saying by placing the screen to the left of the stage (downstage right in theater terms).  Place the screen at the same depth as you will be standing and close enough to your center position so that your audience’s eyes won’t have to travel a great distance from you to the screen.  Furthermore, should you have to point to something on the screen, you can use your right hand without turning your back to the participants!

Depending on the venue’s capability, you can transform a ho-hum, boring traditional theater-style room set into an audience-centered seating arrangement.  Being able to view the presentation in comfort, as well as to see each other enhances the dynamics of the presentation.  In the best of all possible worlds, orient the seats toward the front so they can comfortably connect with the presenter and with each other.

It’s been 20 years since I started my business facilitating teams and training others to do what I do.  Back then, no one even knew how to spell “facilitator”, no less what a facilitator did!

As they say, we’ve come a long way, baby.  The root word, “facil” is latin for “make things easier”.  True enough, “Facilitator” is used all the time to describe anyone who “makes things easier”.

In the world of teams and meetings, a facilitator guides the process – helping the team get from Point A to Point B – the desired outcome.

Now, we all know that the shortest distance between two points is….a straight line.  But do teams march straight to the desired outcome?   I think not!  So a facilitator saves you time, money, and grief by providing process expertise, keeping the group on task, and fulfilling these main functions:

Clarify the charter.  The facilitator gets together with the sponsor and team leader to make sure they all understand the team’s goal(s) and expectations, the composition of the team, timeframes, deliverables, capabilities, and constraints.
Partner with the team leader.  Before the team ever meets, the facilitator gets together with the team leader and agrees on the basic strategies to move the team forward.  They will agree on how to prepare for and critique that meeting – or the series of meetings.  The facilitator then develops an initial agenda for the team to follow.
Guide the process.  As the process expert, you provide structure and process tools to help the team achieve its goal.  At the beginning of each meeting, ensure the team agrees to the agenda and time limits.  Keep the meeting on the topic and moving along.
Ensure a safe environment.  The facilitator thinks through the barriers to effective participation and how to ensure the environment is conducive to collaboration.
Manage participation.  The facilitator opens discussions and invites participation by all.  She tactfully prevents anyone from being overlooked or dominating the discussion.  She also summarizes and closes the discussions.
Intervene when necessary.  When the team gets off track or if the discussion fragments into multiple conversations, the facilitator will step in to bring the team back on topic.
Manage conflict constructively. All teams have some degree of “conflict” where each person has a different point of view.  Otherwise, why would you call a team together?  A facilitator helps the team hear and discuss these differing opinions to ensure they generate “light” around the issue and not “heat”.
Check decisions.  Teams make small decisions throughout the meeting.  When the facilitator senses that a decision has been made, he will check for understanding and agreement.  He then makes sure the team understands the next steps and who will do them.
Clarify next steps.  Every team meeting should end with specific tasks assigned to specific team members.  Otherwise, you have just had a great conversation, but no results!  The facilitator makes sure everyone understands who is responsible for what and by when.
Develop the team.  A facilitator’s secondary goal is to enable the team to function effectively over the long term – that all the team members have good facilitative and team skills.  This means that the facilitator is constantly training, coaching and developing the team leader and team members along the way.
Documents the discussion.  Most teams go through a predictable pattern of discussion: generation of ideas, organization/prioritization of those ideas to be able to select a quality decision to take action.  An external facilitator may document that discussion within a few days so the team can move quickly on their commitments.

When you have a facilitator performing these functions, the team stays much more focused on the desired outcomes, you take less time because the team doesn’t stray off topic, and you have greater commitment to the final decision.

Find out more about how we help you achieve your meeting objectives.

My experience of the new movie, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy is exactly that.  Set during the height of the Cold War, the former head of British Intelligence (simply named as “Control”) believed one of his direct reports was in fact a Russian agent – a mole – and a failed operation in Hungary was an attempt to identify which of them it was. Smiley (Gary Oldman), who also reported to Control had been forced into retirement after the debacle, but is asked by a senior government official to investigate the possibility of a double agent in the highest ranks of British Intelligence.

So was there a mole on the team?

SPOILER ALERT:  Yes, there was one.  I won’t tell you whom, but suffice it to say the signs were all there.  It was up to Smiley (and the audience) to solve the riddle.

So what does this have to do with teams?  Lots.  You can tell who is playing full out and who is not.  Just look at the signs.  Connect the dots.  And then check to see if your perceptions are reality.  Unlike the Cold War, it’s not bloody likely you have a mole in your team – but you may have some passive or aggressive behaviors that are keeping the team from performing at its fullest potential.   Unfortunately, you can’t just ignore these signs.  Like Smiley, you will have to deal with it, and do it early, before it escalates into a failed operation.

I intend to schedule a webinar in March, June, September, and August of this year.  As far as topics go, I could talk for days about teamwork, but we’re only looking at a 45 minute webinar!

So here are some titles/topics I was thinking about, and would like to have your opinion as to what top four webinars you would not only be interested in attending, but would actually sign up!  2012 will be complementary, as I’ll be getting the kinks out of the system.  I’ve done a few, but I wouldn’t exactly call myself an amazing webinar presenter – yet.

TeamSpeak: Words to Use or Lose to Inspire Better Teamwork

Boring to Bravo: 10 Tips to Make Your Presentations Extraordinary!

Beyond Consensus: 3 Little Known Secrets to Achieving Solid Agreements Among Your Team Mates

A Team Leader’s Toolkit for Handing Difficult People

The Do’s & Don’ts of Teamwork & Collaboration: 5 Critical Skills to Take Your Team to the Next Level

Are you a Light Bulb or a Flame Thrower?  How to Manage the Inevitable Conflicts in Teams

Team Player or Spectator?  3 Critical Insights to Building a High Performance Team

Go Beyond the Ordinary: 5 Critical Decisions Every Team Leader Must Make

Any other topics/titles you have in mind?

Thanks for voting now on your top topics and helping me crowdsource the best titles/topics for 2012!  You have until Sunday, January 15th to let me know.  Thanks a bazillion!

Alltop is another site which is supposed to help us. The problem (again) is the number of blogs it lists. More than 50. Wouldn’t it be spiffy if we had a link to a small list of 10 to 15 blogs? Blogs that are great?  Blogs that do more than rehash stale content?  Blogs that make you think?

What blogs do YOU follow regularly? Blogs that have helped you become a better presenter?  Blogs that you absolutely love to read?

Share some names with me by leaving a comment here: