Denkfabrik Session 1

Well-Structured Workshop Facilitation


Webinar 1 :
 Moderation/Facilitation in general
 „Open Space Technology“

Webinar 2:
 Question techniques and
discussion techniques
 „Future Search“

Webinar 3:
 Visualization
 „World Café“
 Checklist for facilitator


What is a workshop?
 Workshops are work meetings in
which participants deal with a specific
topic in the style of a closed session.
 Workshops are supported by
visualization.
 The person chairing the
workshop is the facilitator.

What is facilitation?
Facilitation is a method of providing support to the participants
of a working group to handle a certain issue, problem or task.


It is the facilitator’s responsibility

 to clarify the starting situation
 to guide and steer the group work
 to deal with group-dynamic processes
 to steer and evaluate group processes

Role of the facilitator

The position of the facilitator is
characterized by:

 Impartiality in the subject matter
 Neutrality in personal relations


Objectives of facilitation

Facilitation…
 supports information,
planning and decision-making
processes in groups,
 guarantees development
of a perspective,
 encourages everyone to become actively involved and
therefore expresses the group’s overall potential,
 democratizes planning and decision-making processes,
and thereby
 achieves improved participant motivation.


Distinction from a presentation
Presentation Facilitation
Goal Inform, win over, Produce a group result
teach, decide, sell

Role Expert Process supervisor
Responsibility Content Structure


Josef W. Seifert’s facilitation/moderation cycle:

6 Steps
Conclusion Introduction

Moderation
Planning Gathering
cycle

Handling Selecting
the topic


Step 1
Questions:
Introduction
• How do I introduce the
workshop, how do I start?
• How do I deal with
resistance?

Goals:
• Create a positive work
environment.
• Provide orientation about the
object and purpose.
• Agree time schedule and goal
setting.
• Clarify organizational matters.
• Define discussion rules.


Step 2 Step 3
Gathering

Questions: Questions:
• How do I find out • How can I identify the
what result has to be produced? relevance of a topic?
• How do I identify the relevant • What do I handle first?
topics? • What comes later?

Goals: Goals:
• Present topics • Determine order of procedure
• Define priorities


Step 4
Questions:
• How do I deal with the individual
topics?
• What techniques are available?
• What do I have to consider when
using the various techniques?
• When can I consider a topic
concluded?
• How do I proceed next?

Goals:
• Handle topics according
to priority


Step 5 Step 6
Conclusion

Questions: Questions:
• How do I explain what • How do I close the
is to be done in concrete terms? workshop appropriately?
• How do I reach agreements or • What is important when
inspire action? concluding?
• How can I distinguish real action • What still needs to be
from “good resolutions”? said?

Goals: Goals:
• Draw up an action plan: • Evaluation and conclusion
who? what? which purpose? of the work process
by when?


OPEN SPACE


OPEN SPACE TECHNOLOGY (OST)

• Genesis of OST
• Structure of an OST meeting
• Appropriateness
• Conditions of use
• Requirements: time, space,
physical arrangements and
materials
• Fundamental principles of OST
• The „Signs“
• The gathering
• Prioritization and action planning


The Genesis of Open Space Technology

Where, when and how was OST born?

1985: Harrison Owen hosted an International
conference for 250 participants.

The truly useful parts were the coffee breaks.

Big questions:

• Is it possible to combine the level of synergy and excitement present in a
good coffee break with the substantive activity and results characteristic for a
good meeting?
• Can I build certain basic mechanisms of human gatherings into an approach
that is so simple it cannot fail and so elemental it possesses the natural power
of a good coffee break?


The Genesis of Open Space Technology

Association and Recollection

Late 1960s: Owen was working as a
photojournalist in West Africa.
Once he was participating in the rites of
passage for the boys in a small village.

Participants: 500 people Duration: 4 days

Photo by Georg Klingsiek, www.geo-kids.de

The event was characterized by perfect self-organization.

Possible reasons:
• Village was laid out in a circle with an open space in the middle.
• The whole village seemed to breath.


The Birth of OST:
Owen was convinced that effective meetings needed some kind of order!
So, was it possible to set up a conference in a coffee-break-mode?

Finally he found 4 basic mechanisms:

1) The Circle
2) The Breathing
3) The Community Bulletin Board
4) The Village Market Place

Those are the „main ingredients“ of OST.


General structure of an OST Meeting
1. Prior to the meeting:
Focal theme/issue that is of genuine
concern of all has to be found.
2. Invitation:
The invite outlines the theme and
introduces to principles behind OST meetings.
In this phase the facilitator works closely with
the initiator/sponsor of the meeting.
3. Gathering:
• Welcome by sponsor and Opening of the OST event by facilitator
• Creation of agenda (community bulletin board, village market place)
• Discussions in little groups and typing proceedings
• Reconvention (in turns)
• (Prioritization/Action planning session)
• Ending: plenary reflection session/closing circle by facilitator


Appropriateness OST is not appropriate in every situation!

OST is effective in OST will not work in
situations… situations…
• where a diverse group of • where the answer is already
people must deal with known.
complex and potentially
conflicting material in • where somebody at high
innovative and productive levels thinks he or she knows
ways. the answer.
• when nobody knows the • where that somebody is the
answer, and the ongoing sort who must know the
participation of a number of answer and therefore must
people is required to deal always be in charge.
with the question.


Conditions of use
There has/have to be…

1. a real business issue.
2. a great deal of complexity.
3. lots of diversity in terms of people and points of view.
4. real passion, and probably also conflict. (people care!)
5. a genuine urgency.

People have to be…
1. creative,
2. synergistic (they work together),
3. self-motivated.


Requirements of OST

TIME Recommendation:
1 – 3 days
SPACE One main room,
several breakout
areas, „the wall“,
in main room space
for coffee break setup
and computers.
PHYSICAL ARRANGEMENTS
Chairs in a circle,
plenty of space,
nothing in the middle but materials (see photo).
MATERIALS
Plain (white) paper (size A3 or quarter sheets of flip-chart paper),
flip-chart marker, sticky tape/glue tag, print and copy paper,
computers on tables, „The Signs“, post-its.


Fundamental principles of OST
• The law of the two feet:
H. Owen: „If, during our time together, you find
yourself in any situation where you are neither
learning nor contributing, use your two feet and go
to some more productive place!“
• The 4 principles:
Whoever comes is the right person.
Whatever happens is the only thing that could have.
Whenever it starts is the right time.
When it´s over, it´s over.

• „Be prepared to be surprised!“


The „signs“

1. Theme, behaviour and expectations
(see above: „Fundamental principles“)

2. Daily schedule and space/time matrix for „the wall“

• Space/time matrix
(post-its with time and place)
• The schedule

3. Report production

• „Newsroom“
• „Breaking News“


The gathering
Procedures/Phases:

• Welcome by sponsor/initiator
• Opening of the OST event by facilitator
• Creation of agenda:
 The community bulletin board
 The village market place
• Discussions in little groups (typing proceedings)
• Reconvention (in turns)
• (Prioritization/action planning session)
• Ending:
 Plenary reflection session
 Closing circle by facilitator („conference book“)


Prioritization and action planning

An OST event does not necessarliy require
prioritization or action planning!

• Sometimes participants long for more formal
priorities or action plans so that they feel
they include „reality“.
• Both are relatively natural extensions of what had already happened before.
• Often people have discussed the matter what to be done to make it happen in
smaller groups.
• Working out an action plan is a collection of what has already been
transpired.


Preconditions for prioritization and action planning

• The group must identify the areas
where some action is needed.
• Required action must be specified
in sufficient detail that real work
can commence.
• Responsible parties must be
identified: Who will „get the show
on the road“?!

Denkfabrik Session 1

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Denkfabrik Session 1