How to analyze the gap between where a team or company or group is at present and where they wish to be. Read more →

Meetings can be very boring when we remove all drama and energy from them. Instead, look for the points of high interest and highlight them. Appreciate conflict as adding energy and focus on resolving disagreements. Your meetings will become interactive and truly interesting. Read more →

Some meetings run well and do not need a facilitator. Or they think that is the case. If your role is to be the facilitator, do not force yourself on the group. Participate in a low-key way and offer your skills when the group appears to be stuck or unproductive. Read more →

Additional situations that benefit from a professional facilitator have one or several of these factors: full participation is important, internal politics are strong, neutrality is crucial, past meetings have been frustrating, group commitment is essential, an outsider lends importance to topic. Read more →

When to hire a professional facilitator: when emotions are strong, everyone’s input is needed, fresh and innovative thinking is required, and more. Read more →

Any meeting can be improved by starting off right. How? Here are 5 easy steps to begin your meetings and focus them for successful results. Read more →

When the objective is to generate creative ideas in a brainstorming context, an enormous help is to have participants representing diverse backgrounds, expertise, and experience. Read more →

Meetings tend to run long. Here are five techniques to shorten your meetings. Read more →

Japanese-style decision making can give a good option in meeting management. Rather than identify one idea and say yes/no, explore the question and consult with all affected individuals. THEN, generate alternatives and choose among them. (source is Peter Drucker) Read more →

Plan for breaks during your meetings to accommodate attention levels and biological needs. Here are several ways to think about the timing and length of meeting breaks. Read more →