Manager As a Facilitator 2

Being both manager and facilitator of the same team can have advantages and disadvantages. It also brings responsibilities along with its benefits.

• You could be seen as more influential as you are a member of management so you will have people's attention


• You will be committed to the outcome, as it will affect YOU


• You will have direct experience of the matter under discussion

BUT

• You may not have the skills as a facilitator


• You may not be clear on the importance of the role of the facilitator


• Team members may be reluctant to discuss their feelings in front of their 'boss'

As a manager/facilitator you will need to utilise all your facilitation skills and ensure that, if you don't have these skills already, that you acquire them.

But you have additional responsibilities.

You have to:

• facilitate decision making in the team


• determine the best meeting format to achieve a particular objective


• distinguish among the roles and expectations of facilitators, team leaders and team members


• evaluate the effectiveness of the teams you facilitate


• resolve conflicts among team members


• understand the motives and behaviour of people in the team

7 do's and don'ts of facilitation

DO

1. Be confident


2. Use silence and be comfortable with it


3. Ask open questions to ensure participation not closed ones


4. Invite participation of the quieter members of the team


5. Use your intuition - trust your 'gut feeling' to guide you in the direction to take


6. Maintain control


7. Keep to a structure

DON'T

1. Pretend you understand when you don't


2. Dominate


3. Give advice


4. Use your organisational position to give you power


5. Use the team as therapy for your problems


6. Be judgmental


7. Talk too much

Practical considerations

All groups need clear guidelines if team members are to feel comfortable enough to participate effectively. Before you start a group, ask yourself the following:

• How often will we meet? For how long? Will we have breaks?


• Who should the team consist of?


• What is my objective?


• Am I clear on my role?


• What do I expect of team members?


• Where will we meet? Can we meet here every time?


• Do I need any equipment?


• Will I take notes?

Once you are clear on all these points, you can explain clearly to your team on the first meeting what the process will be. You may be prepared to enter into discussion on this with team members. From this you can draw up the ground rules for the team which can be reviewed as appropriate.

Top tip: If you manage/facilitate the same team, you must make sure you have the requisite skills and make sure your team is clear which 'hat' you are wearing

Kate Cobb is author of "Practical Decision Making Skills for Managers" http://www.fenman.co.uk/cat/view/Practical-Decision-making-Skills-for-Managers.html and other training books for managers.

Kate Cobb is director of blended learning zone and has over 25 years experience as a management training consultant providing F2F training, executive coaching and instructional design services for a wide variety of clients in UK, Europe and the Middle East in the private, public and not-for-profit sectors.
Visit http://www.blendedlearningzone.com/index.html to learn more about learning online.