Hi
I have been asked to facilitate a workshop; I don’t have a huge amount of experience in this area. I would appreciate any tips or suggestions to ensure it runs as effectively as possible.
Here is some background info; I have just joined a new organisation in the last three weeks. I have been asked to facilitate an IT workshop. The workshop is to agree on a hardware solution for our surveyors who are on the road. This project is being revisited as the previous solution has not worked and we are looking to implement a different more portable tablet device.
Nad
Meeting Introduction Podcast
I suggest start your workshop with the MT recommended Meeting Introduction. It is a workshop starter, some call it an ice-breaker, that is some-what cheesy and interactive and results in an effective workshop. I have done 2 meeting introductions and still people ask others who were involved about their "something no one else knows" topic because it is usually something interesting or not expected.
The beginning will probably be quiet with the responses of saying Hi. You will need to be very energetic and if you do not get a good response, lighlty make a joke and ask to start over. Both my workshops were with 75% C's and it would take 2-3 presenters to get the audience comfortable with the reply of saying hi back. By the end, people were almost yelling the reply back to the presenter.
This post may not make a lot of sense, listen to the meeting introduction podcast and re-read this post....enjoy
Steve
What is the purpose?
Just out of interest - is the purpose of the gathering to decide a course of action or only to discuss options? Also, how long is the "workshop" (hours, days)?
I think the difference is important. If you want everyone to reach an agreement then you've got a lot more work to do and need to listen to the MT Pre-Wire casts as a minimum. Also make sure you have a tight agenda and keep people focussed.
If you're just there to survey the landscape and look at options, then you still need an agenda but you have more flexibility about format. If the workship runs more than half a day I'd encourage you to seek out subject matter experts and ask them to do short presentations. It breaks up monotony of having one speaker for a long period.
Having other speakers gives you benefits as well. If you're new, then your main problem will be having credibility with the audience (there's no relationship there). Tapping into others in the company lets you ride the coat tails of familiarity and credibility!
Good luck, it sounds like an intimidating situation, but if you know your subject you'll be OK.