Whether you bring your leadership team or board of directors together for complete strategy and planning or updating and reviewing your current plan, start the process by preparing the participants for the journey. When asked to participate in strategic planning, most people give an eye roll, deep sigh, and envision themselves going into a meeting room for countless hours. They see the meeting as an unnecessary task, even though it is one of the leadership’s primary responsibilities to set and continuously refine the organization’s direction. It’s another long meeting and more of their time. Most people will arrive engrossed in their phones, addressing emails, and putting out as many fires as possible before the meeting begins.
Smaller businesses and associations, or those looking for budgetary savings, often try to work the process internally rather than outsourcing facilitation. If you have been selected to facilitate the meeting, your primary responsibility is to ensure a productive meeting. These tips will help you quickly establish cooperation and cohesion among people from different disciplines.
Although you and your team seem to know each other, spending the first part of your meeting reestablishing safety and trust among the participants reengages synergy. It gets the group to focus on the task and ultimately work on the vision faster than jumping immediately to “where do we see the organization in the next three years?” The synergy of the group is established through shared purposes, safety, and trust.
First, develop the group’s shared purpose by drafting a detailed agenda for the meeting. Include start and end times for each item and supporting notes like a description of the agenda item or specific reference materials for the discussion. This will immediately calm the critical thinkers in the group. Write brief, specific statements on the agenda to tell the group the three P’s – purpose, process, and payoff. What is the purpose of the meeting – why are we here? Share the process by which the meeting will unfold so participants know what to expect. Finally, what will the payoff of the meeting be? What will the result be so that they can see their accomplishments? For example, the purpose or reason for the meeting might be to develop goals and strategies that will guide current and future leaders to achieve their mission and vision. After calling the meeting to order and welcoming the group, review the purpose, process, and payoff, setting the stage with a shared purpose.
Safety
With an established shared purpose, the group now knows why they are at the meeting and what they will do. However, the group is still on an individual level and not ready to fully engage. It’s time to guide the group from “I” to“We” through reestablishing safety with each other. For a group member to contribute and participate, they must feel safe as an individual within the group. People want to know that their opinions matter, their ideas will be heard, and they are valued, making the meeting worth their time. This begins with a basic understanding of “who am I” and “who are you” and can be accomplished in three quick and easy exercises.
- Introductions with a twist. Have each participant introduce themselves, break the ice, and get people talking. Have the introduction include their name, title, and how long they have been in their role or at the company (if a board member, name the company they work for as well). For the twist, ask them to share openly how they feel about being at the meeting. Introducing themselves and sharing feelings will seem redundant and odd to some, but the benefits will outweigh any naysaying. The introduction gives the group members their first chance to check in, share, and move from being an individual at the meeting to becoming a group member. Encourage the members to speak freely about their feelings about being at the meeting. Comments like “I didn’t sleep well last night; I am tired and worried about a project deadline” are perfect. It allows the member to release tension, creates an understanding for others why that person is or may behave in a certain way, and allows the facilitator to gauge the group’s climate and adjust the approach accordingly.
- Get to know you. This exercise can be as simple as asking participants to ‘share one of their interests or hobbies,’ or if it is around a holiday, ask them to ‘share their plans or family traditions.’ This moves the individual to another level deeper in the group by getting to know each other personally. The group mood or climate will begin to change as participants further connect.
- Rules of Engagement. As the group starts talking freely and feeling comfortable, the facilitator should solidify safety by establishing rules of engagement for the rest of the meeting. Rules of engagement are critical to building and continuing a successful dynamic – they further the group’s shared expectations, safety, and culture. With explicit rules of engagement agreed by the group, time is well spent, people are fully engaged, and trust is established and maintained. Ultimately, rules of engagement help to increase the engagement and participation of the group while creating greater cohesion and shared identity.
Have the group share ideas and create a combined list of rules that will encourage each participant to fully engage, feel safe sharing, and feel like they belong and are valued group members. Determine acceptable and unacceptable behavior and how we will treat each other during the meeting. Areas to consider are confidentiality, use of technology, respect, participation, listening, honesty, and understanding. Create the list with a positive tone. For example, using listen when others speak versus do not interrupt or challenge ideas versus do not criticize people. Most groups establish five to ten rules – a manageable and memorable list. If many ideas are generated, work with the group to combine ideas. Many times, two or more ideas will have the same intent. The intent is the priority. Once the list is established, the group must accept these as their rules. Each person must understand that they exist for the entire group, and any member can remind others of the rules at any time. The group can modify the rules at any time as needed.
Trust
With the rules of engagement agreed upon, the foundation for trust is set. It is time to start digging deeper, allowing participants to test the waters of trust by sharing thoughts and feelings relevant to the meeting. This is also known as inclusion – member participation, involvement, and engagement. If any group member doesn’t trust another member, this will limit their participation and, ultimately, their feelings of inclusion, leading to the meeting being a waste of their time. This exercise is called Hopes and Concerns. This can be approached in a variety of different ways. The focus can be related to the group’s work or the meeting that day. What is each person looking forward to (hope) in the meeting, and what might they not be looking forward to as much (concern)? Or, if this is the start of a new planning cycle, perhaps the discussion is about hope or excitement about the organization’s future as well as concerns or fears of the future. Give the group a few minutes to write down their hopes and concerns about the question posed. Then go around the room sharing answers of hopes, followed by concerns, capturing the comments for further discussion. The exercise allows participants to forge a deeper understanding and appreciation of each other by hearing and seeing each other’s common thoughts and differences. The feeling of inclusion through participation, involvement, and engagement develops further. Trust is deepened as long as the rules of engagement are followed in the discussion; if violated, the facilitator must address it immediately. The information is also valuable to the rest of the planning. The group can discuss common themes and what can be addressed in the new strategy, or perhaps adjusted in the existing plan, to realize current hopes and prevent concerns from developing.
Synergy
Through the building of safety and trust, the group has discovered “who am I” and “who are you” and is in the process of realizing “who are we.” Who are we is the foundation of synergy. The group has a shared purpose, a sense of safety and trust, and is ready to work together (cooperation and cohesion) to realize the stated payoff at the end of the meeting. Synergy can be deepened by identifying the group’s specific roles and responsibilities and understanding how decisions will be made.
Regarding roles, reiterate that everyone, regardless of additional responsibility, is expected to participate. Does the group need a note-taker to ensure everything is captured? If this is a board, possibly relieving the board secretary from this role. Is a timekeeper required to help the facilitator keep the meeting on schedule? Is your group prone to groupthink, and is a devil’s advocate needed to challenge ideas and ensure new views are considered?
Most discussions will end with a decision. Many groups will keep their decision-making implicit and assumed. Sometimes, this relates to power and authority in the group or perceived power by the more expressive members. However, agreeing to how the group will make decisions creates further security and a sense of inclusion – I will be heard and valued. A consensus decision-making model is typically best to maintain the safety, trust, and, ultimately, the group’s energy.
It is a known fact that certain conditions are found in high-performing groups, meaning common elements are found in groups that are effective at accomplishing their tasks, goals, and objectives. The facilitator is responsible for achieving group effectiveness by getting the team to work together, cooperate, and feel connected or cohesive with the other members. The group needs safety and trust to have synergy to be collaborative and cohesive. When safety and trust are not attended to, group members may shut down and not participate, or even worse, undermine and sabotage processes and decisions. The team-building exercises outlined here will quickly and easily build the foundation for cooperation and cohesion. This synergy will get the group to focus on the task and ultimately work toward the vision, making strategy meetings significantly more productive.
