Strategic Advice and Facilitation

Facilitation Process

Meeting facilitation has many benefits that put the
organisation in a position to get real value out of strategic sessions and thus not only an immediate return on investment but contribute to the long-term sustainability of the organisation

SERVICE pILLARS

Strategy Meeting Facilitation

Strategy Sessions

Potential pitfalls for leaders in strategy sessions include:

Going into group think, especially when there are one or two dominant voices that steer the group in a particular direction
Not challenging each other to think outside of the normal parameters
Not fully tapping into the insights of the directors and executives
Remaining in an echo chamber, especially where there is lack of diversity of thought
Drowning out of important, but soft voices
Allowing biases and prejudice to cloud judgements
Political games being played
Not doing enough homework and therefore missing important issues in the broader context that may have a fundamental impact on the organisation.
Ineffective use of meeting time

Meeting Facilitation

Facilitated strategy sessions bring benefits such as:

The facilitator is a neutral independent third party, who has not been part of any historical politics and can therefore remain impartial and help pull parties together and aligning them around the strategy, intent and decisions
The group being challenged to think broader than their normal frame of reference
Utilising a model that is designed to extract maximum value from the group deliberations
Helping to ensure that all voices are respected and heard
Unearthing unresolved issues that are hindering progress
Professional management of dysfunctional group behaviour
Assisting the group to co-create an outcome that everyone buys into
Driving the group to accountability
Efficient use of meeting time

SERVICE pILLARS

Strategy Advice

Executive Leadership

Boards/Committees

Human Resources

Internal Audit

Typical Facilitation Process

Step 01

We meet with the delegated official/s from the organisation to understand the needs of the client at a high level and to determine whether we are a good fit for the organisation. This consultation is free and the meeting may be face-to-face or via video conference call. Our process of asking questions may help the client crystalise for themselves what they need to achieve and what the ultimate purpose of the strategy meeting is. It also helps us to understand what the client does not want, what has not worked in the past, what underlying political issues may hinder the process and how open the client is to change.

Step 02

Once we have a good idea of what the client’s needs are, we prepare a facilitation proposal that outlines the approach we will take and the outcomes the client wants to achieve. The proposal includes any recommended pre-work and describes what will be included in the postmeeting report. The proposal is accompanied by a quote that includes all work to be done by the facilitator.

Step 03

The pre-work is done, which includes reviewing of background documents and any research or environmental scans that have been agreed upon. This may also include surveys to be conducted in the organisation and/or among stakeholders of the organisation. Once the pre-work is done, we analyse and summarise it in a format that is easily digestible and most impactful in the strategy formulation process.

Step 04

When we facilitate the strategy meeting we work toward ensuring maximum participation and encourage deep application of mind in the formulation of the strategy. Our role is to assist the group in its co-creation process and craft a strategic plan that will propel the organisation forward. In the process we help the group to identify those factors that may become hindering factors in the implementation of the plan and what the organisation needs to do to ensure that the plan does not eventually just gather dust on a shelf.

Step 05

We produce a meeting report which captures what the group did and agreed on as well as what the next steps are. We leave the client with a well-defined, uncluttered strategic plan that captures the essence of the strategy and is easy to sell to the rest of the organisation.

Step 06

We follow up after the meeting report has been published and evaluate acceptance of the plan throughout the organisation and, where necessary, critical stakeholders.

Step 07

We provide recommendations of what the organisation needs to put in place before it will be in a position to successfully implement the strategy