This presentation focuses on strategies and tips for effective meetings and facilitation. Designed for the New Jersey Campus Compact and Bonner Foundation VISTA Leaders, it especially covers how young professionals in nonprofit settings might plan and lead meetings that contribute to the mission, effectiveness, and impact of their organizations.

1. Great Meetings and
Facilitation
Some tricks of the trade for
the NJCC VISTAs

2. Great Meetings
How will you
plan and lead
them – and
enhance the
mission and
impact of your
efforts?

3. An effective meeting…
1.Has a clear purpose (intended outcomes)!
2.Has an plan and agenda (to meet purpose and manage
the participation of the group)
3.Clearly conveys the purpose and the process
4.Helps people feel comfortable, welcome, and engaged
5.Gets something accomplished!
There are many strategies for this!

4. Shared
Vision
Build
Collaboration
Plan &
carry out
events &
programs
Co-
construct
knowledge
agenda
Date, Time, Place • People
Big Idea or Progress Tracker
Goals or intended outcomes
• 1
• 2
• 3
Activities
I.
2.
3.
4.
Upcoming Dates and Next Steps
Let’s look at four types!

5. CreATE A ReAL AGENDA
Date, Time, Place •
People
Goals or intended outcomes
• “A shared understanding of the benefits of
participating in the collaborative”
• “Agreement on the key gaps for homeless individuals
in the city in accessing job training”
• “A decision and action plan in how to deliver high
quality services while cutting the budget by 10%”
• “A research plan that will inform the creation of a
new campaign to target teen drug addiction”
Consider and draft some outcomes now!
Two kinds of
outcomes
knowledge
• awareness of…so
that…
• understanding
of..so that…
products
• list
• plan
• decision
• agreement

6. Brief written
statements
From the
perspective of
the
participant!
Specific &
measurable
SHARE AND
OFFER
FEEDBACK
In small groups, share your
intended outcomes.
Goals or intended outcomes
• 1
• 2
• 3

7. mentoring collaborative
Rutgers-Camden, November 1, 2016
Facilitated by Jenni Jones, Rutgers-Camden VISTA
Tony Rivera, Boys &Girls Club
Sam Smith, Big Brothers Big Sisters
Joanne Love, Faculty
Goals or intended outcomes
• Introduce each of our organization’s approach and assets
• Discuss hopes for the collaboration
• Build a sense of teamwork and trust
Activities
I. Warm Up: Moments of Commitment
II. Presentations
• Boys &Girls Club
• Big Brothers Big Sisters
• Mentoring Course
III. Reflection and Discussion
(using article about mentoring models)
Initial meetings
might be designed
to purposefully
build
relationships.
Share program
models and clarify
what they have in
common.
Use frameworks to
build
understanding.
Build
Collaboration

8. literacy PROGRAM TEAM
Our Office, October 15 1, 2016
Cris, Jodi, Paula, Petra, and Zach
Representing 5 campus organizations and departments
Goals or intended outcomes
• Share more about each of our program’s work
• Analyze how they approach the issue and how they fit into a larger
theory of change about effective literacy programs
• Discuss gaps in our services and what to do
Activities
I. Short synopsis of the literacy framework (guest presenter)
2. Individual and Group SWOT Analysis of Our Work
a. strengths
b. weaknesses
c. opportunities
d. threats
3. Group Discussion: Gaps and Opportunities
4. Setting Concrete Goals and next steps
In these
meetings, you
might use a
framework,
article, focus
questions or
other ways to
have
participants
learn from each
other and
together.
Co-
construct
knowledge
& goals

9. campus kitchens
launch team
Our University, November 15, 2016
Anna, Joe, Maribel, Priya, Tomas
$18,000 raised!
60% there! • 2 weeks to go!
Goals or intended outcomes
• Get our launch event ready!
• Discuss our communication strategy.
Reports and Walk Through
I. Overview of progress to date (Maribel)
2. Logistics Committee report (Tomas)
3. Public Relations Committee report (Anna)
4. Programming Walk Through (Joe and Priya)
5. Day of Event Communication Plan Discussion
• Meet next Friday at 3 pm
• Bring your friends and be ready to prep registration!
Engage leaders
and managers
of specific roles
and tasks
Delegate
reporting
Integrative
walk through
Plan &
carry out
events &
programs

10. A shared vision
meeting
requires time
and facilitation
Lay out a
process to
integrate info
and gradually
create a plan.
achieve
city of trenton healthy
foods coalition
Office of the Mayor, November 1, 2016
Facilitated by Jo Rodriguez, TCNJ VISTA
Campus Kitchens, Department of Health and Human Services,
Trenton Area Soup Kitchen, Shop Rite, Trenton Policy Prevention Board
Goals or intended outcomes
• Craft a shared vision for the upcoming month’s work as a coalition
• Begin to articulate goals for service delivery and policy change
Activities
I. Synopsis and discussion of the city task force report
2. Review of the recommendations and options (from survey)
3. Facilitated goal setting activity
Upcoming Dates and Next Steps
• Drafted goals will be voted on next week
• In 2 weeks, we’ll finalize and wordsmith in our meeting
(see Bonner Curriculum for GUIDES!)
Shared
Vision

11. (Facilitative)
Leader
Team Member
Notetaker
work on your
agenda
1. List the intended
outcomes
2. Identity and sequence
topics to reach outcomes
3. Select or create a process
4. Calculate time needed for
each topic/process
5. Identify lead person for
each topic
let’s discuss
Neutral
facilitator
do you need
to clarify
roles?

12. great facilitation
is the art of small
agreements

13. What Facilitators Do…
➤ manage the process of dialogue, learning,
or decision making involving a group
➤ encourage participation
➤ set a tone and maintain focus
➤ workshop; meeting; conflict resolution

14. Setting the Stage…
!Present basic information
"Who you are
"Context
"Desired outcomes or goals
"How goals fit into larger process
"Overview of the agenda/outline
!Clarify if necessary:
"Does anyone have questions?
"Does this make sense to everyone?
!Check for agreement:
"Look for cues
"Make eye contact

15. Open
Open consideration of a topic through open-ended
activities (brainstorm, questions, etc.
Narrow
Use a process to narrow the
information and considerations.
Close.
Reach closure
or transition
(e.g. next steps
for process).

16. The Flow…
You are running a meeting or navigating a conversation:
!First you might set out the question or issue
(like clarifying an outcome) in the context of a
conversation or meeting.
!And you might open it up or guide it with a few
constraints or details.
!Then, you might focus in a bit, clarifying the
process, resources, and constraints.
!Then, bring the process to a close or transition
of some kind.

17. The Flow…
!“Today, we’ll discuss what workshops should we
have for our annual training? We only have space
and time for three sessions.”
!“Our survey identified 20 potential topics, with 7 as
most desired. As managers, this group also has
preferences.”
!“We need to decide what is most important. Also,
our budget for speakers is limited.”
!“We’ll prioritize your input, incorporate some
insights from the survey, and narrow down to the
top 6 choices today.”

18. Clarify the process…
When starting a new item or segment:
! Clearly state the content of the next segment
or step and desired outcomes.
! Clearly present the process. Use concise,
straightforward language.
! Clarify if necessary. Ask for questions.
! Check for agreement.
! If there is disagreement or confusion, look for
small agreements.

19. Open
๏ Brainstorm
๏ List
๏ Survey
๏ Review ideas
๏ Once Around (Hear from each participant)
๏ NOSTUESO
๏ Open-ended Questions

20. Narrow
๏ Material, time/urgency, resource (budget)
constraints
๏ Polling or Prioritizing Technique
๏ Eliminate duplicates
๏ Voting
๏ Consensus process (if agreed on as
decision-making approach)

21. Close
๏ Negative poll
๏ Decision - Prioritizing Technique or Voting
๏ Combine and build agreements until goal
is reached
๏ Define next steps for decision (e.g. “Okay
we have three possibilities to research –
let’s come back next week with the
information and we’ll decide based on
that”)

22. Scenarios
Analyze
Alternatives?
Role Play
Freeze/Switch
Discuss

23. Bag of Tricks
Plus/Delta
fist of five
once around
the funnel
most interesting thing

24. Back on Track
boomerang
grounding in the ground rules
where are we
affirm then defer
whats going on

25. Facilitative Leadership
Lead • er
a person who has
commanding authority or
influence
Fa • cil • i • tate
to make easier
Facilitative Leaders empower others to work together to
achieve common goals. They make it easier for people to:
• Contribute their ideas and expertise
• Speak up when they have problems
• Work with others
• Make and implement decisions
• Achieve high-quality results

26. Facilitative Leaders Balance
Coach
Guides others
towards improved
performance, self-
awareness, and full
potential
Team Leader
Manages the process
by which a team
accomplishes its goals
and tasks
Change Agent
Encourages
continuous
improvement of the
organization and
systems

27. Eight Practices
Celebrate
Accomplishment
Team
Leader
Share an Inspiring
Vision
Focus on
Results,
Process, &
Relationship
Seek
Maximum
Appropriate
Involvement
Model Actions
that Facilitate
Collaboration
Design
Pathways
to
Action
Bring
Out the
Best in
Others
Build
the
Clock
Change Agent
Coach

28. Share an Inspiring Vision
Create and community an image of
the future and get others engaged
in its pursuit. Keep the mission out
front.
Focus on Results, Process,
Relationships
Build a framework for performance
and satisfaction that balances what
gets done, the way it happens, and
how people treat each other.
Seek Maximum
Appropriate Involvement
Leverage the talent & interests of
others around you by including
them appropriately in the decision-
making process. Work to increase
trust and commitment through
engagement.
Model Actions
that Facilitate Collaboration
Encourage diversity of opinion and
honor individual perspectives. Help
team members stay focused on task
at hand through modeling.
Design Pathways to Action
Guid others in planning how to
solve problems and realize
opportunities. Help people see
alternatives when implementing a
plan. Provide a roadmap.
Bring Out the Best in Others
Coach individuals to do their best.
Listen as an ally. Support the
expression of others’ ideas and
aspirations. Seek out the best in
oneself. Work to overcome
obstacles.
Celebrate Accomplishment
Seize the moment to celebrate small
successes. Acknowledge individuals
and teams for their contributions.
Provide authentic praise.
Build the Clock
Build systems, talent, and structures
so that the work can continue
(perhaps even better) when you are
gone. Nurture new leadership.
Personal Development Plan
Where I’m strongest...
Where I need to
grow...

29. Balancing Results, Process,
and Relationships
We got the
job done!
Focus on
Results,
Process, &
Relationship
But things
were
confusing
from the
beginning...
...and people
didn’t really
listen to me.

30. Results
Focus on
Results,
Process, &
Relationship
Relationships
Do team members/
colleagues feel supported?
Do team members/
colleagues feel valued?
Do I trust others and feel
valued?
Process
Was the process
inclusive?
Was the process clear/
transparent?
Is/was the process
appropriate to the task
and context?
Were the results high-quality?
Did it get done on time?
Was your organization/those
involved satisfied?

31. Facilitation
Outcomes/Goals
Relationships
/Dynamics
The facilitator has to be
aware of and observant
about the individuals’ and
group’s behavior and
participation, attempting
to reaffirm and trust
participants’ contributions
Process/
How
The facilitator is
concerned about how to
get to the aim, paying
attention to the quality
of the process, its flow,
and its efficiency.
The facilitator is attempting to get
to a particular outcome or end.
This is usually a goal or aim.

32. Take 2: Seek Maximum
Appropriate Involvement
Level of
involvement
Seek
Maximum
Appropriate
Involvement
Time and Other Constraints
Decide &
announce
Gather input from
individuals & decide
Gather input from
team & decide
Use
Consensus
Delegate decision
with constraints

33. Approach Advantages/Uses
Disadvantages/
Misuses
Keys to Success
Delegate
decision
with
constraints
•Frees leader up for other work.
•Minimizes underming of the
decision.
•Develops leadership capacity
•Team may not have the skills,
experience, or perspective to make
informed decision.
•May take more time.
•Team may take on extraneous issues
(drift).
•Explain how people will be involved.
•Explain rationale and constraints (i.e., time, costs).
•Build in milestones for process and content checks.
•Be available for questions.
Use
Consensus
•Educates through active
participation.
•High level of support for decision.
•Implementation can be quicker, due
to higher buy-in.
•May take more time, demand better
facilitation.
•Team members may not have
collaborative skills to agree.
•People may interpret leader’s choice of
consensus as weakness.
•Explain what consensus means in the given
situation and why you chose this mode.
•Outline contraints, including time and money/
resources.
•Identify a fallback level if consensus cannot be
reached.
Gather
input from
team &
decide
•More creative thinking because of
group synergy.
•Increased likelihood of well-informed
decision.
•People feel included and may be
more committed to implement.
•Takes more time; requires some
management of process.
•May surface issues or conflicts, at times
disruptive.
•If resulting decision is in conflict with
input, people may sabotage
implementation.
•Explain how people with be involved in decision
making and the rationale of the approach.
•Set guidelines for the type of involvement & input.
•Set a time limit for the decision and results.
Gather
input from
individuals
& decide
•More relevant (differentiated)
information for decision.
•Increased likelihood that decision
will be carried out.
•Doesn’t require a meeting or
involvement of all players.
•Some players may feel arbitrarily
excluded or may not feel process was
as collaborative.
•If decision is in conflict with input,
players may undermine decision or be
less likely to implement well.
•Explain how people with be involved in decision
making and the rationale of the approach.
•Explain what considerations or criteria you will use
to make final decision (especially if input is not all
considered equal).
•Be clear about type of input/info you need.
Decide &
announce
•Decision can be made quickly and
deal with situations requiring
urgency or action.
•Leader is in immediate control.
•Implementation can begin quickly.
•May not be or may be perceived as ill-
informed, lack of process, or unfair.
•Those assigned to carry out may balk at
implementation.
•Those affected may harbor resentment.
•Explain the context for the decision (i.e.,
constraints, factors) and announce the decision
itself.
•Explain why you chose this approach.
Levels of Decision Making