process

“If we hadn’t done that, I couldn’t have done this.”

barbara pedersen business, business planning, collaboration, complexity, consulting, Conversation, Discussion, facilitation, in-person facilitation, Inclusion, lessons, listening, online facilitation, Planning, process, reading, Simplicity, storytelling, strategic planning, team building, team work, Visual facilitation

“That” was a Historical Scan activity; “this” was goal setting during a strategic planning session. The individual who said this pointed to the wall chart showing four decades of their nonprofit organization’s history and said that knowing their history helped

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Oops. A facilitator’s mishap is a good reminder that I can adapt

barbara pedersen business, collaboration, complexity, consulting, Conversation, design, Dialogue, Discussion, Diversity, facilitation, Fun, hybrid sessions, in-person facilitation, Inclusion, listening, nonprofit, online facilitation, Planning, process, Simplicity, storytelling, strategic planning, team building, team work, virtual, virtual facilitation, Visual facilitation

I enjoy successfully facilitating strategic planning, team building, conflict resolution, idea generation, focus groups, and other sessions. To keep things balanced, here’s my recent facilitation blooper and a timely reminder. I arrived at a hotel for a 1½-day, in-person strategic

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Structure and flexibility in strategic planning

barbara pedersen business, business planning, Dialogue, Discussion, Diversity, facilitation, Planning, process, strategic planning, team building, team work

Facilitating strategic planning with nonprofit and corporate organizations is a large part of my business. At the heart of my strategic planning approach is the Technology of Participation (ToPTM)’s participatory strategic planning methodology. ICA Associates in Toronto, Canada taught me

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Nodding while facilitating and the unexpected consequences

barbara pedersen Belonging, business, collaboration, complexity, consulting, Conversation, design, Discussion, Diversity, Equity, facilitation, feedback, fierce conversations, hybrid sessions, in-person facilitation, Inclusion, Indigenous people, intersectionality, lessons, listening, online facilitation, Planning, process, silence, strategic planning, Talking, team building, team work, technology, virtual, virtual facilitation, Visual facilitation

I nodded while facilitating and learned a lesson I won’t forget. Some time ago, I facilitated a small online focus group to gather community input for a nonprofit initiative. As I listened carefully to each participant, I unconsciously nodded my

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