Facilitation and meetings
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6 min read
Key findings
Ninety minutes is a practical ceiling for one video block, and two blocks with a break outperform a single three-hour session.
Writing before speaking removes the advantage held by whoever unmutes first, and quieter participants contribute more.
Breakout groups of three return usable output when the brief names the question, the reporter, the document and a two-line output.
The Groan Zone feels worse on video, so the facilitator names it aloud and breaks at the point of greatest frustration.
A hybrid session works only when everyone joins from their own device and all input is written first.
Writing before speaking removes the advantage held by whoever is fastest to unmute.
Virtual workshop facilitation works when each block lasts ninety minutes or less, written input comes before anyone speaks, and the first round has a named order.
Contested questions go to groups of three.
The session ends with a written decision record.
An internal facilitator running a senior leadership session on video faces three risks that the tool guides rarely cover.
Cameras go off, side conversations start in the chat, and one leader dominates the audio.
What Changes On Video
Three things work differently on a screen, and a design that ignores them produces thin participation.
Turn-taking. The cues that govern it in person are absent or delayed
Peripheral awareness. A participant cannot see who is about to speak or who has disengaged
Informal exchange. The conversation either side of the session, where much of the real work happens in person, disappears
Two things work as well or better.
Written input is faster and more equal on a screen than on flipcharts.
Structured rounds work because the platform allows one voice at a time.
Virtual Workshop Design
Four decisions carry a video workshop.
Shorter blocks, each with a hard stop
Written input before spoken input, on every question
A named order for the first round
Groups of three for anything contested
Ninety minutes is a practical ceiling for one block, because attention thins and nobody can take the informal break that a shared space provides.
Two blocks with a proper break between them outperform a single three-hour session.
Dave Gray's Gamestorming describes silent idea generation on sticky notes, which gives a more diverse set of ideas at the start of a session.
It also notes that in a typical group the extroverts dominate the verbal contributions, and that silence gives quieter people a chance to contribute.
A shared document or whiteboard plays the part of the sticky notes on video.
Writing before speaking is the highest-return change, because it removes the advantage held by whoever is fastest to unmute.
Group Memory On Screen
Kaner and colleagues observe that participation in many groups is unbalanced, with a few people doing most of the talking.
The pattern shifts when people's ideas are written where everyone can see them, which they call group memory.
Recording a person's words tells them the idea is valuable, and it gives the group a shared record to return to.
On video, a named person types into a shared document that everyone can see, using the speaker's own words where possible.
That person is not the facilitator.
Managing The Chat
An unmanaged chat runs a second meeting alongside the first.
Three rules make it useful.
Say what the chat is for at the start, usually questions rather than commentary
Assign someone other than the facilitator to watch it
Read the questions aloud, so that the whole group hears them
Where nobody is watching the chat, close it and say why.
Stacking Speakers
Kaner describes stacking as a procedure for helping people take turns when several want to speak at once.
The facilitator asks who wishes to speak, then numbers each person before anyone begins.
People then stop competing for airtime and listen, because they know their turn will come.
On video, the raised-hand function supplies the list, and the facilitator states the order aloud.
The same source warns that relying too heavily on stacking can leave a group with too many topics on the floor.
Stacking suits one topic at a time.
Camera Policy
Camera policy needs a decision, and two positions are workable.
Cameras on for discussion blocks, stated in the invitation with the reason
Cameras optional throughout, accepted without resentment
An unstated expectation fails, because people then watch each other's compliance instead of the work.
State which applies before the session and hold to it.
Breakout Groups That Produce Something
Breakout groups return with a summary nobody can recall unless the brief says what to bring back, and the announcement is too late for that.
Four items go in the brief.
A question narrow enough to answer in the time given
A named person to report back, chosen before the breakout opens
A shared document per group, open before they arrive
A stated output, usually two lines
Groups of three work better than groups of six, because a six-person video group reproduces the original problem at a smaller scale.
A six-person video group reproduces the original problem at a smaller scale.
A Three-Hour Sequence
A three-hour leadership session on video runs as two blocks with a fifteen-minute break.
Each block names the decision it produces.
Opening, ten minutes. Everyone writes one line on the question, and the facilitator reads the order for the first round
Block one, ninety minutes. The group narrows three options to one, using written input, a stacked discussion and a vote recorded in the shared document
Break, fifteen minutes. Cameras off, no chat
Block two, sixty minutes. Groups of three draft the action for each owner, and each reports two lines
Close, fifteen minutes. The facilitator reads back every decision, its owner and its date
The read-back follows the same discipline as a talent review that changes decisions, and workshops that end in decisions sets out the wider method.
The Groan Zone On Screen
Kaner calls the difficult middle of group decision-making the Groan Zone.
In it, group members struggle to understand a wide range of foreign or opposing ideas, and they can become repetitious, defensive and short-tempered.
Groups often take it as evidence that they are dysfunctional, and Kaner notes that acknowledging its existence is a significant step.
On video it is harder to hold, because participants see a grid of faces and conclude that the session is failing.
Two moves help.
Name it aloud, including that it will feel worse on screen than in person
Break at the point of greatest frustration, because the informal recovery of a shared space is unavailable
Kaner adds that announcing a decision to relieve the frustration makes matters worse, because people conclude it was made in advance.
The facilitator therefore holds the silence and does not announce an answer.
Hybrid Sessions
A session with eight people in a room and four on a screen is the hardest format to run.
The remote participants become an audience within minutes.
Three arrangements help, and none is free.
Everyone joins from their own device, including the people in the building
A named person in the room holds responsibility for bringing remote participants in
All input is written first, so the channel is equal
Where none of the three is possible, run two sessions and treat them as two.
What Belongs Outside
Video sessions are often full of material that should have been sent.
Context and background belong in a pre-read with a stated reading time
Updates that need no decision belong in writing
Presentations over ten minutes belong in a recording
What remains is discussion and decision, which is what the format is worst at and what the session is for.
Working With A Co-Host
A second person improves a video session more than any tool.
The facilitator holds the content and the discussion.
The co-host holds the chat, the timing, the breakout logistics and the people who drop out.
Agree beforehand who interrupts whom, and on what cue.
Recording Policy
Recording changes what people say.
Record briefings and announcements, and say the recording will be circulated.
Do not record a session where disagreement is needed, and say that this is the reason.
Where The Tools Sit
Trusted Talent Advisor places the session structures and decision rules in component 05, Facilitating the Talent Forum.
Its template pack includes the session brief and the decision record.
Related reading: leadership offsite agenda.
Sources
1. Kaner, S., Lind, L., Toldi, C., Fisk, S. and Berger, D. Facilitator's Guide to Participatory Decision-Making. Jossey-Bass.
2. Gray, D., Brown, S. and Macanufo, J. Gamestorming: A Playbook for Innovators, Rulebreakers and Changemakers. O'Reilly.
From the system
Trusted Talent Advisor sets out the full method: seven components, 51 tools, The Talent Template Pack and The Prompt Library.
See the system
Questions this answers
How do you run a virtual workshop?
Keep each block to ninety minutes, collect written input before anyone speaks, fix a named order for the first round, and use groups of three for contested questions. Close with a read-back of every decision, its owner and its date.
How long should a virtual workshop be?
Ninety minutes is a practical ceiling for one block. A three-hour session runs better as two blocks with a fifteen-minute break, each naming the decision it produces, because attention thins and there is no informal break between topics.
How do you keep people engaged in an online workshop?
Ask for written input in the first five minutes so everyone contributes early, return to people by name, and keep blocks short enough that full attention is a reasonable request. Silent writing also draws in quieter participants.
What tools do you need for a virtual workshop?
A video platform with a raised-hand function, a shared document or whiteboard for written input, and breakout groups. A co-host to watch the chat and timing matters more than any extra tool.
How do you run breakout rooms well?
Put four items in the brief: a narrow question, a named reporter chosen in advance, a shared document open before they arrive, and a two-line output. Use groups of three, since a six-person video group recreates the original problem.
What is the difference between virtual and hybrid facilitation?
Virtual sessions have every participant on a screen. Hybrid sessions mix a room with remote participants, who tend to become an audience. Everyone should join from their own device, and all input should be written first.
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