Facilitation Skills: Running Effective Virtual Meetings

• This online version fits more easily into your work schedule.

•  Immediately apply your new skills and knowledge to your work; then talk to your facilitator about it during the next live session.

•  Build a set of Best Practices that will work for you.

•  Practice the online skills required to get the most out of your virtual meetings during one of the five online sessions and get expert feedback as you progress.

•  Receive a comprehensive manual packed with job aids, checklists and reference materials.

• Establish and identify a clear framework of best practices for managing a virtual meeting.

• Describe the key elements for planning a virtual meeting.

• Explain how to get a virtual meeting off to a good start.

• Identify the key actions required to keep the virtual meeting participants involved, interested, and directed toward accomplishing the desired results.

• Use questioning and facilitation skills to accomplish the type of participation desired.

• Apply effective remote listening skills.

• Identify the platform capabilities to use to ensure purpose and desired outcome is achieved.

• Verbalize transitions between platform capabilities in the virtual environment.

• Use language to connect with the remote audience.

• Determine appropriate follow-through plans and conclude the virtual meeting.

• Describe the key actions for curbing unproductive behavior and keep virtual meetings on target.

• Practice facilitating your own virtual meeting.

Foundations of Virtual Meetings

• Introduction, Objectives, Expectations and Overview

• Importance of Rules of Engagement

• Platform Capabilities

• Face to Face versus Virtual Meetings: What is the Same/What is Different

• Underlying Philosophies of Effective Meeting Facilitation

• Actions to help groups become more effective

• Human Element: Voice and Speech Characteristics

• Creating Rapport in the Virtual Environment

• Organizational Skills Overview:

  • Getting Started

• Types of Participation

• Creating an Agenda; Ground Rules; Role Assignment and Use of Technology

• Practice Opening a Virtual Meeting; Feedback and Debrief

Assignments

• Review Effective Groups vs Ineffective Groups

• Review Getting Started

• Review Types of Participation

• Prepare for the Virtual Meeting:

  • Create an Agenda

  • Create Ground Rules using Guidelines

  • Identify Role Assignments, Technology Issues and Phone Etiquette

  • Identify Important Phrases, Ideas and Actions

• Practice Your Meeting Introduction

Getting Started and Keeping Moving

• Common Pitfalls and Traps of Getting Started

• Keeping Moving

• Challenges of Virtual Meeting: Content Versus Process

• Effective Remote Listening Skills

• Ways to Refocus

• Using Language to Connect

• Verbalizing Transitions in a Virtual Meeting Environment

• Strategies for Maintain a Balanced Place in a Virtual Meeting in a Face-to-Face Meeting

• Researching Conclusions as You Go

• Practice Keeping Moving; Feedback and Debrief

• Common Pitfalls and Traps of Keeping Moving

Assignments

• Review Keeping Moving

• Review Using Language

• Review Verbalizing Transitions

• Review Generating Action and Concluding

Generating Action and Encouraging Participation

• Best Practices for Generating Action and Concluding

• Common Pitfalls for Generating Action and Concluding

• Monitoring Virtual and Face to Face Participation

• Group Leadership Skills

  • Encouraging Constructive Participation

    • Type of Participation Desires

    • Creating a Participative Climate

    • Drawing Out Contributions: Sample Questions

    • Acknowledging and Reinforcing Construction Participation

• Common Pitfalls and Traps for Encouraging Constructive Participation

Assignments

• Constructive Participation

• Review Effective Remote Listening

• Review Asking Questions and Logistics

• Review Facilitation Language

• Incorporate Questions (in Your Practice)

• Read Establishing a Positive Climate

• Review Sample Questions and How to Incorporate

• Preparations for Individual Practice Facilitating a Virtual Meeting

Practice

• Individual Practice Facilitating a 10-12 Minute Virtual Meeting (recorded for personal viewing)

Handling Disruptive Behaviour and Action Planning

• Handling Disruptive Behaviour

• Best Practices in the Virtual and Face-to-Face Environment

• Action Plan

• Wrap-Up

  • Expectations Revisited

  • What’s Next?