The facilitated approach is "Fine in Principle" but will it work for me?

There are numerous examples of the facilitated approach being used to great advantage but there is always the "But it didn't work in our organization" or "It won't work in our organization" 

A number of  organizations have received training in the facilited approach to running meetings but have failed to implement the method effectively. One reason is the company does not  "embrace it with enthusiasm" and another is that the "critical mass" is not present. By this we mean, that to bring about change of this sort in an organization it takes a certain (critical) number of people to support the idea to make it work. If support is below that critical number the innovation will not be adopted.  One implication is that sending one or two people on a training course and expecting that to work is wishful thinking.

Practice.

Another common mistake is to expect a person who has just attended a training course to become a "guru facilitator" overnight. Such skills do not develop in one training session.  The development of such skills  takes practice,

Dealing with difficult people and situations.

We must acknowledge that difficult people and situation exist. Several techniques can be used to deal with these situations. If you have such situations call us immediately, we can help.

Groupthink, The Abilene Paradox and the Cape Cod Syndrome

All these problems are associated with a failure to communicate effectively. However, they each have very different results.

Groupthink

Groupthink is when members of a group tend to resist offering views that differ markedly from the "norm" of the group, and fail to speak up when they do not agree with a decision made by the group or the group leader.

Groupthink leads to...

• A very limited range of viewpoints being taken into consideration

• Significant factors viewpoints not being taken into account in a situation analysis

• A limited range of possible solutions to problems being considered

• Incorrect assumptions being made about those outside the group

• Shortcuts being made to otherwise sound decision making procedures

• Incomplete analysis of information

• Erroneous conclusions not being questioned

• Non-optimum decisions being taken

• Non-optimum profits being made

• Non-optimum working conditions prevailing in the organization

• being exposed to litigation detrimental to the organization

How to avoid Groupthink

• Avoid "gunning down" dissention among meeting participants

• Praise and encourage lateral and free thinking

• Appoint one or two "Devils Advocates"

• Hold back "big guns" from giving their ideas first

• Take steps to make the members of the group hetero rather than homogenous - encourage participant diversity

• Build meeting conditions that support gathering "open" opinions

The Abilene Paradox

When a group of people decide and act in a way that is contrary to their real desires we have the Abilene Paradox. 

In this case members of the group make decisions and vote for action based on what they believe other members of the group want. The desire to "go along with" the perceived group wish is greater than the desire to do what they, as individuals, believe to be the "right" decision.

The Cape Cod Syndrome

When a group of people have difficulty in making a decision to the extent that by the time a decision is reached there is insufficient time to pursue most of the discussed options, we have the Cape Cod Syndrome.

Sometimes there may only be time to pursue one option, which renders the discussion redundant. In the extreme case, there is insufficient time to pursue any of the discussed options.