facilitator for round table discussion

[richard arlington]

Hey guys I have been asked by sima to be a facilitator at the symposium for round table discussions.

Has anyone been to a round table discussion before?

[Roger Dodger]

... only in a former life when I was named Lancelot!;)

[Tileman]

I know we have some kind of round discussion this past weekend while we were in Erie. :D I just don't remember a round tabe being part of it.:(




Rich

PS I have been to a few round table discussions over the years, and most of them were very informative .

[76chevyman]

They want you to speak but yet they wont let you join:confused:
They must really like you LOL. I think you would be great. You have a lot of good points on things and open minded as well. Sounds good to me. But i would ask for a free membership in return LOL.

Rich :burnout

[Mike Nelson]

Yes I have. Roundtables are a wealth of information.

What your duties are to get people around the table talking about the specific subject at that particular table. Also keep it on tract and keep it moving along. Pretty simple job for a guy with your background. ;) I am sure I will do one if needed.

Good luck and I am glad you are coming to MN. We are taking the motorhome out.

See Ya there!

[Lawn Lad]

Richard... we didn't meet in Erie perse - but I saw you there. Anyhow, facilitating a round table discussion basically means it's your job at the table to get the conversation going and more or less on topic. Certainly some topics run dry after 15 or 20 minutes so it would be appropriate to shift gears. You are there to keep the table topic going. Ask questions and let others talk as much as possible. Add in your experiences to keep conversation moving making sure to keep everyone involved.

The other good thing about faciliting... you don't have to wait in line for lunch. LOL (no seriously... you don't).

[BRL]

Ditto Mike & Lawn Lad. Roundtables are incredibly full of good info to take away with you.

[Rob]

I'm not sure in this case, but generally a facilitator is not supposed to use / give their own opinions. They are there to be sure the group stays focused and moving toward their goal. Perhaps they can ask inspirational type questions to keep moving, but they are not supposed to steer the discussions with opinions.

[szorno]

I am doing a couple of them. I plan to take the facilitator role seriously and keep my opinions out of it. The subjects I am facilitating are ones I want to learn about too. :D I plan on asking a bunch of questions.;)

[BRL]

"I plan to take the facilitator role seriously and keep my opinions out of it."

I understand what you are saying there, as far as it being something you are wanting to learn about. But FYI for you & anyone else unfamiliar with the job, your opinions are welcomed during the discussion. It is OK to participate. The facilitator role is very simple, get the conversation going on topic. When it slows down, start it back up. When it goes off topic, and it will, once there is the first lull in the off topic conversation, break in & get it back to the topic. (and often the off topic off-shoot conversations can be just as valuble to the participants as the original topic, and are often tied into the original topic.) And your last job is to make sure anyone who is new to SIMA or new to round table discussions feels welcomed & comfortable enough to jump in with their questions & comments. Someone new might feel intimidated by the whole thing at first. None of those facilitator duties say that the facilitator can't add their opinions, questions or information. Have fun!

[szorno]

Thanks BRL. I was a little off there. I will offer opinions when they are based on first or second hand experience, but not based on idle conjecture. Facilitating is more about drawing everyone in and keeping things moving. Thanks. BTW, you wanna sign up for my snack n chats? :D