Library of facilitation techniques

Set the expectations for behavior and conduct you have for participants at the beginning of your online meeting with the Online Meeting Etiquette checklist.

Open Space is a methodology for large groups to create their agenda discerning important topics for discussion, suitable for conferences, community gatherings and whole system facilitation

The purpose of a retrospective is to reflect on the process of the team’s collaboration, rather than on the content of work itself. This opening icebreaker helps participants to get in a reflective mood and share their thoughts and feelings.

This is a classic business tool used to keep meetings and workshops focused on track. During discussions, questions will often emerge that are important but not fully relevant to the focus at the moment. These questions or issues are “parked” on a flipchart, to be addressed and answered later. This practice helps ensure that important questions do not get lost and that the group can stay focused on the most relevant things.

Participants throw an invisible ball to one another through their computer screen, paying attention to how it changes as it gets passed around.    

Open your workshop / session / meeting with a visual check-in that enables people to be there as who they are and what's on their mind:

• Every participant selects a picture representing how they are
• Take turns sharing how this cards represents them/their mood/situation

Remembered objects are used to 'port' between memories 

A quick, simple, and powerful reflective exercise to help participants identify activities that spark positive feelings in their daily lives. It is great for those who would like to have more positive emotions, but also more well-being, or energy.

Powerpoint Karaoke is an improv game where volunteers take turns presenting slide decks that they've never seen before, in front of a live audience.

A problem solving technique to define a problem, challenge or opportunity and to generate ideas.

This is a method for individuals and teams to define the structure, direction and first steps of a project. The individual or team works through a set of questions and documents the answers in a sharable digital format. This can either be a “living” document that develops with the project it can be left as just a clear and concise record of the starting-point.

One of the best ways to explore creativity is through building. Simple low fidelity prototypes can allow us to transform simple (and at times complex) ideas into something physical. In doing so we inevitably open a space for continuing to explore, reevaluate and iterate.