FACILITATION
Become a Facilitation Masterchef
Be prepared with all the gadgets and kitchen aids to whip up any facilitation recipe
Do you get stressed just thinking about facilitating a session? Do you procrastinate and leave everything for the last minute?
Imagine you get a magic wand that can help you create any session you might think of. Well, today, I’m going to share with you something almost as magical!
A Miro template that will walk you through the facilitation of any session so that you can become a Facilitation Masterchef.
Be prepared with all the gadgets and kitchen aids to whip up any facilitation recipe.
Let’s cook up solutions like true facilitation chefs!
Facilitation Template in Birdseye View
I’m thrilled to introduce the new facilitation template I created for my workshop at Agile2024 in Dallas in collaboration with Miro.
This template is designed to help you build any session you need, effortlessly. Whether it’s a retrospective, brainstorming session, or training workshop, this template has got you covered.
The core of the template is the Double Diamond structure that I customized for facilitation. But there’s much more to see here. Let me give you a high-level walkthrough of the whole template, and then we’ll explore the Double Diamond structure in detail.
We start with a short intro about who I am, in case you don’t know me. Then, we have three main parts:
- Part One — Choose a Warm-up: Begin with a warm-up activity to get everyone in the right mindset. You have three example warm-up activities here that can work whether your session is in-person or remote.
- Part Two — The Double Diamond: Follow the Double Diamond structure to explore and define problems, develop and deliver solutions. This is the core part that we’ll dive into in a moment.
- Part Three — Tips, Tricks, and Resources: This part is a gem. I’ve put together different tips, tricks, and resources. Those are unique insights and tools to help overcome challenges and improve your facilitation sessions.
There you go! This is the template in a birdseye view!
Double Diamond
And now let’s deep dive into the core of it — part two — the Double Diamond structure.
[Check my YouTube video for a detail walkthrough of the template.]
The Double Diamond structure that I customized for facilitation, guides you through four phases of facilitation cooking recipe.
Just like choosing the perfect meal for a dinner party, you select the right facilitation techniques for your session, ensuring a delightful experience for all participants.
Now, let’s see this template in action with a real example. Suppose you need to whip up a retrospective session quickly.
- Discover [diverge]: use this part to gather data. Uncover challenges or opportunities. You can use the Sailboat or 4Ls retrospective format.
- Define [converge]: Scope down and clarify the focus. Good practice here is to first group similar items and then vote on the most relevant for all. By the way, try the new dot voting in Miro, it’s a delight!
- Solution Brainstorming [diverge]: It’s time to find solutions for your challenges. Generate ideas and solutions for selected challenges using techniques like 1–2–4-All, Brainstorming, or Mind Mapping.
- Delivery [converge]: Make decisions and define actions with the 3W action plan: What needs to be done, by When, and Who owns the action.
You can easily combine using this template with other templates in Miro, like the Sailboat, to create a comprehensive and engaging retrospective session.
Gain confidence by dominating the structure
And that’s it. Just as simple. Knowing the structure and the purpose of each phase will help you gain confidence and be prepared for any facilitation challenge.
Do you feel like a facilitation Masterchef yet?
Join my community or set a mentorship call with me where I can help you create a facilitation session with this Miro template tailor-made for your needs.
I’d love to see the retrospectives you create using this template. Share your creations with me on LinkedIn. If you do, I’ll invite you to a LIVE session in my community where we’ll use the template together.
What’s more, in the second part of August, I’ll host a special LIVE session in my Collaboration2.0 community to share my Agile2024 conference experience with an AMA! You can’t miss it!
So, let’s cook up some fantastic facilitation sessions and become true Facilitation Masterchefs! Remember, great facilitation starts with the right tools. Happy facilitating!
