Running Great Meetings and Workshops For Dummies

Chapter 11

Taking It to the Next Level

In This Chapter

Leading brainstorming sessions

Using group processes efficiently and effectively

Working with Appreciative Inquiry

Recognising when you are in a parallel process

Once you start to lead groups either in meetings or in workshops, you’ll need additional tools to help you. After all, the main point of group work is to bring everyone together to solve common and complex issues. And that doesn’t happen just because you want it to. You need process and planning. This chapter walks you through some tried-and-tested group processes that help get things done.

Brainstorming: Best Practise

If you want a group to come up with ideas together, you’ll probably think, ‘I need a brainstorming session.’

The practise of getting people to think aloud as they generate ideas started in the ’50s, and it came out of the advertising industry. Back then, typical rules were developed, most of which are used today:

• Freewheeling works best: Just say whatever comes into your mind.
• Deferring judgements: It’s all about idea generation, not critiquing others’ ...