Managers as Facilitators: A Practical Guide to Getting Work Done in a Changing Workplace

Many managers associate facilitation with "touchy-feely" activities or organization-wide "feel-good" sessions. According to Richard G. Weaver and John D. Farrell, authors of Managers as Facilitators, these managers "have not experienced the practical, productive side of facilitation." Weaver and Farrell define facilitation as "a process through which a person helps others complete their work and improve the way they work together."

While many organizations need their people to master the roles of leader, manager, and facilitator, Weaver and Farrell claim that the role of facilitator is the most important in the modern workplace. The authors make distinctions between the three roles. "Leaders are concerned with doing the right thing, managers are concerned with doing things right, and facilitators are concerned with helping people do things. The leader role sets tone and direction, the manager role sets the pace, and the facilitator role helps people make meaning of the tone and direction while helping them get their work done at the required pace."

The authors' four-part facilitation model consists of the task, the self, the group, and the process. Helping groups clarify their task is the "single most important thing a facilitator does."

The facilitator's first job is to help group members define what they want to accomplish and to develop a work plan. The authors recommend identifying and implementing a charge (a description of the group's overall assignment) and a charter (a description of the group's purpose, goals, roles, and procedures). They also recommend formal or...