So what does it take to facilitate a productive discussion? The elements generally involve the following:
- An excellent facilitator or facilitators who remain neutral and encourage folks to participate without fear of reprisal; facilitator(s) who will:
- establish a structure and process that is fair and inclusive
- who build consensus as may be required
- who encourage shared responsibility for the outcomes
- who create synergies among the participants
- who are excellent listeners and communicators with strong language skills—articulate and skilled in paraphrasing
Since 1993, Interloqui® has been invited to facilitate discussions on a wide variety of concerns within profit and not-for-profit organizations and government entities. Examples include, but are not limited to, strategic planning efforts, generation of skill requirements for talent acquisition, integration of diversity and inclusion initiatives within organizational culture, market survey generation, assessment of brand strength, and much more.
The Belfast Chamber of Commerce engaged Interloqui® to facilitate and update our strategic plan – and we now have a strong and implementable plan – as well as a more unified team of board and staff who share a common mission and vision. Her clear instructions and thought provoking questions provided a platform for in-depth discussions and consensus building. Elaine has a natural talent in facilitation and leading people with credibility as a subject matter expert. Her superior communication skills and interpersonal sensitivity and humor made our project a satisfying experience. The Chamber is grateful for her work and we highly recommend Interloqui®.
Dorothy Havey, Executive Director
Belfast Area Chamber of Commerce
https://belfastmaine.org/
I have had the pleasure of collaborating with Elaine Potoker of Interloqui® on various projects involving cross-cultural issues, organizational culture, and leadership training and development. I’ve relied on her fluency in Spanish on a number of occasions. Dr. Potoker is also an excellent facilitator and focus group leader—skilled in uncovering causal factors influencing decision making and coalescing diverse viewpoints to find common ground.
Kristen Magni
Managing Partner, Advisory Services
https://www.hyrup.co/
