Group Facilitation using a neutral facilitator allows a group of participants to focus on their respective roles (e.g., manager, stake-holder) and ensures that everyone has a voice. Most facilitations include pre-work to prepare the group for the actual facilitation. This prep work, conducted by the facilitator, includes contact each participant to hear her/his perspective, ask and answer questions, and allows the facilitator to start setting the stage for the facilitation.
A facilitator is neutral in that s/he is not an expert on the content. Instead the facilitator is the expert of the process and can encourage a robust dialogue, uses active listening skills so that participants know they have been heard, ask the questions needed to move the process forward, and keep the group on task.
The Resolution Center can work with you to design and facilitate group meetings based on the needs of your organization, whether you are a group of 5 or 100.