FACILITATION

Every meeting is an opportunity to draw on the collective intelligence of the people gathered there. As your facilitator, I design and lead your meetings to be inclusive, enjoyable, and strong on results.

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What I do FOR YOU

I make it easier to achieve the goals for your meeting, event, workshop, retreat, in a productive, efficient, and engaging way. I’ll partner with you in the planning phase to understand your objectives, consider who should attend, design effective processes for dialogue and learning, and coordinate logistics.

Here’s what I do during a meeting:

  • Remain impartial to the content being discussed, while guiding your group through an efficient, engaging process.
  • Keep the group focused on achieving meeting goals while flexing with in-the-moment changes and group decisions
  • Care for inclusion/respect/tone, and keep track of objectives and time, all while flexing and adjusting the agenda to the group’s dynamic.
  • Welcome all, invite courage, include all views, hold space, elevate problem-solving, and spark creativity.

If you have never worked with a facilitator before, click here to learn when it is beneficial to hire a facilitator for your meeting.

WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS?

Develop a Vision/Mission

Set Clear Goals

Make a Strategic Plan

Craft a Work Plan

Generate Fresh Ideas

Solve a Problem

Engage Stakeholders

Develop a Team

Hold a Fantastic Retreat

Align People

Kick Off a Project

Agree on a Decision

Resolve a Conflict

Navigate a Transition

How we work together

Typical meetings, events, workshops, and retreats involve a few steps, carried out collaboratively with you and your team:

  1. Listen. In our first meeting, I listen closely: What are your goals, who is involved, and what is the context in which you are working? Everything flows from here.
  2. Plan & Assess. This includes gathering background information from written sources and interviews, conducting surveys and analysizing the results, researching information, and arranging logistics. This step includes outreach to attendees.
  3. Develop the agenda & materials such as slides, attendee packets, posters, digital whiteboards, etc.
  4. Facilitate the meeting.  I arrive early, prepare the room (or virtual meeting environment), facilitate the meeting, and end with a debrief with you and/or your planning team.
  5. Prepare documentation. I prepare notes or a report to summarize discussions, decisions, agreements, and next steps.
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My facilitator style

My style is professional, resourceful, thoughtful, calm, and authentic. I draw on a wide range of methods and facilitation techniques to choose the most effective, efficient way for your group to reach its meeting goals. I favor active, participatory methods, so that participants can be energized and at their best in thinking and working together.

The experience of your meeting attendees is paramount: Are they comfortable enough to speak their minds? Do they feel included and respected? Can their creativity flow freely? Are they enjoying the meeting?

Creativity and a results-orientation guide my work. In collaboration, we exchange ideas and design the best ways to achieve your goals. I strive for quality and excellence, as well as enjoyable, trusted, long-term  relationships with my clients.

In-person, virtual, or hybrid

A wide range of techniques are in my toolbox, to engage people when they are meeting in-person, virtually, or a hybrid of the two.  What’s most important for any of these meetings? Fundamentally, that people can see and hear each other and have common tools for working together, such as flip charts or digital whiteboards.

FACILITATION FEES

Hourly rate:

$220/hour, except on facilitation days

Facilitation day rates:

$3,500/day (more than 5 hours)

$1,750/half day (2-5 hours)

Expenses:

At-cost with no markup

Clients Say

“Andrea is a very quick thinker, active listener, and can facilitate conversations with sensitivity, respect, and determination to keep things on track.  I would certainly recommend Somersault Consulting for any organization seeking facilitation of any kind, and especially for difficult, multi-entity planning processes.”

Marc Daily, Executive Director, Thurston Regional Planning Council

“Our group needed to develop a single strategic vision, outline clear roles and responsibilities, and make some critical decisions. Andrea did a remarkable job at preparing; her knowledge on the topic was truly amazing for someone under a tight timeline. I found the experience one of the best facilitated meetings I have attended.  Can’t say enough good things about her facilitation style! She is also a joy to work with.”

Jennifer Williams, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (through early 2019)
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CERTIFICATIONS

The Diamond Power Index is a unique 360-degree leadership assessment, giving leaders extraordinary insight into their use of power with supervisors, peers, and direct reports. Offering feedback that’s hard to get any other way, the results of this highly regarded assessment can boost leaders to a new level of performance.

Use of power is key to cultivating inclusive behaviors; for this reason, I pair this assessment with leader coaching and training in Inclusive, Facilitative Leadership. Team and organizational assessments (and trainings) are also available.

Want to learn more? Ask me!

A 5 Behaviors team assessment provides the foundation for holding crucial conversations about team strengths and weaknesses, and then working toward healthier, more productive team dynamics.

The 5 Behaviors assessment provides rich material for both team retreats and leader coaching. I run the assessment and support your team’s growth by facilitating discussions about the results. Further improve team skills through separate Conflict Competence training and customized trainings according to your team’s needs.

Contact me to learn more.

BROWSE

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