Process Design and Facilitation

As a process artist, I design and host meetings and learning events that enhance groups’ capacity to push the edges of what’s possible. I use conversational and participatory methodologies to engage groups in surfacing their collective wisdom, will, and ability to act together for the common good.

Process refers to how we get things done. My approach to process work differs from traditional facilitation in several ways. As a process host, I work collaboratively with groups to open up greater possibility for connection, insight, and innovation. Rather than serve as a neutral facilitator who is responsible for getting the group to a pre-determined outcome, together we set clear intentions that guide why we’re together and leaves room for new possibilities to emerge. Responsibility is also shared as we co-create the conditions for deeper engagement, meaningful conversations, and innovative thinking that can lead to wise action.

The artistry comes in being fluid, in the moment, and open to outcomes. It is a collective process of sensing into what wants/needs to happen so that the group, and the work, can evolve. This requires an ability to tolerate the ambiguity of sometimes not knowing. My job as a host is to co-create the “right” mix of good process and order with flexibility and openness so that breakthrough thinking and innovation can result.

Clients call upon me because of my ability to ask intriguing questions, listen deeply to what’s being expressed, and support collective understanding. My ability to think systemically allows me to see connections, patterns, and relationships among diverse ideas. I am passionate about helping individuals and groups find their own solutions through inquiry, generative listening, and adaptive action and learning.

Typical types of events that I design and host include:

  • Meetings
  • Retreats
  • Community Dialogues
  • Appreciative Inquiry
  • Strategic Planning
  • Community and Team Building

 

True solutions and innovations lie not in one leader or one point of view, but in the bigger picture of our collective intelligence. – Sera Thompson and Greg Judelman

 

Leading in complexity requires us to think of leadership as inquiry, and this in turn means that we need to think much more critically about the kinds of questions that we ask. It may not be the answers that need changing, but the questions. – Brenda Zimmerman