Groups of all sizes and areas of responsibility are often called upon to reach consensus on an issue or to agree to the solution of problems. At the Board of Directors level this might include decisions about policy, compensation of the CEO, inclusion of new board members or other issues. The executive team is often in a position of having to agree about company direction, strategy and tactics. In our business world each manager, department and working team is confronted with decisions and sometimes confrontation.
How do we go about making decisions that take the best ideas from the group involved and execute them so that they are good for the organization being served?
In part the responsibility lies with the head of the chain of command of that group – but probably more important is the facilitator of the process. And, of course, facilitation most frequently is a function allocated to Human Resources.
One would think that the more educated and experienced the members of the group, the easier it would be for them to come to amicable agreements. Not so! Look at what happens on the floor of the senate! Let me also tell you that in the years in which I traveled the country training boards of directors, I found the same hurt feelings, bullying behavior, insulting the person with the other opinion, and voting on popularity rather than position.
So how do we get away from these problems which are primarily based on emotion as opposed to logic. I believe part of the answer lies in creating processes that move people forward in a more rational manner. This course offers you a series of exercises that you can use where you believe them to be appropriate.
The exercises include:
- Brainstorming, both structured and unstructured versions with ways to use the raw data obtained.
- A series of organization of data, such as affinity diagrams, fishbone exercises, iceberg chart, Pareto chart, rank order, slice of the pie and values clarification.
- Story Boarding, and
- Six Thinking Hats
I provide you with tips based on my experience as to how best to implement each of these exercises.
Prerequisites
No Advanced Preparation or Prerequisites are needed for this course.
Learning Objective
- Explore the role of the leader and that of the facilitator and recognize when to use each
- Discover The Art of Facilitating and recognize how to be effective in the role of Facilitator
- Identify several techniques for making order out of chaos and
- Discover a problem-solving process.
Last updated/reviewed: March 23, 2024
(60) Reviews
(26 rating)
Very short course and some of the examples were good this course is not as good as other ethics courses I have taken.
I like to read the slide decks in the pdf format. The pdfs for this course were not sufficient to learn the content.
This course provided a nice overview of safety and ergonomics in the workplace, including many best practices and tips. Several good takeaways that I can easily implement. Supporting materials were also helpful and aligned with the content presented during the course.
I believe that there is some audio repetition about half way through. Great course, might just want to take a look at that.
Learned new items in excel I didn't know before. At age 66, wish i had known before now.
great excel course, moves a bit quickly at times but the ability to stop and go back allows this to work. Great course.
Informative, interesting and up-to-date. Useful for all employees, particularly for managers.
This course is important for employees on all levels and even in our personal lives. I really like the points made on the importance of Listening well.
lot of great information but it comes at you very quickly
Presenter was thorough and course content appropriate.
Excellent course, very well organized and presented, with practical examples provided.
This course provides some great information. The topics covered are very helpful as well.
The instructor was very well spoken and easy to follow. But who ever wrote the course exams did not proof read at all. Not only were there several typos, but several were missing key words to the question. Thankfully the answers listed make it relatively simple to figure out which one option is correct, but it came off a bit sloppy.
Good material and overview of SAAS metrics. Sound was a little low could be increased but otherwise good
Information was presented in a clear, concise and organized manner. The text based class was very convenient since I could stop and then come back to it easily. I also like that it provides a great resource for future reference.
Nothing new. Not particularly engaging. Some outdated ideas (women should wear makeup...)
The text was easy to follow, and educational. It's always helpful to refresh my knowledge on this topic.
This course would be informative for someone right out of college or someone that has been in the workforce for a number of years. It reinforces what is acceptable today and not what was acceptable in time past.
Great course - I highly recommend listening to the "This is Water" video. I found a 23 min version on you tube... wrapped this course up nicely!
Great deal of practical solutions to enhancing executive presence. Solid examples by the instructors.
I believe that it is misleading to say 1 CPE and click here for 1 CPE, only to find out that CPE is not listed.
Great teacher! I like how he thoroughly explains each point/topic.
This course meets the AICPA ethics requirements for AZ CPAs and is better than some alternative courses I considered.
I really thought this course was spot on, totally one hundred percent the truth. Everyone should take this course, it teaches you the art of problem solving conversations and how to become a better listener for sure.
Good overview of mentor-mentee programs, benefits and relationships.
What is this question ? The Altman Z statistic measures the efficiency of a firms marketing efforts over the past: The Altman Z score is about the probability of bankruptcy in the next two years... It has nothing to do with measuring marketing efforts .. How is this an exam question ?
Very good information given in this course, and given in a way that was very informative, not too wordy, and easy to understand.
While downloading the slide deck noticed the slides on communication were missing.
This is a great course and should be taken and put to action by all managers/upper-mgmt. A lot of times I hear the 'vision' but don't always see it implemented or followed
Great content! Lots of takeaways that can be applied immediately.
I felt this course had logical content. A little too conversational for my tastes, but I recognize that many learn well in this format
the final exam questions are not clearly addressed in the slides.
Generally good advices and I hope the course can add more real life examples to support the theoretical system.
Really enjoy courses by ArLyne Diamond. Great content and and engaging presenter.
I like Arlynne's execution. Her comparison to reality keep folks engaged.
Well put together, straight forward, and easy to follow!
I liked the comparison and contrast between traits and skills and how some qualities may overlap.
This course had good information that is helpful when dealing with multiple countries in the workplace.
I enjoyed this presentation, it provided a new insight on correcting small (and large) safety issues that are found in most businesses. You also receive guidance on ergonomics, proper lifting, etc., and who can't use that?
This is a great course. I recently start doing budget forecast for my company. I can see a lot of the similarity between this course and actual real life work. This course definitely help me to improve my understanding and the concept behind my work. I also like the few tricks that Blair shares at the end of the course.
Very informative. Lots of good suggestions for company-wide engagement. Instructor presented material in easy-to-understand format with helpful examples.
Great course. Stated prerequisite requirements were appropriate and sufficient. Program materials were relevant and contributed to the achievement of the learning objectives.
This course helped me strengthen my understanding of IA fundamentals.
Really enjoyed this course. Presenter was very knowledgable
Good course content. The presenters kept the content moving and interesting. Knowledge is powerful.
Duplication of efforts noted in having two separate teams to setup vendors or add/edit vendors.
This was a thorough and comprehensive overview of ERM. I look forward to the next series of instruction.
The material is useful but the instructor is monotone,which makes it difficult to stay engaged.
This course provides a detailed materials on preventing and detecting fraud.
The information was informative and gave a good overview of forensic accounting. Also, the instructor made it very easy to follow and understand the topics.
This is a great course, even if you are not a new manager!
great class, easy to use, material presented well, very organized, key points listed for every subject
Very useful overview of ASC606 that will hook you up. It opens the palette of impacts in several industries alerting you to dive deeper into its complexities and to follow the remainder courses on the subject.
I liked that we can keep the materials for review for a later date, and that it was properly broken up into sections.
A very useful look at how to design and benefit from more simple financial reporting tools.
Short albeit good review of T&E expenses.
A bit hard to follow in some places but overall, another very good presentation
Some more error rectification technique may be included in this course.
pretty good course, a little dry for my taste
detailed and informative
Lesson Questions and Answers0 Questions
INTRODUCTION and OVERVIEW
The Group
- Group Responsibilities 4:58
- The Role of The Leader and that of The Facilitator 3:47
- The Art of Facilitating 7:48
- Brainstorming 11:54
Arrangements and Problem Solving
- Some Types of Arrangements 8:26
- Arrangements (Continued) and Story Boarding 8:18
- Six Thinking Hats 4:56
- A Problem Solving Process 6:00
CONCLUSION
CONTINUOUS PLAY
SUPPORTING MATERIALS
- Slides: Group Decision Making and Problem Solving PDF
- Group Decision Making and Problem Solving Glossary/Index PDF
REVIEW and TEST
- REVIEW QUESTIONS quiz
- FINAL EXAM exam
Ask the instructor a question about this lesson