In today ’s business world many meetings take place virtually using a variety of media, including the Internet, videoconferencing, the telephone, and other technology vehicles that allow participants to be in different geographical areas. Although these virtual media can reduce the cost of meetings, they can also present significant challenges to the facilitator. For despite …

The following post was posted by Carter McNamara in the LinkedIn group, International Coach Federation. There are two responses following Carter’s post. What do you think are the differences between coaching and consulting? — Carter’s Original Post It seems that many coaches distinguish coaching from consulting by asserting that consultants “give advice” to clients and …

Crossing the River: My Favorite Team-Building Activity Every trainer and facilitator has his/her favorite team-building activity. Some facilitators like the more active interventions such as rope courses; others prefer the more “touchy-feely” ones like trust walks; still others like using blindfolded instruction, or simulations like Gold of the Desert Kings. Of course, the most appropriate …

Facilitators often use breakout groups to increase involvement and get more done in a short amount of time. However, following breakout groups, there is typically a report-back process. During the report-back, each team presents its results to the other teams. Yet, one of the challenges with the standard report-back process is that people generally are …

I’ve had my current job in accounting for a little over two years. I’m very good at my job to the point where some of my colleagues and friends are urging me to go after a management position. Having confidence in yourself and your abilities is essential to getting ahead. It helps to establish trust, …

“I was totally surprised when one of our top people quit. I thought he was satisfied with his job. I don’t want to get sandbagged again. What are some early warning signs of someone leaving?” That was said to me by an accounting supervisor. Yes, you can expect a certain amount of turnover, even in …

I read an article in a colleague’s newsletter that got me thinking. This may be a little back to the basics, but it is what we do and it is easy in this day of off-the-shelf training programs to let the program, especially one involving technology, take over for us. June Melvin Mickens of Executive …

Good Tuesday afternoon to you! It’s been awhile since I’ve had the pleasure of writing for you all and I’m very glad to be be back at it. Today we are going to explore one of the most essential set of things to consider at the very beginning of a facilitated session – The 5 …

Have you ever hired someone who did not live up to expectations? I’m sure many of us have at one time. The purpose of the interview is to gather information to make an accurate selection decision. A successful interview will help you decide is there’s a match between the job seeker and the position. The …

Astute PR moves from both sides in a contemporary crisis Savvy parties have been using the court of public opinion to sway disagreements to their side for years, so why not the two sides facing off in the Chicago Teacher’s Union strike? With both teachers and city leadership jockeying for position with what could only …