Facilitation in IT companies: basic principles

Group discussion is an integral part of the work, even if it is a small team of employees.

Maksym Prokhorov Founder and IT manager of PM Partners

Similar communication occurs during the meeting with partners, review of the features of the project with colleagues, the establishment of rules in the collective, «brainstorming session» with the participants of the IT-team and in a number of other working situations. Why, in this case, are we talking about facilitation? Let’s get to the nuances.

Concept and attitude to it in society

Facilitation signifies the organization of group work on joint activity concerning planning, problem-solving, mutual understanding, etc. From this word comes another — the facilitator. In fact, that’s how we call someone who has the skills and knows methods to help a group get together, build relationships, reach consensus, and find the right path for further cooperation.

In IT companies, facilitation is necessary both in contact with the customer (potential or existing) and during internal communications, although not all employees are ready to admit this.

Besides, there are a number of myths about this concept. For example, that facilitation and «brainstorming» are the same thing. However, this is not true. Generating ideas to solve a common global problem can only be part of the facilitation. Facilitation itself is a more complex process aimed at reaching mutual understanding between employees or partners.

Another common misconception is that the facilitation suits only the HR department. In fact, its scope of application is very wide, and the skills of facilitation are needed by those who hold team meetings, retrospectives, meetings, target-setting sessions, make group decisions, plan activities, and want to bring everyone together and motivate the team.

How does the facilitation take place?

Facilitator helps the group. It is important to note that he is not an expert on the question to which the group of people are seeking an answer, but a neutral person capable of ensuring a quality communication process. Therefore, it is not correct to appeal to a facilitator as a specialist, even if he is a representative of your own IT company.

The facilitator is responsible for the communication process and makes it clear to all participants. This includes concentrating attention on the purpose of the meeting, the topic of discussion and the time frame. Note that the purpose of the meeting should be very specific. For example, how to fix employees mistakes and improve the interaction of the IT team while working in remote format during the lockdown.

The facilitator always monitors the time and that the group makes a definitive decision during that time. If the time limit is not sufficient to complete the task, the group shall schedule the next meeting, pause the discussion or change the format. Any such decision should be considered the correct ending of the current meeting.

Another important function of a facilitator is to help the team communicate so that a quality discussion could take place. The facilitator keeps an eye on the following points:

- interlocutors must hear and understand each other;

- employees should allow each other to communicate their thoughts;

- all participants should be equally involved in the discussion;

- intermediate and final decisions should be recorded.

Facilitation in practice

In fact, you don’t always need facilitation. There are cases where there is no point in doing so, for example, in which the superior has finally decided on a certain task.

At the same time, facilitation will help your team, for example, if the transition to the remote format of work has changed processes and communication has deteriorated. People do not quite understand how to adapt to the new reality, because of the tense atmosphere in the team, conflicts, etc.

It is also worth holding facilitative meeting during the strategic planning. However, in this case, such a discussion should be carefully prepared by all participants, since the task cannot be solved in an hour.

To sum up, facilitation alone does not solve the problem, but it is a necessary tool for this. Any meeting that involves facilitative decision-making requires the preparation of the objectives, easily understood process, review of basic questions and the presence of the facilitator itself.