Tag Archives: facilitation training

NEW! ToP facilitation masterclass with IAF Italy, 22-23 May in Lomazzo

I am excited to be offering ToP facilitation training in Italy in May, in partnership with IAF Italy, the Italian chapter of the International Association of Facilitators. My last, pictured, was in Pisa in 2019.

The specially tailored ToP masterclass: Group Facilitation Methods and Participatory Strategic Planning will be held in Lomazzo, between Milan and Como, on Thursday & Friday, 22-23 May – scroll down for details.

A 10% early booking discount is available until Monday 21 April with the promo code EarlyBird.

A few places remain available on my upcoming courses in April as well:

Register now for public courses in EventbriteRegister now in Eventbrite for these and other upcoming public courses in London, Brussels & elsewhere.

ToP masterclass: Group Facilitation Methods and Participatory Strategic Planning, May 22-23 in Lomazzo.

This two-day masterclass is for all those who want to be able to engage people more effectively to build shared understanding and consensus, and create strategies for action, including team leaders and managers within organisations, those working with Boards, management teams, partnerships and external stakeholders, youth and community workers and independent facilitators. The course has no pre-requisite.

IAF endorsed trainingIAF members enjoy a special 10% discount – see Exclusive Offers for IAF Members.

This course will introduce the two foundational methods of ICA’s ‘Technology of Participation‘ (ToP) methodology, and a third which adapts and applies these to creating strategies for action:

  • ToP Focused Conversation provides a structured, four-level process for effective communication which ensures that everyone in a group has the opportunity to participate
  • ToP Consensus Workshop is a five stage process that enables a facilitator to draw out and weave together everybody’s wisdom into a clear and practical consensus
  • ToP Participatory Strategic Planning is a structured long-range planning process which incorporates ToP Consensus Workshop for building consensus, ToP Focused Conversation for effective group communication, and an implementation process for turning ideas into productive action and concrete accomplishments.

More experienced facilitators may be ready to apply the methods effectively in their own situations. For others the course will serve as a powerful, experiential introduction to ICA’s ToP methodology.

Register now for public courses in Eventbrite

Register now in Eventbrite for this and other upcoming public courses in London, Brussels & elsewhere.

For additional courses offered by fellow ICA:UK Associates, see the full ICA:UK public course schedule.

See also about me, how I work, who I work with and recommendations & case studies, and please contact me about how we might work together.

ToP masterclass: Facilitating dialogue, learning, consensus & change at #Facilitate2025

I am excited to be offering pre-conference training again this year in conjunction with the UK’s premier facilitation learning event, the IAF England & Wales annual Annual Conference Facilitate2025, held Friday 25 and Saturday 26 April in Birmingham.

Facilitate2025 is an opportunity for facilitators to come together to share, learn and develop understanding, skills and practice. Everyone interested in facilitation is welcome, whether you are brand new to this work or have been doing it for years, whether you work in-house or externally and whether you facilitate some or all of the time.  As part of the 2025 programme there will be a thread on anti-racism and what this means for us as facilitators.

There will be a number of facilitation training courses being offered in the same training venue the day before the conference, at an additional cost. You can check them out and find the booking links here.

My own pre-conference training is the ToP masterclass: Facilitating dialogue, learning, consensus & change – introducing ICA’s Technology of Participation (ToP), transformational tools for dialogue, learning, consensus & change – Thursday 24 April.

This one-day master-class is suitable for all those who want to be able to involve people more effectively in dialogue, learning, consensus & change, including team leaders and managers within organisations, those working with Boards, management teams, partnerships and external stakeholders, youth and community workers and independent facilitators. The course has no pre-requisite.

This course will introduce two foundational methods of ICA’s ‘Technology of Participation’ (ToP) methodology, and two that adapt and apply these foundations to strategic review, planning and change:

  • ToP Focused Conversation provides a structured, four-level process for effective communication which ensures that everyone in a group has the opportunity to participate
  • ToP Consensus Workshop is a five stage process that enables a facilitator to draw out and weave together everybody’s wisdom into a clear and practical consensus
  • ToP Historical Scan (or ‘Wall of Wonder) is a powerful tool to enable a group to share and learn from their varied perspectives of a journey through history, and in context, to review the past in order to prepare for the future
  • ToP Participatory Strategic Planning is a structured long-range planning process which incorporates ToP Consensus Workshop for building consensus, ToP Focused Conversation for effective group communication, and an implementation process for turning ideas into productive action and concrete accomplishments.

Register now for public courses in Eventbrite

Register now in Eventbrite for this and other upcoming public courses in London, Brussels & elsewhere – scroll down for dates & locations.

Discounts: IAF members enjoy a special 10% discount – see Exclusive Offers for IAF Members.  Conference attendees enjoy a 25% discount (IAF members and non-members).

For additional courses offered by fellow ICA:UK Associates, see the full ICA:UK public course schedule.

See also about me, how I work, who I work with and recommendations & case studies, and please contact me about how we might work together.

New: 2025 ICA:UK ToP facilitation training in London, Manchester, Birmingham & Brussels

Kickstart the New Year with a commitment to your personal and professional development – enjoy a 10% discount on any course by registering with the promo code EarlyBird before Monday 13 January.

I am excited to announce the ICA:UK 2025 schedule of public ToP facilitation training courses in London, Manchester, Birmingham & Brussels, including:

Register now for public courses in Eventbrite

Register now in Eventbrite for my own upcoming public courses in London, Brussels & elsewhere – scroll down for dates & locations.

For additional courses offered by fellow ICA:UK Associates, see the full ICA:UK public course schedule.

Enjoy a 10% discount on any course by registering with the promo code EarlyBird before Monday 13 January.

“If you have ever wondered what questions to ask, or in what order to ask them, to lead a conversation that is focused, intentional, inclusive, and productive, let this book be your guide.” – Martin Gilbraith

Are you interested to learn more about ICA’s Technology of Participation (ToP) in a free, one-hour, interactive online session that offers an experience of virtual facilitation as well? Join us to connect, share & learn on Monday, 16 December 2024, 15:00-16:00 UK time, for this Free facilitation webinar: the Art of Focused Conversation with Jo Nelson.

See also about me, how I work, who I work with and recommendations & case studies, and please contact me about how we might work together.

ToP facilitation courses, taster sessions & webinars – what difference do they make?

While enjoying a welcome opportunity to pause and reflect this summer, I have taken (quite) some time to review what ToP facilitation training courses, taster sessions and webinars I have delivered in recent years, and what I can learn from feedback shared by participants at the time.

Full results are shared in the slides above. This draws on the experience of 47 training courses, 13 conference & meetup taster sessions and 7 webinars in the past 5 years, reaching a total of 1,089 participants. This is in addition to tailored facilitation processes that I have delivered – 24 in the past year and 52 in my first four years of freelance practice.  See also ToP facilitation training – what’s it like, and is it worthwhile?

Feedback for ToP training courses in particular is largely very high, as it has been for the 20 years I have been delivering them – the average of participant ratings for design & delivery, of all the 37 courses over the past 5 years for which data is available, is 9.1 out of 10. Included in the slides are some conclusions of my own on what is most appreciated and what suggestions for improvement I should consider, and how I have already begun to act on some suggestions.

But… what difference do they make?  

What do participants remember and apply of what they have learned, months and years later? With whom do they apply what they have learned, and what (greater) difference are they now able to make with them? What supports or hinders them from applying what they have learned? What additional recommendations can they make for the courses, sessions & webinars, with the benefit of hindsight? What additional training or support might they find helpful – from me or from others?

If you have participated with me in courses, taster sessions or webinars within the past 5 years, or within the past 20 years, please respond now to a short survey to help me to assess and improve what difference they make – at surveymonkey. This survey is in partnership with ICA:UK, with whom I have been delivering ToP facilitation training since 1996 – for the past 5 years as a licensed Associate, and before that as employed staff. If you have received a link by email, please follow the link in the email to respond.

I plan to analyse and share the results in the autumn, based on what responses I have received by mid-September.  After that I plan to leave the survey open indefinitely for further responses, and systematically request responses of future participants by email 6-12 months after each event.

As a token of appreciation for your feedback, three of those responding before the mid-September deadline (tbc) will be randomly selected to receive a free gift of an ICA:UK sticky wall or book of their choice (subject to availability).

Finally, if you have participated or not, join me!

For more on my work, and what others have to say about it, please see how I work, who I work with and recommendations & case studies – or view my profile and connect with me on LinkedIn.