Facilitator's Guide to Participatory Decision-Making

Sam Kaner, Ph.D. is the founder of the consulting firm Community At Work, and he has been its Executive Director since 1986. He is regarded as one of the nation's leading experts on facilitation. Over the past 20 years he has repeatedly been a featured speaker at the annual conferences of several professional associations, including the National Organization Development Network and the International Association of Facilitators. His corporate clients have included Hewlett-Packard, Price Waterhouse, Visa International, Charles Schwab and Company, and many other Fortune 500 companies. His public sector clients have included the California Supreme Court, the March of Dimes, Special Olympics, Annie E Casey Foundation and many schools, community-based organizations and government agencies. Lenny Lind is president of CoVision, Inc. He is the co-developer of Council--a groupware system designed for facilitators. Catherine Toldi, M.A. is a freelance collaboration specialist. Sarah Fisk, PhD is a clinical psychologist, a seasoned facilitator, and a designer of participatory processes. She has been a featured speaker of the annual conferences of the National Organization Development Network and the International Association of Facilitators as well as an adjunct professor at California Institute of Integral Studies. Sarah's corporate clients have included Hewlett-Packard, Agilent, Visa International, Mercer Human Resource Consulting, Inc. and many other Fortune 500 businesses. Her public sector clients have included the March of Dimes, the Charles and Helen Schwab Foundation, EarthIsland Institute, City of Edmonton, Alberta, and numerous educational and government agencies and community based organizations. Sarah has been a senior consultant with Community At Work since 1996. Duane Berger, M.A. is co-founder of the Resource Center for Consensus Decision-Making.

Foreword by Michael Doyle Introduction. PART I: GROUNDING PRINCIPLES. 1. The Dynamics of Group Decision-Making. 2. Participatory Values. 3. Introduction to the Role of Facilitator. PART II: FACILITATOR FUNDAMENTALS. 4. Facilitative Listening Skills. 5. ChartWriting Technique. 6. Facilitating Open Discussion. 7. Alternatives to Open Discussion. 8. Brainstorming. 9. Tools for Managing Long Lists. 10. Dealing with Difficult Dynamics. 11. Effective Agendas: Desired Outcomes. 12. Effective Agendas: Process Design. PART III: BUILDING SUSTAINABLE AGREEMENTS. 13. Principles for Building Sustainable Agreements. 14. Gathering Diverse Points of View. 15. Building a Shared Framework of Understanding. 16. Developing Inclusive Solutions. PART IV: REACHING CLOSURE. 17. Importance of Clear Decision Rules. 18. Striving for Unanimity. 19. Reaching Closure Step by Step. 20. Facilitating Sustainable Agreements. Photocopying Policy. Bibliography. About the Authors.