workshops work

Send us a textOn episode 038, I speak with Sam Bradd, graphic recorder and facilitator, change-maker and principal of Drawing Change. With his team, Sam contributes to positive change by helping their clients to solve complex problems and distil big ideas that promise to make the world a better place.Sam helps me and the audience to grasp the complexity of visual facilitation - we begin with the basics, such as the difference between visual facilitation and graphic recording, explore the concept of the graphic recorder being a "public listener" and dive deep into the concept of psychological safety.You will learn techniques to get the maximum impact from the visual recording - in terms of the connection between the participants, their engagement with the topic and their contribution. I was particularly intrigued by Sam's view on workshops and group dynamics - from the perspective of the graphic recorder, the observing facilitator. Don’t miss the next show: Subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player. Questions and Answers  [2:00] What is the story behind your company's name "Drawing Change"?[3:41] If you were a hashtag, what would you be?[7:09] What do you have in mind when you refer to visualisation as a translation? [8:58] How do you organise information in a visual?[10:54] What is the difference between a visual recorder and a visual facilitator? [15:02] How can you create a safe space for a group while your focus is on the drawing? [22:06] Are visual facilitators always working in duos? [22:55] Would you have a conversation about the visual with the participants during the session? [30:18] How long did it take you to stop overthinking everything you draw? [34:16] What is the best way to integrate the visual in the post-workshop process?[36:51] Do you have a story that showcases the impact of the visual?[39:53] From the perspective of the "public listener", what makes a workshop fail?[44:08] Which exercise provides you with the most insights for drawing?[50:31] Do you also work with corporate clients?[37:55] This means that you would first expose all the extreme differences in perspectives?[50:31] And then it comes to decision making in step 4?[54:13] What is the nugget to take away from our conversation?    Links to check Sam's business page: www.drawingchange.comAnthony Weeks on "Public Listening"Episode 033 with Oscar Trimboli on Deep ListeningKelvy Bird, levels of listening and generative scribing: kelvybird.com Sam's articles on how to use photo facilitation cardsOur sponsor Session Lab - An online agenda builder and exercisSupport the show✨✨✨You can now find the podcast on Substack, where your host Dr. Myriam Hadnes is building a club for you to find fellow listeners and peers: https://myriamhadnes.substack.com/

Send us a textEpisode 037 is all about decision-making! On the show with me is Marjolijn de Graaf,  decision designer and change architect, and author of "Decisions by Design". On the show, Marjolijn guides us through the 4-step approach that she developed to assist organizations with complex decision-making.   We speak about the art of decision-making and how a simple design process can lead to decisions that will be implemented. On the show, Marjolijn walks us through the 4-steps and uses clear analogies to explain that a decision-making process can take between 5 minutes and several days. ​​You will learn the importance of exploring differences before seeking agreement and what you have to do so that the final step of making the decision appears natural to the group.​Don't miss the part when Marjolijn explains how she uses the 4 steps approach to decide on the most suitable workshop format with her client!Questions and Answers  [1:47] When did you start calling yourself a decision designer?[3:32] What makes it so difficult to make decisions, why would we need a designer for that?[5:01] You have developed a multi-step process for effective decision-making. Could you guide us through this process?[8:35] Which would be the four steps?[9:31] What is your role as a facilitator in this process and what do you consider the biggest challenge for them to make a decision? [13:10] Who would you invite to that decision-making workshop? [14:20] Would you invite different people to the different phases? [17:03] How do you help groups to include perspectives that they wouldn't have thought about at first? [19:10] How do you sort these facts to help the group to make a decision? [26:01] Must the group be together for step 1, the fact discovery?[27:50] What is the time span you calculate for the first two steps?[31:47] How did you come to realise that you had to adjust the workshop format and how did the client react?[35:02] How do you facilitate the step where you open the discussion to the group level?[37:55] This means that you would first expose all the extreme differences in perspectives?[40:45] And then it comes to decision making in step 4?[41:50] Are you seeking consensus?[42:53] What makes workshops fail? [46:24] Would delay the decision making when you feel the group isn't ready?[48:23] What is the nugget to take away from this episode?  LinksMarjolijn's business: https://www.impactcompany.nl/Her book "Decisions by Design" Download the free Decision Design Canvas. This strategic tool maps the entire route of group decision-making, in one handy overview.Episode 03 with Frans Scheepens on Brainstorming with huge groupsConnect to Marjolijn on LinkedInSupport the show✨✨✨You can now find the podcast on Substack, where your host Dr. Myriam Hadnes is building a club for you to find fellow listeners and peers: https://myriamhadnes.substack.com/

Send us a textEpisode 036 is special because we are shifting perspectives: Kirsty Lewis, founder of the School of Facilitation joins me for a conversation about how corporates or "clients" can find the most suitable facilitator or trainer for their needs.After a corporate career, Kirsty started her own training, coaching and facilitation business. Since 2012, Kirsty grows and nurtures her tribe of expert facilitators and trainers to grow and develop their skills together. In our conversation, we take the perspective of a client and assess what they can do to find the most suitable facilitator or trainer for their needs. We discuss various questions clients could ask to get a better picture of the person they aim to hire. We also discuss under which circumstances it makes sense to use internal facilitators, pair them with an external facilitator or hire externals uniquely. Don’t miss the part when Kirsty shares what fellow facilitators and trainers can do to find their perfect client.Don’t miss the next show: Subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player.Questions and Answers [1:58] How did you get from sales to facilitation?[6:08] What topics can be covered by internal facilitators and for which shall we hire externals?[8:16] Would you apply the same reasoning to facilitators?[9:35] How can corporates assess whether they need a trainer or a facilitator?[14:55] How can you do-design a session with your client given their time restrictions and lower experience? [16:31] Do you think we can design a full agenda for someone else to facilitate? [18:14] How do you know that you can trust the facilitator to find the balance between too much and too little guidance? [19:06] What are the different 'energies' you can be looking for in a facilitator? [26:38] Why do workshops fail? [32:28] To what extent is the facilitator responsible for the outcome?[35:10] What's your favourite exercise?[40:36] How can corporates find the right facilitators for their needs?[42:13] How can we as facilitators evaluate fellow facilitators? How do we know whether someone is good?[46:19] How can we distinguish between someone having a different style from having poor skills?[48:52] Is there anything else you would like to explore?[51:35] How much time would you recommend clients to count for the preparation work?[53:36] What are the pros and cons of pairing an external with an internal facilitator?[55:32] If someone in the audience fell asleep after minute one, what shall they learn from our show?  Links to checkKirsty's School of FacilitationEpisode 034 with Sean McGuire on Billboard Design ThinkingEpisode 033 with Oscar Trimboli on Deep ListeningEpisode 031 with Meghan Preiss on Workshops in the WoodsOur sponsor Session Lab - An online agenda builder and exercise library Connect to Kirstyon Support the show✨✨✨You can now find the podcast on Substack, where your host Dr. Myriam Hadnes is building a club for you to find fellow listeners and peers: https://myriamhadnes.substack.com/

Send us a textOn episode 035, I speak to Wayne Turmel, expert of virtual facilitation and co-founder of the Remote Leadership Institute about the struggles and challenges when it comes to virtual workshops. Wayne explains clearly what it takes to make the transition from the physical into the virtual space successful and what many of us still get wrong.You will learn what mistakes to avoid, how to practice and what features to use so that your next virtual meeting becomes as engaging and effective as if participants were physically present.   Don't miss the part when Wayne explains why hybrid meetings (when some participants join virtually) should be forbidden and how you can still make them work using the right techniques and toolsDon’t miss the next show: Subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player. Questions and Answers [2:24] What is the magic skill a facilitator needs to master virtual workshops?[5:09] What would be your advice to get out of our own head and over that hump?[12:08] According to you, which is the most underused feature?[17:44] We spoke about virtual classrooms and meetings until now, to what extent are things different when we talk about virtual team meetings or workshops?[25:05] What is your favourite virtual workshop exercise to engage participants? [30:08] How can you create meaningful connections among the participants in a virtual space? [32:57] How can you facilitate this process? How can we make it easier for the participants? [35:11] How would you deal with workshops where only some participants join virtually? [38:27] How do you document a virtual workshop? [45:16] What ground rules do you set for a workshop and which do you consider most important? [47:35] What do you do if participants are late? [48:01] What are the ground rules you would define in session one? [49:40] What is the minimum equipment one would need to start an online workshop?   Links to checkWayne's business page https://www.remoteleadershipinstitute.com/Remote leadership certificate seriesWayne's book: Meet like you mean itOur sponsor Session Lab - An online agenda builder and exercise libraryOther episodes we mentionedEpisode 028 with Pam Hamilton on breakout roomsEpisode 030 with Mireille Beumer on workshop documentation Connect to Wayneon LinkedInSupport the show✨✨✨You can now find the podcast on Substack, where your host Dr. Myriam Hadnes is building a club for you to find fellow listeners and peers: https://myriamhadnes.substack.com/

Send us a textOn this episode, I speak with Sean McGuire, UX Architect with Microsoft in Vienna and co-inventor of the Billboard Design Thinking Method. Sean has started his career as a musician and board game designer and still uses the mindset and creativity he has developed back then. Whether you are already a practitioner of Billboard Design Thinking or you have never heard of that method before, you will not miss out of new insights and food for thought on how to prepare your workshops for success. Sean shares with us the key stages in the preparation process and why he never asks participants to prepare anything upfront.  Don't miss the part when Sean explains why and how he prototypes workshops before delivering them and why he tests new designs with a group of colleagues who don't like Design Thinking!    Click here to download the free 1-page summaryDon’t miss the next show: Subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player.Feeling inspired by the conversation in this episode? We can have our own - take a seat at my virtual table as part of a Mastermind Group. Questions and Answers [2:39] How did you get from music to UX? What's your story?[4:16] A board game is about winning, what is the equivalent of "winning" in a workshop?[5:07] What makes a game exciting?[6:49] At what point do you define the boundaries of what belongs in the workshop and what doesn't?[8:19] How do you invite participants to prepare for emotionally difficult workshops? [9:52] How do you assure that everyone is aligned on the workshop's purpose and goal beforehand?[11:00] Is this predictability the benefit of the Design Thinking method or where would you see the advantage of Design Thinking?[11:54] How do you know that the information is "correct" and how would "incorrect information" look like? [13:05] How much information do you need upfront to design the poster?[15:39] Can you explain what the Billboard Design Thinking method is in a nutshell?[18:12] To what extent does the poster restrict the group's creativity?[20:06] Do you design each poster from scratch?[21:11] What makes the difference in preparing the workshop?[22:44] What's your favourite way to stimulate creativity and ideas?[28:24] How much do you need to know about the group of participants?[30:58] What would be your advice on how to select workshop participants?[34:38] What are the key stages to prepare a successful workshop?[36:30] What's different in starting a workshop depending on whether the group are strangers or a team?[40:24] How do you get the first person to open up?[44:13] How do you debrief on this intro round?[45:51] What makes a workshop fail?[48:26] How do you manage expectations to avoid such misalignment?[54:22] How do you help people to be heard?[55:41] Is there anything else you would like to share with the audience?[56:41] What would be your advice for a facilitator to find their own Design Thinking style?[59:56] What shall someone take away from our conversation?Links to check Sean's Billboard Design Thinking Group on LinkedInCheck out our featured Support the show✨✨✨You can now find the podcast on Substack, where your host Dr. Myriam Hadnes is building a club for you to find fellow listeners and peers: https://myriamhadnes.substack.com/

Send us a textThis is part one of a two-part show with Oscar Trimboli, the author of "Deep Listening & Breakthroughs", professional speaker, leadership coach and facilitator.In part one of the show, we focus on the skill of "deep listening" and the difference to "active listening". Oscar explains what it takes to listen deeply and how we can train ourselves to master the art. Our conversation takes us to the question of how children listen and what deep listening and mindfulness have in common. Click here to download the free 1-page summaryDon’t miss the next show: Subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player.Links to check Oscar's business website listeningmyths.comThe free guide of the five myths of listening Design and manage your workshop agenda with Session Lab (affiliate link) Check out our featured SessionLab user Rein Sevenstern from Experiential Learning Connect to Oscaron LinkedInSupport the show✨✨✨You can now find the podcast on Substack, where your host Dr. Myriam Hadnes is building a club for you to find fellow listeners and peers: https://myriamhadnes.substack.com/

Send us a textIn this episode, I talk to Matthew Kelly from dotank - a business design agency that helps companies redesign their business and move their teams to action. Matt applies insights from Design Thinking and Story Telling to design, run and scale workshops. Matt and his team have facilitated events with 700 people and has learned how to plan and execute high impact events at scale. In the show, Matt explains how to effectively harvest insights from very large groups, and - most importantly - how to structure that data so that you can tell a story that will engage the participants to remain engaged after. We also discussed the difference in terms of facilitation between a small and large workshop, and what you need to keep in mind when briefing the co-facilitators. Click here to download the free 1-page summaryDon’t miss the next show: Subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player.Feeling inspired by the conversation in this episode? We can have our own - take a seat at my virtual table as part of a Mastermind Group. Questions and Answers[1:47] Since when do you call yourself a "Design Thinker" and how do you apply Design Thinking to Business Design?[3:26] To what extent are you as "do-tank" involved in the doing after a Design Thinking process?[8:20] If you were a hashtag, what would it be?[9:37] How do you trigger creativity in a group?[13:58] How can you combine standardization through canvas design with the individual treatment of each client? [15:13] Can you give an example of how you vary the way participants are sharing ideas?[19:42] What is the key difference between facilitating a small workshop of max 20 people and a 100+ event?[26:46] What are the key characteristics or mindsets you are looking for in a group of internal facilitators at these events? [30:27] How can you make sure that participants are taking the work necessary at such large events serious?[36:18] How do you inform all participants about each other's output? Is this actually relevant?[39:46] How do you analyse the qualitative data from all these sticky notes? How do you put the data into a system?[44:13] What makes a large workshop fail?[45:38] Can you explain in a nutshell what you mean by "participants facilitating themselves"?[50:35] What is the nutshell a listener shall take away from our conversation?Links to checkMatt's Business website DoTankDoTank's high impact event services Video of the conference mentioned in the showPodcast episode with Mireille Beumer Design and manage your workshop agenda with Session Lab (affiliate link) Check out our featured SessionLab user Rein Sevenstern from Experiential Learning Connect to Matton LinkedInSupport the show✨✨✨You can now find the podcast on Substack, where your host Dr. Myriam Hadnes is building a club for you to find fellow listeners and peers: https://myriamhadnes.substack.com/

Send us a textIn this episode, I talk to Meghan Preiss, a designer, researcher and corporate facilitator for RKS Design. Meghan works for corporate clients on service and product design and helps university students to use design thinking methods for finding their future career. She facilitates co-creation processes and supports groups in thinking outside the box.Meghan was part of a project that invited participants for a co-creation workshop into the woods. In this show, she will share what she learned from this experience and also from the interaction between students, children and executive managers. As Meghan used to be a shy person, we start our conversation on what it takes to become a facilitator when you have a shy personality. The core of the episode is Meghan's experience of hosting workshops in the woods, bringing together professionals, college students and school kids for a co-creation experience. Click here to download the free 1-page summaryDon’t miss the next show: Subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player.Feeling inspired by the conversation in this episode? We can have our own - take a seat at my virtual table as part of a Mastermind Group. Questions and Answers [1:25] How did you get into co-creation and what fascinates you about it?[3:43] How did you grow into public speaking given your shy personality?[5:13] What would you advise a shy person who wants to become a facilitator?[6:08] How do you deal with shy participants in your co-creation sessions?[7:27] Would you give shy participants the opportunity to prefer beforehand? [8:12] If you had to summarise your vita into a hashtag - what would you be?[9:47] What's the magic ingredient of a co-creation process?[10:49] Would you invite students to workshops with clients? [14:56] What is the impact of low-tech set-up in nature on the co-creation process?[17:41] What is it about the woods that makes co-creation easier than in a creative room?[19:44] How would you bring the woods to the corporate world?[23:42] What is your favourite exercise?[25:42] How do you select the best ideas then?[28:53] What is the main difference in the way teams of students compared to professionals select ideas? [31:49] Doesn't this awareness of budget constraints limit the creative thinking of groups?[35:02] What can leaders learn from children in the co-creation process?[36:40] Do you have a technique in mind to get rid of that fear of judgement?[38:40] What makes a workshop work?[41:41] Would you define roles to facilitate the co-creation session?[45:00] Would you provide a group with guidelines on how to communicate?[45:46] What would be the optimal group size?[47:07] What would you like the listeners to remember from our conversation? Check out our sponsor Session Lab and send me a soundbite with your reason why you use SessionLab to be featured in one of my upcoming sponsor breaks!   Links to checkPodcast episode with Frans Scheepens Design and manage your Support the show✨✨✨You can now find the podcast on Substack, where your host Dr. Myriam Hadnes is building a club for you to find fellow listeners and peers: https://myriamhadnes.substack.com/

Send us a textIn this episode, I talk to Mireille Beumer, an engineer by training and facilitator by passion and profession. In her different roles, Mireille facilitates the process of knowledge transfer between people. And, she trains facilitators to master the skill. On the show, we speak about the nitty-gritty bits of workshop documentation. The day after the workshop is the most difficult and most neglected one. What can we do to make it easy for groups and for workshop sponsors to keep the momentum and to follow up? Mireille shares valuable advice on what it takes to effectively capture the outcomes so that they translate into action. You will learn how to "write" workshop minutes that catch the recipient's attention. And Mireille shares how you can get the participants to create their own documentation in an effective and fun way! Do you want to know why you don't need a gym when working with Mireille? Then, stay tuned until the end and keep your pen and notebook ready: you'll surely need it! Don’t miss the next show: Subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player. Questions and Answers [1:01] When did you start calling yourself a facilitator?[2:34] What is the difference between a facilitator and a coach?[4:11] How does your background in engineering impact the way you facilitate collaboration?[5:49] If you were a hashtag, what would you be?[7:10] What's your favourite exercise to "bring power to the meeting"? [10:20] How would you deal with the situation where too many participants state that they have a busy mind and don't want to be in that meeting?[11:48] Do you allow participants to join late?[14:33] What are the key skills of a professional facilitator? [19:54] How do you document your workshop results?[24:09] Do you use a template to capture the results in the form of a story?[27:01] How can you help teams to keep momentum? What comes after documentation?[28:46] Does the follow-up workshop need the facilitator or can it be done by the group/ manager?[29:04] What is the best timing for the follow-up session?[29:33] How do you prepare a follow-up with your client? [31:19] How much time do you plan for the closing?[35:02] What are the steps you need to take to make sure the follow-up becomes easy?[37:46] What's your responsibility in terms of follow-up? Where is the line between facilitator and project manager?[39:50] You refer to 4-hours workshops. Do you believe in 8-hours sessions?[45:16] How can we capture results that will be read?[48:31] From your experience what makes a workshop fail?[49:37] What would you like the listeners to remember from our conversation?Check out our sponsor Session Lab and send me a soundbite with your reason why you use SessionLab to be featured in one of my upcoming sponsor breaks!  Connect to Mireilleon LinkedInvia her website: https://mireillebeumer.nl/Support the show✨✨✨You can now find the podcast on Substack, where your host Dr. Myriam Hadnes is building a club for you to find fellow listeners and peers: https://myriamhadnes.substack.com/

Send us a textIn this episode, I talk to Bernhard Ferro, a Senior Design Thinker and expert in user experience (UX) design with a background in behavioural sciences. We talk about Design Thinking and how its strict methodology can help us when dealing with difficult organizational cultures.Although Bernhard believes that "Design Thinking cannot fix a broken team", he shares how a Design Thinking workshop once contributed to the team-building process.  In the show, you will learn how you can prepare teams who have never experienced a co-creation workshop and what it takes to effectively manage expectations. Don’t miss the part in which Bernhard shares how a CEO turned into a "prototyping machine" and what exercise triggered the magical effect."Everything can be prototyped.Prototyping is a mindset."     Don’t miss the next show: Subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player.Questions and Answers [1:16] What's your story? How did you get into Design Thinking?[3:50] How would you summarise your vita in one hashtag?[4:38] What have you learned from behavioural sciences that help you to design workshops?[5:38] What's your strategy to remove distraction?[8:17] Does the application of the Design Thinking methodology depend on the organisational culture? [12:13] Within the workshop process, when are you more designer and when are you more facilitator?[15:15] What is "interaction design"?[16:25] How do you use your knowledge in UX in the workshop design process? [18:29] Do you adjust your workshops depending on the group's culture? What would you do if you know the group tends to lengthy discussions?[19:40] Can you have a successful Design Thinking workshop with a toxic team?[21:33] Through the eyes of a behavioural scientist, what makes Design Thinking so favourable for team building?[22:57] With whom are you aligning in the workshop preparation process?[24:55] What's your role in terms of expectation management when it comes to expected results or outcomes?[29:02] What does it take for a team to have a successful Design Thinking workshop? [31:24] Why do workshops fail?[35:40] How would you prepare a participant for a potentially difficult workshop situation?[37:38] What's wrong about "group discussions"?[41:27] What's your favourite exercise to get groups become familiar with prototyping?[45:18] How do you prioritize ideas?[47:51] What advice would you give someone who wants to run Design Thinking workshops?[54:13] What shall a listener remember from our conversation? Check out our sponsor Session Lab and send me a soundbite with your reason why you use SessionLab to be featured in one of my upcoming sponsor breaks!   Connect to Bernhard on LinkedInSupport the show✨✨✨You can now find the podcast on Substack, where your host Dr. Myriam Hadnes is building a club for you to find fellow listeners and peers: https://myriamhadnes.substack.com/