Facilitation of Advisory Groups

[Jim Creighton <jim@CreightonandCreighton.com>]

Elizabeth touches on the key issues in deciding whether to use a neutral facilitator. Unquestionably there are internal facilitators who are just as experienced and knowledgeable as most extenal facilitators -- and there are many incompetetnt external facilitators as well as internal facilitators. The two considerations that must be made were exactly the one's Elizabeth mentioned: (1) Will participants be able to trust an agency facilitator (I often find people mistrusting me because I'm even paid by the agency)?; and 2) Will the facilitator be able to command the attention of agency management if there is a flaw in the process design? Sometimes it is very hard for a GS 11 or 12 to get a Senior Executive Staff or political appointee to address a fundamental process problem they have created. Its easier for an outside person to raise the issue. The external consultant's entire career isn't on the line, and I make it a rule in my consulting practice that it's my job to say what has to be said -- I'm replacable, my client's career is not.

Jim