papershine

This past week I facilitated a retreat for the new board of the Haywood Road Market, a non-profit, food co-operative in West Asheville. Nine people assembled for a few hours to talk about how they will work together and to eat delicious, vegetarian potluck.

It started slowly, with a round of introductions in which each member expressed why they were taking part in the board and a special, strange talent. The get-down-to-business types found this a bit too time-consuming, but I believe strongly that the long range success of a group like this depends more on the human elements they share than the timelines and schedules they create. By the end of the meeting, this half-hour investment up front was paying dividends as the new members of the board were sharing their opinions and ideas openly when difficult issues arose. I think under different circumstances, it would have been easy enough for them to let the experienced board members carry on with business as usual. Once we knew each other, the meeting moved along much more efficiently. Meetings that are solely focused on racing to the end of agendas are generally doomed to uncomfortable failure.

I used a lot of elements from Positive and Producitve Meetings. Rounds were particualrly successful with this group, ensuring that everyone had a chance to share their ideas. We used lightning rounds several times to keep dialogue open and to make sure everyone knew what they were voting on.

Here’s a page from the meeting minutes. I intended to draw a bunch more pictures, but the meeting required me to face the group as much as possible and pay close atention to the conversations in the moment. Good facilitation is about flexibility.

I am always grateful when groups allow me into their work. I offer my sincere appreciation to the Haywood Road Market Board of Directors for letting me be a part of their process.

This entry was posted on Saturday, May 6th, 2006 at 9:03 am and is filed under Positive & Productive Meetings.