The Learning Curve - More Than Just Virtual Facilitation
On Wednesdays at 3:30pm a group of facilitators, coaches, and trainers from around the world gather together to learn from each other and try out new ideas. Over the past several months, this group has become like family and together we have tested the limits of virtual facilitation. This group was inspired by John Losey, facilitated by John Berkley, and motivated by Jim Cain. Three amazing gentlemen that have seen the group grow from 5 to 50 members since its inception. Jim helped us put together our best tips and stories into a collection of essays that is now available for purchase.
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The Learning Curve not only offers heaps of practical tips for facilitators, it also gives you a sense of the community we have created. These small windows into the worlds of the authors often cross the line between practical and just plain beautiful. I am humbled to be included in this work alongside some of my heroes and mentors. All proceeds from sale of the book will be donated to the American Camping Association. Below is an excerpt from my chapter entitled Always Have a Plan D.
…Back when I was a full time Outward Bound Instructor and Course Director, one of my many soapboxes was about proactivity. There are certain things you just know are going to happen, even if you don’t want them to, and you should plan accordingly. On day 2, one of your students will probably get homesick. By day 5, there will be conflict and the group will begin to ‘storm.’. By day 12, one of your students will lose a water bottle, or a spoon, and so on. Similarly, in the virtual world, you should expect that someone will get disconnected from the meeting (probably you or a co-presenter). If you are using breakout rooms, someone won’t be able to get into their room. If you are using a platform like Jamboard or Google slides, someone won’t be able to access the shared space and someone else won’t be able to figure out how to make a sticky note. These things will happen and you should plan accordingly.
Plan B is a good place to start, like when I planned for Reb to call into the meeting if he got disconnected, but apparently it’s not enough. So I recommend that if you are hosting a meeting or virtual event that really needs to go well, you also implement Plans C & D. Here’s an easy way to conceptualize this:
Plan A = Actual Plan – This is the plan if the technology actually works as you would like it to. Nobody gets disconnected, participants are able to access your material, links all work correctly, etc. Not sure I’ve ever seen this happen.
Plan B = Backups – This is where you plan for backups in all critical roles. The last thing you want is for any one person to be too important to fail. So, role by role, you designate backups who will step in and assume that role if necessary. If there is a role such as subject matter expert that is critical and can only be done by one person, then you should give them additional ways of accessing the meeting (via their cell phone, via a landline, etc.) or maybe you have them record some of their content beforehand so you can resort to playing a video if necessary while you problem solve. If a critical role is simply unable to be backed up, then at least you know when you need to go to plan D.
Plan C = Coaching - One of the many frustrating things about presenting virtually is when your momentum is completely interrupted by a participant who is having technical difficulties. If you don’t have a plan for coaching these people through their issues, then half of your presentation is spent trying to help someone change the video settings on their computer. Plan C involves coaching your attendees through any technical tomfoolery they may encounter. There are many ways to execute this:
Have a moderator and direct attendees to privately connect with them if they are having any technical difficulties.
Use visuals (slide, pictures, shared screen) and cues during your presentation to proactively show attendees some basic troubleshooting skills or ‘tech tips.’
Show a brief video loop with instructions on using chat, raising hands, muting audio, etc. prior to the meeting start.
Utilize a ‘playground’ area when first using platforms like Google slides, Jamboard, or Mural so attendees can practice with a new interface before engaging in an activity.
If you have attendees or co-facilitators that frequently struggle with technology, you can schedule some private coaching sessions with them in advance.
Plan D = Dismiss, Do-over, Dis is not working – At some point, you just have to know when to quit. When 2 or more of your backups go dark or when there are more people struggling to use the platform than your coach(es) can handle, it may be time to throw in the towel. Even this does not have to be a reactive decision however. You can plan for how and when you will implement this last resort. A simple reschedule is a lot better than having 100 attendees waiting around for 45 minutes while you try to problem solve. I’d recommend no more than 10 minutes of technical difficulties before you pull the plug. If you’re trying to use a cool interactive platform but a lot of participants are struggling to figure it out, maybe you can just abandon that platform while still charging forward with your presentation. The concept here is to avoid getting sucked into the black hole of ‘trying to fix it’ where time flows at a different pace and nobody is really getting what they came for.
Last month, I helped facilitate a virtual orientation for a group of MBA students. I was part of a team of 7 facilitators and we had been working for several weeks to adapt what used to be a rollercoaster of ropes courses, climbing walls and initiatives into a series of virtual sessions. We followed this planning model and when it came time to deliver we felt pretty great. In the first session, right as we transitioned to an interactive Jamboard activity that I was supposed to facilitate, my power went out. Sigh…It was a temporary surge and it only took me a few minutes to get back on. When I logged in I found that my backup had seamlessly picked up where I left off. I resumed my role and nobody missed a beat.
It really feels like an accomplishment when you overcome the strange curve balls and obstacles that the virtual world throws at you. I’ve come to realize that once you move past all that nonsense, it’s actually pretty amazing what can be accomplished through virtual facilitation. There is magic that happens in these interwebs. Plan well, and you are sure to experience it yourself.
We are already working on our next book and it will be filled with even more activities, essays, and conceptual frameworks to help demystify the art of virtual facilitation. Working and playing with this team of legends has converted me from skeptic to true believer in the potential of this medium to achieve amazing outcomes for teams and organizations. Check out the book and you will likely feel the same.
