MASTERFUL FACILITATION INSTITUTE: Public and In-House Program Offerings

Public and In-House Program Offerings

Masterful Facilitation is a learning institute to build your confidence and skill in designing and facilitating highly successful meetings. Enhance your facilitation competencies and mastery to enable groups of any size in any setting to tap their creativity and wisdom, and produce extraordinary results.

"I never give all perfect scores on an evaluation, however, I can't think of 1 thing you could do differently to improve this course - exceptional!" SJ

"From the many training opportunities I have experienced in facilitation, this is the best blend of theoretical learnings with practical experience - a great workshop!" SMM

Empowering - Engaging - Energizing Programs! - discover why our approach consistently earns rave participant reviews! Contact us for in-house delivery. Read what else participants said after our last offering (down to the right)!

Scroll right for upcoming programs and to join our LinkedIn network; below for course descriptions, and further below for links to facilitation resources.

Testimonials for The Confident Facilitator

"Participants receive a great understanding of what facilitation is and lots of opportunities for hands on experience. I am walking out excited about my next opportunity to facilitate and try out my new skills.' TL

"You will leave with ready to go hands-on, practical methods for facilitating! This course exceeded my expectations. I will go back to my workplace with confidence in my newly acquired skills." KM

"An extremely useful course, well designed and full of practical information. The highly interactive format made learning easy, and facilitation could be practiced in a safe, comfortable environment." KKT

"I would 100% recommend this program. If you want to learn or hone a process for facilitation from the experts - this is it!" LC

"A suberb introduction to the art and science of facilitation - suitable for those new to the practice, and also to those with years of experience who want to enrich their understanding." LB

"A very practical course, with a solid 'go-to' reference book for applying facilitation techniques in a variety of settings....work or community setting." GG

"A great introduction to facilitation theory, balanced
with skill improvement for experienced facilitators looking
to expand their skills.' AO

"A fantastically well organized course that provides essential skills and tools for all types of organizational uses. I love how all participants with different skill and knowledge levels walked away enriched!" JH

"This course will get you started on the journey and add to your facilitation confidence and competence!" NH

"I learned and saw many techniques in action, plus I
can now refer to a wealth of references to acquire
further details. Sharing this
experience with others
was also invaluable!" CO

Scroll down to read more ...

Testimonials for Engaging for Collaboration & Wise Action

"Take this course! It will enable and empower you to take on challenges and find solutions in large and small groups, while avoiding conflict and derailment. Great tools to use whatever you need to accomplish with others. Very rich in providing lots of new ideas directly applicable to my job." RV

"Myriam and Brenda embody and breathe the essence of dialogue and deliberation into the course. Although I was familiar with many of these methods, I am taking away many new insights such as Partial Views, how to blend methods, and the priceless understanding of the 'essence' of each of these methods! KH

" A very good overview of some methods to use in the meetings that appear too 'scary' because issues are complex or the behaviours of participants are a serious concern because of their diversity (e.g., not like me)." SV

"I would definitely recommend this course. Having very little previous experience, it provided me with a good balanced overview of techniques that I can see myself using throughout my career (and personal life!)" KH

"The course was well structured and custom tailored to meet our needs! I gained insights into different methods used to engage and facilitate stakeholders at a meeting. I am taking away new ways to approach a problem involving group dynamics and how to set up a meaningful engagement process." RS

Testimonials for The Inspired Facilitator

"This course is a great blend of practical tools and useful theoretical foundations with a focus on being a reflective practitioner - I would absolutely recommend it!" -JC

"A very confirming course for the experienced practitioner, a fabulous opportunity to connect with other professionals in the field and to explore the deeper questions of our practices in a supportive learning space." - PH

"You were both outstanding models and generous mentors in this learning community of facilitators, and I am taking away so much more than I expected including dialogue, new constructs, and tools on large systems work! - NH

“I’m at the point in my career where I have high expectations for learning as I too often pay for and attend courses where I come away with nothing new. This course has given me new learnings (e.g., partial and systems views, dialogue, ladder of inference, engaging the whole, storytelling) and experiences that I will chew on for some time.” -LG

"For a practitioner working alone, being given this rare opportunity to dive deeply with colleagues into what it takes to do this work was akin to giving water to someone stuck in a desert. As facilitators, you were incredibly skilful at creating and holding the space for this group of experienced practitioners to really ‘show up’, engage each other, share resources and knowledge, learn new techniques, and be compassionate about the struggles we all have." - LH

"This course was so much more than I initially expected, with the ability to interact with other seasoned professionals about the stuff that doesn't usually get included in the handbooks, but is really the key to success." - BK

"I would like to say what a very great gift this was to be offered three days of reflection and space to share the passion of facilitation in this program! Myriam and Brenda did a really great job of holding the gracious space that we (the participants) needed to raise our level of facilitation service." - EB

List of Past Program Attendees

Accenture
Assiniboine Credit Union
BC Healthy Communities
BC Ministry of Community Development
BC Ministry of Forests
BC Teachers Federation
Bell Canada
Bella Candella
Being a Better Leader
Biminaawzogin Regional Aboriginal Women's Circle
Bock & Associates
Boeing
Boys and Girls Club of Alberta
BC Centre of Excellence for Women's Health
BC Liquor Distribution Branch
Burnaby ECD Community Table
Burnaby School District #41
Canadian Blood Services
Canadian Heritage
Central Okanagan School District
City of Port Alberni
Common Junction Strategies Inc.
District of Hope
ED Burnaby Family Life
Emotus Operandi
EPCOR
Fraser Health Authority
FT Services
Full Spectrum Consulting
Gabinet and Associates
Georgian College, Aboriginal Health Initiatives
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters
Hydro-Quebec
Idea Gardens Inc.
IMBC Consulting
Iowa State Court System
Inspired Momentum Unlimited
Health Canada
Libby Brown Communications
Lochdale Community School
Louise Hara Community Coaching, Facilitation & Research
Lynda Friesz Public Relations Inc.
Metro Vancouver
Molson Coors Canada
NavCanada
Ontario Power Authority
Ontario Power Generation
Parks Canada - Pacific Rim National Park
Parks Canada - Banff National Park
Parks Canada - Ottawa
Peace of the Circle
Planning Solutions Inc.
Rockrose Institute
Service Canada
Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth
Sound Leadership
Suncor Energy Inc.
Watari Youth Community and Family Services
WorkSafeBC

What Past Participants Had To Say About Their Experience

THE CONFIDENT FACILITATOR

"This course will guide you through basic skills and practices and you'll be able to walk away ready to facilitate immediately." DG

" As a beginner to facilitation in a room of many practicing facilitators, I felt like I took away as much learning as they did. Bravo!" MC

"The skills and confidence I've gained will be of significant use in our organization and for me personally. I'm leaving with all the experience of the tools that were presented and modelled (retained in the excellent resource material), plus increased confidence from practices." LLG

"This course synthesized for me the skills I already had, drew out all the experience in the room, and created a synergy that was absolutely awesome! BK

"There were lots of highs in this program, including increased awareness of all the facilitation tools available, and the true value of planning and design. This is the way things must be done these days - engaging staff is the surest bet for success." JJ

"You offer a special experience that is truly effective in growing confident facilitators. There is nothing I would improve." KN

"This course was highly organized, with energetic instruction and gave me foundational methods for facilitation success." SG

ENGAGING FOR COLLABORATION AND WISE ACTION

"Found the blend of Open Space with World Cafe really cool, as well as the use of Appreciative Interviews to begin a gathering. Myriam and Brenda - you are true experts in the sometimes maddening yet often rewarding facilitation field. Thank you for always striving to be respectful, curious, and attentive to our needs" DW

"A very motivating and affirming program! I learned that it's really all about collective learning and the value of communication and dialogue in working towards positive change, as well as the importance of observing the structure of dynamics in complex situations." CH

"Take this course! It will enable and empower you to take on challenges and find solutions in large and small groups, while avoiding conflict and derailment. Great tools to use whatever you need to accomplish with others. Very rich in providing lots of new ideas directly applicable to my job." RV

"Myriam and Brenda embody and breathe the essence of dialogue and deliberation into the course. Although I was familiar with many of these methods, I am taking away many new insights such as Partial Views, how to blend methods, and the priceless understanding of the 'essence' of each of these methods! KH"

A very good overview of some methods to use in the meetings that appear too 'scary' because issues are complex or the behaviours of participants are a serious concern because of their diversity (e.g., not like me)." SV

"I would definitely recommend this course. Having very little previous experience, it provided me with a good balanced overview of techniques that I can see myself using throughout my career (and personal life!)" KH

"The course was well structured and custom tailored to meet our needs! I gained insights into different methods used to engage and facilitate stakeholders at a meeting. I am taking away new ways to approach a problem involving group dynamics and how to set up a meaningful engagement process." RS

THE INSPIRED FACILITATOR

"This course is a great blend of practical tools and useful theoretical foundations with a focus on being a reflective practitioner - I would absolutely recommend it!" -JC

"A very confirming course for the experienced practitioner, a fabulous opportunity to connect with other professionals in the field and to explore the deeper questions of our practices in a supportive learning space." - PH

"You were both outstanding models and generous mentors in this learning community of facilitators, and I am taking away so much more than I expected including dialogue, new constructs, and tools on large systems work! - NH

“I’m at the point in my career where I have high expectations for learning as I too often pay for and attend courses where I come away with nothing new. This course has given me new learnings (e.g., partial and systems views, dialogue, ladder of inference, engaging the whole, storytelling) and experiences that I will chew on for some time.” -LG

"For a practitioner working alone, being given this rare opportunity to dive deeply with colleagues into what it takes to do this work was akin to giving water to someone stuck in a desert. As facilitators, you were incredibly skilful at creating and holding the space for this group of experienced practitioners to really ‘show up’, engage each other, share resources and knowledge, learn new techniques, and be compassionate about the struggles we all have." - LH

"This course was so much more than I initially expected, with the ability to interact with other seasoned professionals about the stuff that doesn't usually get included in the handbooks, but is really the key to success." - BK

"I would like to say what a very great gift this was to be offered three days of reflection and space to share the passion of facilitation in this program! Myriam and Brenda did a really great job of holding the gracious space that we (the participants) needed to raise our level of facilitation service." - EB

Customizable Programs & Modules

Engaging Virtually - How To Facilitate Genuine Dialogue And Build Co-Creative Communities Across Distance and Other Divides

Cocreative Engagement Methods - How to Create Participatory Environments Using Co-creative Facilitation Processes. Read related article.

Ramp Up Your Instructional Design - Integrating Proven Participatory Methods, Tools & Techniques into Training Design.

Email Us - Let us know what your needs are for relevant, timely instructional design and delivery in any facilitation or group process topic.

Featured Article: Standing in the Fire

New Article: "Standing in the Fire: Helpful Interventions for Complex Group Dynamics"

Previous Article: Facilitating Complex Group Dynamics With Confidence

“Last night at the district Board meeting, a couple of the Mayors had a row, called each other names, and nearly came to fisticuffs. If the meeting doesn’t go beyond noon tomorrow,” said our client (we were facilitating a 1.5 day session) “we want you to know that we’ll still pay you”. Yikes! What would you do?

Read remainder of article (PDF):
Facilitating Complex Group Dynamics With Confidence

Note: Day 3 of The Confident Facilitator is on creating "Great Interactions" and addressing dysfunctional individual behaviour and group dynamics.