{"id":1689,"date":"2016-07-25T05:04:18","date_gmt":"2016-07-25T13:04:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/iiqbal\/?p=1689"},"modified":"2017-02-18T10:03:07","modified_gmt":"2017-02-18T18:03:07","slug":"meeting-ground-rules","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/iiqbal\/2016\/07\/25\/meeting-ground-rules\/","title":{"rendered":"Meeting ground rules"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"OLYMPUS<\/a><\/p>\n

Facilitation techniques are about designing and managing group interactions so that people truly collaborate and make sound decisions.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

(Bens, 1997)<\/p>\n

 <\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I recently attended a full day session on building facilitation skills for meetings. Despite the large amount of time I spend in meetings\u2014as a participant and as a facilitator-participant, I have never formally learned about meeting design. The facilitator, Charles Holmes<\/a>\u00a0ran a great session and I learned a lot. In this blog post, I write about one key idea from the session:\u00a0Ground Rules<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ground rules make sense in the context of meetings. They help participants establish common understanding about what is desired and appropriate behaviour so that the group can function effectively and make high-quality decisions.<\/p>\n

Though I know it is good practice to do these, I have\u2014to date\u2014typically avoided creating ground rules when facilitating meetings and processes. Somehow, I feel awkward about doing them with adults because I believe \u2018we all know how to use common sense and be good to one another in our interactions\u2019 (and so my assumption is that it is condescending to spend time articulating how we want to interact with one another). Yet, that assumption hasn\u2019t consistently proven to be true! And, I have participated in various mundane and ineffective meetings.<\/p>\n

So, I think it is time I get over my feeling of awkwardness.<\/p>\n

Here are some key points about ground rules that I took away from the session I recently attended:<\/p>\n

1. Discuss\u00a0why it is worthwhile spending time developing ground rules and how these will be used.<\/strong>\u00a0Though, as a facilitator you may be aware of the benefits of ground rules, the same may not be true of the participants. Therefore, it is worthwhile thinking about how you will introduce the concept and its application to the specific group you are working with. Do not assume meeting members\u00a0will buy-in and\/or know how to use ground rules; instead, make time to have\u00a0this discussion together.<\/p>\n