Facilitation = designing and leading rituals for groups

General tips

Agendas

Obviously a meeting should have a clear agenda. Here are some tips for optimizing the agenda:

1. List agenda topics as questions the team needs to answer
2. Note whether the purpose of the topic is to:
   • share information (frame agenda as “what will I learn?”)
   • seek input for a decision
   • make a decision

Meeting titles

On calendar invites, replace the word “meeting” with titles like “prototype review”, “make [something you need to make] session”, or “pivot or persevere decision”. This prevents us from just having a meeting where we semi-update each other and instead come to the meeting with something to review, make, or decide on — which in theory should lead to less meetings. (via Conducting Room Intelligence)

Meeting size

• If you have more than eight people, don’t attempt to solve a problem or make a decision; those tasks are much easier in smaller groups.
• If you have 18 or fewer, turn the meeting into a brainstorming session for an issue that needs to be resolved.
• And if you have more than 18, you’re best off using the time as an information-sharing session.

Source: What to Do When Your Meetings Have Gotten Too Big [HBR article]

Related reading: How to Design an Agenda for an Effective Meeting [HBR article]

Make space for everyone

To avoid "the first person to utter something gets the floor," have rules on:

• who talks
• in what order
• for how long