Leadership: Effective and Inclusive Facilitation
Meetings are where an organization’s ideas take shape — yet too often, they leave people feeling unheard or unsure about next steps. This workshop provides practical tools to design and lead meetings that are both effective and inclusive. Participants will learn how to create meeting structures and facilitation practices that keep discussions focused, support clear decisions, and ensure people of diverse identities, communication styles, and lived experiences can contribute meaningfully.
In this live, virtual workshop you will explore agenda-setting techniques, facilitation strategies that encourage equitable participation, and approaches for navigating challenging conversations. By the end of the session, you’ll be equipped with tools that make your meetings more efficient, more engaging, and more accessible for everyone involved.
Suggested Participants
Executive Directors/CEOs, board members, managers, senior leaders, and anyone who wants to lead engaging, inclsuive meetings.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this workshop, you will be able to:​
- Describe the core characteristics of facilitators who lead meetings that are both effective and inclusive.
- Identify factors that reduce meeting effectiveness and participation.
- Apply meeting design practices—such as annotated agendas, consent agendas, and clear decision-making pathways—to keep discussions focused and purposeful.
- Use practical facilitation tools to generate equitable participation, guide conversations, and support meaningful outcomes.
Benefits
- Gain practical tools to run meetings that are clearer, smoother, and more productive.
- Build confidence in engaging diverse voices, managing group dynamics, and fostering equitable participation.
- Leave with ready-to-use templates and facilitation techniques that can be applied to board meetings, team meetings, and project sessions.
Topics Covered
- Characteristics of an effective and inclusive facilitator
- Barriers to effective participation and inclusion
- Designing inclusive and efficient meeting structures
- Facilitation and meeting tools (e.g., agendas, calendars, engagement techniques)