Facilitation is about mastering how to deliver an engaging learning experience, all in the effort of improving workplace performance. It’s also about developing your unique approach and building confidence in it so you can achieve your facilitation goals. In Facilitation in Action, four master ATD facilitators open your eyes to the range of facilitation methods and techniques and help you find your authentic training style.

In this interview, co-author Carrie Addington, part of ATD’s internal facilitator team, discusses what it means to be facilitators in action.

What prompted you to write this book?

The group of us, as facilitators of ATD’s train-the-trainer programs and now co-authors, wanted to hone in on the value of community and the importance of sharing varied approaches. Each of us has our own unique style but trains and facilitates the same content with effectiveness.

We, the train-the-trainers within the pages of the book, wanted to give readers a community and showcase how four different facilitation styles translate common practices and theory into practical skills to use in facilitation. How Jared leverages adult learning principles to create a positive learning environment is different from how Darryl does it, different from how Nikki does it, and different from how I do it. The beauty is in how each facilitator applies their own facilitation style to these skills, allowing for more authenticity and more connection with learners.

What does “Facilitation in Action” mean, and how does your book address it?

“Facilitation in Action” is what we as trainers and facilitators say and what we do in a learning expeirence that brings practicality to a particular training technique. The skills we use and how we use them matter for our learners and their overall learning experience. This book seeks to identify and build on common skills for successful facilitation while underscoring the unique role that facilitators have to drive individual and organizational success. When facilitators are in the learning environment, it can be challenging to pause to consider our next move or adapt to learner needs in the moment. This book seeks to equip learning professionals with the ability to prepare for success while building adaptability. We cover theories and ideas and invite the reader to participate in the experience as if they were in training.

Why is finding your authentic facilitation style so important?

Have you ever watched a TV show, movie, or play where one of the actors is unconvincing? It’s almost like they know they’re acting, so we, as the audience, are also very aware that they are acting? The disconnect creates disbelief, not just in their performance, but in the story itself. This can happen in learning, too. People are fundamentally perceptive; we can sniff out discomfort and falsehoods with our gut instinct. When facilitating, if we are forced to take on a different persona or even use language that “isn’t us,” our learners feel that, and our impact is diminished. Finding your authentic facilitation style highlights your natural character and strengths, injecting your learning experiences with the power of belief. The more authentic you are as a facilitator, the more authentic the experience becomes for your learners, and the better learners will connect with you and the content.

Why are skilled facilitators and trainers essential to an organization?

Skilled facilitators are the centers of influence within an organization, and they play a vital role in leading groups of individuals by creating an environment that encourages everyone to contribute their thoughts, ideas, and perspectives. Our work environment constantly provides opportunities to innovate, problem solve, and make key decisions. In Facilitation in Action, each author provides examples of the unique and innovative ways they foster engagement and participation in their training events, demystifying the skills of training delivery with practical examples and stories.

How do the stories and examples you share about various training delivery modalities assist trainers and facilitators?

We can all read and study about the best modalities to use for various training situations. But what that looks like in practice is what we can’t always predict. Readers want to hear firsthand stories and practical examples of when a modality succeeded versus when there was a misalignment and why. For example, real-life examples are shared in the book about how a blended learning design can be brought to life with skilled facilitation management or how you can build on-camera confidence for the virtual classroom.

In Facilitation in Action, you draw upon questions from learners who have been participants in your training programs to guide the direction of the content. Why is that?

We love our learners, and, when facilitating successfully, we can learn alongside them. With learners being at the center of everything we do, we intentionally structured the book to keep the learner at the center of the book as well. The structure of the book is based on the questions we receive from learners most frequently in our training programs. The questions learners pose on how to effectively deliver training are nuanced and necessary, and they often allow us to learn as well. So, it felt natural that learner questions would guide the topics we discussed in this book. We came together and made a list of the common questions we hear—the burning questions that trainers have—and that helped shape the intentionality of the book. As we were writing, we kept our fellow trainers and our learners from our 55 years of collective training delivery experience at the forefront of the conversation.

What is empathetic and inclusive facilitation?

As we see various industries continue to shift to a human-first approach, empathetic and inclusive facilitation plays a critical role in helping companies and industries successfully achieve this goal.

Belonging is a powerful concept from the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) space that conveys how important it is for us to feel comfortable, welcomed, and appreciated in a learning space. The facilitator’s role in creating and sustaining a positive learning environment, cannot be underscored enough. Our central goal as facilitators is to create the opportunity for learning to take place. As our emotions affect functions like learning and communicating, part of our role involves creating an environment that enables the brain and the individual to learn. If you’ve ever been in a meeting while feeling frustrated, distracted, or sad and you left realizing you missed most of the conversation, you can imagine how much power any strong emotion has over our cognition. With intentional empathy and inclusionary facilitation, we can invite any learner into the experience of learning. We discuss key skills that make an empathetic and inclusive facilitator—perspective taking, scenarios, managing group dynamics, and the importance of word choice—and share a variety of activities that model empathy and inclusion.

What is future readiness, and why is it an essential skill for trainers and facilitators?

Future readiness is about being proactive, flexible, agile, and excited for what could be. It requires facilitators and trainers to maintain intellectual curiosity and constantly scan the environment, according to ATD’s Talent Development Body of Knowledge. It may involve anticipating the needs of the learners and adapting to those needs or analyzing current trends and how they may impact the employees and the organization. Facilitators need to continually aspire to learn and grow, be aware of and engage with the latest and greatest developments in the talent development field, and not be afraid to change or challenge their current thinking. This influences our effectiveness as trainers because it shows we care and maintain our commitment to constantly evolving. As we prepare to share the latest in talent development, we are also humble to be learning alongside our learners. That is authenticity learners can feel.

Does Facilitation in Action apply to in-person, virtual, and hybrid training?

Absolutely! There are specific callouts to each of these modalities in the book along with examples and stories. The topics covered are discussed and approached universally and foundationally to focus on facilitation, but the specific nuances that come with a specific learning modality are covered as well. We also make a point to mention what you need to be aware of in terms of similarities and differences between each setting. For example, if it is a hybrid experience, will you have your classroom learners also log in to the virtual platform to promote a fully collaborative experience for all? Once your skill set and style is strong and defined as a facilitator, many of the approaches you have mastered in one setting naturally allow for flexibility in other settings. For example, if I were to use a pace checker wallchart in the in-person experience, I now automatically create a slide with this same idea replicated in the virtual classroom to arrive at the same outcome.

How does developing skills of facilitation and training build confidence?

The journey to developing facilitation skills is a process where we each have our own unique timelines when we grow comfortable and confident in our role. When you think about some of the core skills of facilitation like planning, organizing, listening, questioning, and adapting, among others, a facilitator could sharpen these skills in every learning event that they lead. The phrase “practice makes perfect” remains true for facilitation, and facilitators have a unique position of preparing for each facilitation to be an opportunity to grow. As facilitators, our confidence grows when we continuously test our skills in new experiences and environments.

How does Facilitation in Action differ from or support ATD’s Training & Facilitation Certificate Program or ATD’s Master Trainer® Program?

This book is the perfect complement to the ATD Training & Facilitation Certificate Program and the Master Trainer Program because we provide an in-depth look at each of the skills that will enable the reader to be an effective facilitator. Participants in those programs, as well as other programs we facilitate for ATD, often comment that they value learning from their colleagues in their learning cohort just as much as they enjoy the content. Peer-to-peer collaboration is a hallmark of ATD Education programs and we wanted to honor that in the book as well. Hearing stories and sharing examples and insights with others who have done what they’re doing in their role is immeasurable. This book aims create more of those moments.

Are there one or two things you want everyone to walk away with after reading the book that help each person on their individual journey?

Facilitation is nuanced and an ever-evolving capability. To excel in facilitation, we need to continually develop our connection to the learners, and how we do that is entirely individualized. We hope everyone walks away with a deeper understanding of the mindset behind the skills and behaviors that can elevate their impact and define their unique style to position them as the go-to facilitator in their organization, no matter the content or audience.