Key Insight #1: Process and Purpose Technical Extension
Key insight #1 talked about balancing facilitated process and purpose (data collection and emotional experience). When I was thinking about this balance I was thinking how I might use process models to help me focus more on purpose. Two models came to mind: 1) ORID (Objective, Reflective, Interpretive, and Decisional), which I discussed in the Key Insight #1 post, and CPS (Creative Problem Solving).
When I create my next agenda I am going to add some columns to my framework so that I can explore the meta, macro, and micro iterations of these two models within the context of the overall facilitation and the specific processes and purposes along the way. Here are the column headings:
Clock Time Duration Process/Activity Purpose CPS Phase Macro/Micro ORID Macro/Micro To do & Equipment
Clock Time states where we are in real time (e.g. Facilitation starts at 9:00 a.m., Intros start at 9:10 a.m.)
Duration states how long each section is expected to be in minutes (e.g. 15 mins, 60 mins, 120 mins, etc…)
Process/Activity states what the group will be doing during that time (e.g. Introducing themselves, brainstorming, etc…)
Purpose states the reason for doing the process/activity: Ideally the purpose will be two fold, both data achieved for problem solving and experience imparted for group cohesion and functionality
CPS Macro/Micro states which part of the Creative Problem Solving model (for details on different models go to CreativityLand)we are in. It works at two levels Macro (in the overall course of the facilitation how far along are we in solving the problem?) and Micro (within each process/activity how much of the model are we using and how far along are we?). For example, during context setting we are in the data gathering/finding stage of CPS and while we are doing that data gathering we may go through the whole process (see that we need data, get data about where to get data, identify exactly what data we need for our challenge, generate as much relevant data as possible, select the most relevant data, strengthen our understanding of that data, put the data into action by moving to the next macro step in the process).
ORID Macro/Micro states which part of the natural brain function cycle we are in (Gathering Objective data, Reflecting on that data as it relates to our experiences and feeling emotions from that, Interpreting the meaning of that data, and taking Decisional action based on the data, our emotions, and our thought process). At the Macro level a whole meeting can be framed this way: we start the meeting be getting the information we need, we move through understanding it as it relates to past experiences and emotions (this helps us frame it better both personally and in relation to the challenge we are trying to address), we think about it, synthesize it, manipulate it and come up with potential solutions which we then evaluate and strengthen, then finally we make a decision about what courses of action we want to take to implement. At the micro level we can see this playing out in each phase; when we are in the initial objective phase and we are looking at what are senses and the facts tell us (empirical evidence) we will see whatever objective data is presented first as objective data, then the participants will relate it to their personal experiences and emotions to connect to it, then they will make sense of it and manipulate the data as necessary to fit it into the overall scheme (which in this case is simply objective data gathering), and finally they will decide if any given piece of data is relevant, useful and worth acting on.
To Do & Equipment states what actions need to be taken and equipment need to be acquired to be prepared for that process/activity and to complete the purpose there of.
This is my standard facilitation agenda process with the inclusion of two new Meta frameworks (CPS and ORID) with which to better understand the psychology and problem solving that underly my processes and purpose.
