Managers as Facilitators

The workplace is changing to such an extent that the amount of work demanded is more than individuals working alone can produce. The need for people to work together has lead to the creation of a great number of groups or teams. Yet in many cases, the experience has been very disappointing. Nonetheless, these work structures are here to stay, and according to Weaver and Farrell, effective facilitation is the key to helping groups get more work done and to break through new levels of productivity. Managers as Facilitators offers both commonsense theory and strong practical guidelines to leaders, managers and supervisors in large and small organizations. The model of facilitation presented in this book demonstrates that facilitating is a distinct role, and not just another feature of effective management skills. It reveals how recognizing this distinction is critical to using facilitation well.