Collaborative Workshop Planning

[53] Fifteen Best Practices for How to Lead a Workshop On Wednesday, I gave a workshop on how to give a workshop—very meta, I know. Andreas Schröter invited me to a be.boosted event where the new generation of fellows will soon be leading their own workshops. So the timing was perfect! But what actually matters when planning and running your own workshop? Here are 15 best practices I’ve developed over the years: ---------- PREPARATION & PLANNING ---------- ⏳ 1) Time Your Workshop Realistically Less is more—don’t overload. For a 60-minute session, plan 30 minutes of content and 30 minutes of interaction. ☕ 2) Include Breaks (Even in Short Workshops!) Attention spans fade fast. Give a 5-10 minute break every 45-60 minutes to keep energy up. 🎤 3) Start Strong—Skip Awkward Intros Ditch the long bios. Open with a question, story, or surprise: "What made the best workshop you’ve attended great?" 🙋 4) Engage Participants Immediately Ask easy, low-stakes questions in the first five minutes: "What’s one word that describes how you feel about leading a workshop?" 🖥️ 5) Prepare Interactive Elements—But Only With Purpose In my humble opinion, many workshops are currently overusing interactive elements like complex quizzes or flashy slides just to seem impressive. Interaction is great, but only when it serves a clear purpose. ---------- DURING THE WORKSHOP ---------- 🎭 6) Get Participants Doing Something People remember what they do. Use polls, breakout rooms, or whiteboards. Example: "In pairs, share one example from experience." 🤫 7) Embrace Silence—Give Thinking Time Ask a question, then wait at least five seconds. If no response: "Take 10 seconds, then type in the chat." 🔁 8) Repeat Key Takeaways Say it → Show it → Let them say it. Reinforce key points with slides, stories, and activities. ⏱️ 9) Manage Time—Stay on Track Use a timer and give reminders: "Two minutes left!" Always build in buffer time. 🛠 10) Have a Backup Plan for Activities No answers? → Share an example. Too fast? → Add a bonus prompt. Too quiet? → Start with 1:1 or small groups. ---------- CLOSING & FOLLOW-UP ---------- 📌 11) Summarize Clearly Before Ending Never stop abruptly—people need closure (and so do you). The final moments of a workshop are often the most important, yet the least prepared. ✅ 12) End with a Call to Action Encourage immediate application or long-term reflection. Example: "Before you log off, write down one thing you’ll use in your next workshop." ❓ 13) Leave Time for Questions—But Make It Engaging Instead of "Any questions?", try more concrete questions such as: "What additional experiences have you had that we haven’t discussed today?” 📚 14) Offer Follow-Up Resources Share slides, key takeaways, or further reading. If possible, offer to answer follow-up questions. 🎉 15) End with Energy & Gratitude Avoid awkward fade-outs! Close with a final thought. If possible, rehearse your closing as much as your opening.

Presenting with Confidence: My 3-Step Prep for Collaborative Sessions As someone who has delivered countless keynotes, webinars, and workshops, I’ve learned that great presentations don’t happen by accident—they’re built on purposeful preparation. Over the years, I’ve developed a three-step method that makes collaborative presentations feel seamless, well-paced, and engaging:   1. Align on the Outline: In a first meeting, we define our key messages, agree on what the title and abstract have promised, allocate time equitably, and choose a slide template to ensure a cohesive visual experience.   2. Share Drafts and Storylines: Next, we meet to present and review one another’s slides and talking points. This allows us to refine flow, avoid duplication, and align our messages to amplify each other’s contributions.   3. Rehearse Together: A dress rehearsal brings everything together. We practice as if it’s live, offering feedback, making final adjustments, and ensuring the overall presentation feels polished and connected. A tech check or second rehearsal may follow if needed. This week at NACCHO #PrepSummit25, I had the pleasure of co-presenting with Dr. Danielle Eiseman from Cornell University. She graciously accepted my presentation prep approach and I found her to be smart, proactive, communicative, and a total professional—making this collaboration a true joy. What are your favorite tips for delivering a great presentation? Let’s share ideas in the comments and keep learning from each other! #PresentationTips #Collaboration #PublicSpeaking #HealthGIS #Teamwork #PublicHealthPreparedness #LocationIntelligence #ClimateResilience #HealthEquity #PresentationSkills #ConferencePrep

🧠 “I’m New to the Domain – What Should I Even Ask?” As a Business Analyst, you’ll sometimes walk into a requirements workshop feeling underprepared—especially when the domain is unfamiliar. The anxiety of “What if I don’t know what to ask?” is real. Here’s how to still drive value in such situations👇 ✅ Do a Pre-Workshop Domain Dive Before the session: Read existing project documents: BRDs, SOWs, project charters, or confluence pages. Even 30 minutes of reading can give you a decent grasp. Google industry basics: If you're in mortgage underwriting, digital payments, or healthcare claims, spend time understanding the lifecycle and key terminology. 📌 Example: When BA joined a telecom billing project, BA didn’t know postpaid vs. prepaid differences. A quick YouTube video + wiki deep dive helped BA join conversations confidently. ✅ Connect with a Friendly SME or Tech Lead Book a 20-min 1-on-1 with someone already on the project: Ask: “What do you wish someone had told you when you joined this project?” Get a lay of the land: major pain points, jargon, stakeholders to watch. 📌 Example: In one ERP implementation, a quick chat with the QA lead helped BA understand the order flow before the actual workshop. ✅ Use the Magic of Frameworks to Ask the Right Questions When unsure, fall back on structure: 🛠 5W1H: What, Why, Who, Where, When, and How 🎯 Business Process Flow: “Can you walk me through a day in the life of…?” 🔍 SIPOC: Who supplies input, what process occurs, what output is expected, and who is the customer? 📌 Example: Instead of asking “What features do you need?”, BA asked “What triggers this process?” and “What happens next?” It opened up the full workflow! ✅ Prepare a Lightweight Workshop Agenda Even if you’re unsure, create structure: 👉 Briefly state the goal of the session 👉 Share a rough process flow diagram or checklist 👉 Allocate time blocks: current process, pain points, must-haves, next steps 📌 Example Agenda: ➡️ Intro & Objectives (5 min) ➡️ Current Process Overview (15 min) ➡️ Challenges in Current System (20 min) ➡️ Key Metrics/Outcomes Expected (10 min) ➡️ Wrap-up & Next Steps (10 min) ✅ Have Visuals Ready Sketch a draft process map, journey map, or even just boxes with arrows: 👉 Visuals act as conversation starters 👉 Stakeholders will correct and elaborate 📌 Example: BA once brought a whiteboard sketch of the approval workflow. It wasn’t 100% accurate, but stakeholders eagerly started correcting it—instant engagement! ✅ Set the Tone: "Help Me Help You" Being new is not a weakness—it's a chance to observe without bias: “I’m new to the project, which puts me in a great position to identify gaps. I’d love to learn from your experience—can you walk me through how this actually works?” 📌 This humble approach invites collaboration instead of scrutiny. 🔚 Wrapping Up: Don’t Fear the Unknown Even if you're new to the domain: Structure your curiosity Listen deeply Document religiously Follow up clearly BA Helpline

Ever wonder why brainstorming rarely leads to real action? Generating ideas is easy, but unless a group crosses some critical thresholds, those ideas never become a reality. To overcome this collective "thinking-doing gap", we need to overcome four challenges. Let's explore. 1. FOCUS: COLLECTIVE INTUITION Brainstorming generates numerous possibilities, but groups must quickly narrow their focus to one opportunity to pursue. They need to balance something important enough to motivate people with something feasible that can be started now. Balancing aspiration with practicality will keep the group from stalling out. To achieve this, we need to synthesize the group's collective intuition quickly through a transparent process that everyone can understand. 2. OUTCOMES: COLLECTIVE VISUALIZATION Once a group has set a priority, we need to translate that opportunity into a clear, measurable outcome. Lofty vision statements don’t inspire action. A shared, vivid picture of success, developed through a rapid process of collective visualization, creates alignment, ensuring everyone is heading in the same direction. 3. PATHWAYS: COLLECTIVE PLANNING A clear, shared outcome is only half the battle. The next step is building a practical path to get there. Because complex challenges are unpredictable, we must rely on experiments to chart the path. Guideposts or trail markers will help the group assess its progress, manage risk, and make adjustments. A flexible design for multiple experiments will enable continuous learning and adaptation through collective reflection. 4. COMMITMENT: COLLECTIVE LEARNING AND DOING Finally, we need to turn plans into action through concrete commitments. No "command and control" system will suffice. Instead of a single leader, we should design for shared, distributed leadership. We need clear and transparent commitments, so we can rely on mutual accountability to stay on track. We need a process with feedback loops, allowing us to learn and adjust. But that's not all. New collective habits of doing together will also need a process of peer-to-peer coaching. OTHER DESIGN CHALLENGES By crossing these four thresholds—focus, outcome, pathway, and commitment—groups can turn ideas into sustained collective action and tackle even our toughest challenges. But not just once. If we want a significant global impact, our solution must also be: >> Replicable, scalable, and simple enough to be sustainable.  >> Modular and flexible, allowing for customization in different situations.  >> Clear with terms that can cross organizational, scholarly, cultural, and language boundaries.  >> Use a visual language for clear communication.  >> Aligned closely with scholarly research, so we can explain why our solution works. Over 15 years at Purdue University, we successfully addressed these design challenges. The result: Strategic Doing. Now, it is spreading globally. Learn about our journey here: bit.ly/SDWiley

Traditional planning sessions can sometimes feel stagnant. To keep your team engaged and ensure productive outcomes, incorporating a variety of facilitation techniques can make a significant difference. Here are some of my favorite techniques that support collaboration, catering to both introverts and extroverts: 💡 Fishbowl Discussion - Create an inner circle (the fishbowl) for active discussion while the outer circle observes. Participants rotate between circles, ensuring everyone has a chance to contribute. 💡 World Café - Set up small groups to discuss different topics at separate tables. Participants rotate tables, allowing for a diverse exchange of ideas and perspectives. 💡 Role Playing - Have participants act out scenarios to explore different perspectives and solutions. This interactive method can lead to deeper understanding and empathy. 💡 Mind Mapping - Use a visual diagram to represent ideas and their connections. This technique helps in seeing the bigger picture and how different ideas relate to each other. 💡 Six Thinking Hats - Assign different thinking styles (e.g., creative, critical, optimistic) to participants. This technique encourages looking at problems from multiple angles and generates well-rounded solutions. Trying new techniques not only makes the session more dynamic but also ensures that every voice is heard. What interactive techniques are your favorites? Let’s exchange ideas! --- Ready to spice up your next strategic meeting or workshop? Let’s chat! #StrategicPlanning #Facilitation #Leadership