Facilitation is guidance of a group in a problem-solving process. The facilitator works with the group as a whole and provides procedural help in moving toward a conclusion. For example, facilitation of community meetings on the proposed Monongahela Valley Expressway between Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Mor gantown, West Virginia, led to an agreement by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission to divide the project into separate, more manageable segments. It is managed by the facili tator with the consent of the participants. The goal of both the facilitator and the group is to arrive at a collective decision through substantive discussions.
Facilitation leads toward empowerment and consensus.
To the extent that a group is representative of stakeholders, the conclusion is a position or a level of consensus it has jointly achieved. Facilitation brings out all points of view represented in the group. In a small group, a facilitator can encourage discussion from all participants. Sharing viewpoints stimulates discussion. Given a lack of full expression of views, a facilitator can ask hypothetical questions to get dis cussion moving.