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I recently helped a client, Bridgewater Management Group, with a positioning statement.  A few hours into the positioning session, their “hook” became apparent. It’s not like it was a revolutionary new thought (after all, there is nothing new under the sun). Perhaps for me it was just a fresh perspective.

Among other offerings, Bridgewater provides information management services including records scanning and storage, process workflow improvement, etc.  When we looked at the list of their services, specifically as they relate to the healthcare industry, they had one specific characteristic in common.  These tasks were not money-makers for their clients; they were drainers.  No one dreams of going into the healthcare field so they can scan medical files and process claims.  This is a painpoint.  It is a bottleneck.  It is a distraction from their core mission.  It is a necessary evil.
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A good facilitator can get to the heart of a matter – or the core of a business – simply by asking the right questions. Of course, asking the right questions requires that you’ve done some research on the organization and their competition in advance.  But again, don’t go in with assumptions; that research should only serve to lead you to the right questions (the answers should come from the group, not from you).

I have a series of questions that I tailor to clients.  Some aren’t appropriate for certain organizations, and sometimes there are obvious questions that need to be asked that are outside of the norm.  A planning session for me almost always includes a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis as well as discussions about services offerings and target audience (who are they, what are they looking for, what motivates them, how they make decisions).   There should also be a discussion about the competition (not just immediate competitors; think about other sources and solutions to the problems of the audience). Why should someone choose your solution over the competition?  This is a critical question to ask but can often be the most difficult to answer, so save it for the right time. (Don’t lead with a question that challenging.)
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My husband, who many claim is the funniest man they know, has long had the mantra “Repetition is the Key to Humor.” David Letterman can take a simple word like Spatula – a word he didn’t even intend to say – and make it the funniest part of the show simply by repeating it randomly in awkward moments later on. It’s genius! Naturally, it works particularly well when people are tired and subsequently oxygen deprived, because they are more prone to laugh. (That’s why late-night TV is less funny during the day.)  I digress…

If Repetition is the Key to Humor, perhaps Facilitation is the Key to Positioning.  It is through facilitation that you uncover the true identity of an organization, what it has to offer and how it is unique. Facilitation is a skill and an art. I am the fortunate beneficiary of professional facilitation training from the University of Cincinnati, thanks to an early boss who said it would be good experience.

Facilitation is a core service at Girl on the Roof, because it serves as the starting point for any initiative or project.  So I have decided to post a series of blog postings on the topic.  Stay tuned…