When delivering a workshop or focus group it can be a challenge to hear from all voices in the room. One way to encourage everyone to have their say this is to use a few tried and tested methods that are engaging and will help bring life to your facilitation.
Card storming
Card storming is when a group writes their answers to a particular question on a card and the cards are then grouped by emerging themes. This works well for clustering and categorising sticky notes into key themes on a wall. You could also do this online using a digital whiteboard tool such as Miro.
Group discussion
For a group discussion you can pose a question to a group or a few smaller groups to discuss and write down their answers on a template (or upload digitally). It’s a good idea to also allow time for smaller groups to share their responses with the room after the discussion. This method can be easily adapted for an online workshop.
Live polling
You can ask different types of questions including open ended or multiple-choice questions using live polling. It’s very effective for collecting anonymous data and showing analysed results to a group in real time. This helps participants understand different views in the room and also gives them the confidence to provide honest answers. Live polling can be used for in person and online consultation activities, as long as participants have access to a smart phone or device.
Carousel
In a carousel activity, participants spend time answering questions at different tables in a room, with a new topic at each table. Participants have the opportunity to decide which questions they spend their time discussing and can move tables to provide input into multiple topics. You could also do this using breakout rooms if conducting an online session.
If you’d like to discuss your consultation and participation needs please email us at info@articulous.com.au
