A good facilitator is essential to the success of any learning or group process. Facilitators need to be able operate in a remote environment especially in the context of the growing popularity of virtual workshops and meetings. However, effectively facilitating in a virtual space requires time and consideration of the unique challenges that participants confront. This article will explore the key issues and best practices for mergerdataroom.blog effective virtual facilitation.

Virtual participants face a myriad of challenges, among them the inability to detect body language and how others respond to the conversation. This can cause some people to feel unheard or their opinions dismissed, which can adversely affect the outcome of a meeting. Qualitative facilitation methods help ensure that everyone is engaged and that all voices are heard.

In addition, a lack of physical resources can make it challenging to run the same exercises and tasks that would be used in live workshops. For instance using whiteboards, flip charts, as well as post-it notes and other resources can be very efficient in live workshops however, it can be difficult to replicate online. Bring a variety of different activities to an online session including breakout sessions, games that are experiential, and more traditional elements, such as information sharing and asking questions.