The Ultimate Guide to Becoming a Facilitator for Small Businesses
Running a small business is no easy task. There is so much to get done, and usually a smaller staff to accomplish tasks and make decisions. So, what is a facilitator, and how can this role help ease some of the challenges small businesses faces? A Facilitator is hired to help make decisions easier and work alongside an SMB team to help everyone agree on decisions and communicate more effectively.
Understanding the Needs of Small Businesses
Many businesses believe there is a need for a facilitator because they feel communication or, more specifically, the way decisions are made is lacking, or there is a need for more productive processes. So a facilitator comes into an organization and eases those pain points.
Qualities of an Effective Facilitator for Small Businesses
Being a facilitator is essential to small businesses because facilitators can make a huge, positive impact. Being a strong facilitator means you boast some of the below key qualities:
Active Listening Skills
Because a facilitator is crucial to healthy communication and how companies communicate with their team or organization, a strong facilitator must have excellent listening skills. Listening skills allow you to absorb all the information needed and make decisions that will lead to the best outcome for your client, the small business. In addition, as a facilitator, you will need to fully comprehend the problems your client currently faces to design effective processes that will work now and well into the future.
Empathy and Understanding of Small Business Needs
Running a small business can have challenges that medium to larger businesses do not. First, it is important to have a firm understanding of the unique needs of an SMB. Small companies don’t often have large budgets and huge teams. In these instances, it’s essential to realize the company’s bandwidth when setting reachable goals and for strategic planning.
Flexibility and Adaptability
When owning or running a business, one thing is constant: change. Therefore, it is important that you, as a facilitator, can keep up with the fast-paced environment of a business and learn how to pivot when need be. While a facilitator will want to design ways to ensure changes aren’t too frequent, it’s crucial to adapt and be flexible when directions need to be switched.
Cultural Competence and Sensitivity
Small business company culture is essential; culture is everything in small businesses. A facilitator needs to understand and believe in the culture of the client they are working with. Seamlessly transitioning into working with leadership teams and working closely with your staff will allow you to do your job better and ultimately provide the best results to the organization.
The Facilitation Process for Small Businesses
Congratulations! You were hired as a facilitator for a small business, and now it’s time to execute. Here are some ways to set yourself up for success as a facilitator and begin helping a small business reach its full potential.
Identifying the Goals and Objectives of the Facilitation Process
What is the small business hoping to get from bringing in a facilitator? First, identify some goals and objectives for how the role will help this organization. Next, expectations need to be set, so your client understands how you will help their business and what that process will look like.
Preparing for Facilitation: Gathering Data and Resources
Collect valuable data or resources you believe will help when observing a small business. The more information about the small business a facilitator has, the more thorough you can be when designing new processes or helping with tough decision-making.
Conducting the Facilitation: Techniques and Tools
Let your facilitator do their thing. Ensure your facilitator has all the proper tools they need and let them do what they do best. Allow them to make suggestions, be open to onboarding new processes and let the facilitator do what they do best: make challenges easier in your organization.
Evaluating the Facilitation Process: Continuous Improvement
To ensure you are successful in helping the small business that has hired you as a facilitator, it is vital to constantly evaluate your process and how you’re executing your strategies. The goal is to ease some of the challenges the business owner or organization faces.
Overcoming Common Challenges in Facilitating Small Businesses
Whenever there is a change in a small business, it can feel significant to its employees. As a result, you may feel some nervousness about your facilitator role. Here are some of the most common challenges facilitators face when working with an SMB.
Managing Resistance to Change
There will be moments where change isn’t welcome, or there is a bit of pushback. This tends to be a regular occurrence when you’re changing processes or protocols that have been in place for a while. Be able to have tough conversations about why you were hired in the first place and remind those resisting what the main goals and objectives are.
Dealing with Difficult Participants
You will work alongside different personalities whenever you work with a group of people. Some may feel difficult because they don’t want to heed your advice or don’t want to change the way things have always been. Clear communication will be the best way to ease concerns or convince someone who is being difficult to participate on the level you expect them to.
Balancing the Needs of Different Stakeholders
It's essential to learn the style and personalities of all the stakeholders in the business because it is crucial everyone feels heard and happy with your work. Getting to know the team and everyone who runs it will ensure you reach everyone at the level that works best for them. Ensuring the whole group of stakeholders is on board and understands the ultimate goal will make your role as the facilitator easier.
Small Business Facilitator: A Catalyst for Change
Being hired as a facilitator can be challenging when working with a small business. Some resist change and have fewer staff levels and budgets, but bringing your expertise to the company can help a small business reach its full potential. GCE is proud to help businesses of all sizes reach their goals.