What is a Facilitative Leader?
Facilitative leaders assist individuals and teams in becoming more effective. They create a culture of commitment and accountability. They are purpose-driven and work to align the team to their mission. They create a culture of commitment and accountability, are purpose-driven, and work to align the team with their mission.
They use interactive dialogue to tap into the talents of each group member and influence the team without micromanaging. Depending on the situation, they lead without control. They serve as the champion for the group by promoting recognition, providing resources, and overcoming obstacles. They encourage the celebration of milestones.
What are the benefits of using a facilitative leadership approach:
To the Organization:
- A higher level of motivation, employee engagement, and performance.
- A higher level of conscious and deliberate leadership development.
- A more sustainable leadership talent bench.
To the Team:
- Team members will feel included and have a clear line of sight from their work to the organization’s mission and vision.
- Team members will understand and hold themselves accountable for team results.
- Team members are building their own capabilities to communicate, navigate conflict, collaborate, and facilitate.
To the Facilitative Leader:
- Gain increased commitment, accountability, and creativity.
- Opportunity to expand their leadership competencies.
- Create a sustainable impact on results with the team and stakeholders.
INIFAC has adopted the use of the words ‘team’ to refer to units that work together with a shared purpose and interdependencies “Team members” refers to the individuals who are part of those teams.
Who should become a CFL™?
This credential is for in-house or external process facilitators wanting to assure their clients they are qualified in having;
- Track record of exceptional facilitation experience
- Ability to handle demanding group dynamics
- Confident communication skills
- Adaptability and flexibility to change to meet client needs
- Strong organizational skills
- Process facilitation skills to handle any situation
Your Journey to Certification
Assessment Requirements:
- Application process: apply online, complete application form, and payment
- Five References – Answer such questions as; ‘Why do you perceive this person to be a facilitative leader?’ ‘Based on your experience with the person, how have they handled situations and communications?’ ‘How have they used a facilitative approach to help achieve results?’
- Curriculum Vitae (an INIFAC form) i) team size ii) challenges ii) results ii) 10 leadership experiences
- Written competencies
- Interview (60-90 minutes) video recorded
CFL™ Competencies
A. Presence: Projects confidence in own skills and their ability to lead the team. Their approach to Presence includes:
A.1 Positively express both verbally and nonverbally to develop trust and credibility.
A.2 Exuding confidence, self-awareness, and enthusiasm while also conveying a high level of warmth and caring.
A.3 Approaching situations with an open mind and willingness to learn and adapt accordingly.
A.4 Adjusting their style to serve the individuals and the team better.
A.5 Being authentic, reflective, and conscious of daily behavior (what I did and didn’t do, what happened, and what am I going to do about it).
B. Development: They consciously and deliberately model desired behaviors and coach team members to develop further. Their approach to Development includes:
B.1 Asking questions to accurately assess the needs of others and the business to promote knowledge sharing and better understanding.
B.2 Working with individuals on their team to define their development path.
B.3 Helping the team understand and consider the input and contributions from each team member as part of the decision process.
B.4 Decides when it is appropriate to involve the team in decision-making and the team’s decision-making authority.
B.5 Coaching individuals to identify and leverage individual strengths, talents, and challenges to better align work roles.
C. Communication: Has the ability to relay information skillfully, adapting their style to resonate with others. Their approach. Their approach to Communication includes:
to Communication includes:
C.1 Actively listening, making sure to clarify and confirm important points and verbally summarize agreements.
C.2 Communicates directly and candidly, with care and compassion, presenting all relevant information with no hidden agenda.
C.3 Using their highly tuned analytic skills, which allow them to process information quickly, differentiate various content issues, and isolate critical points in a discussion.
C.4 Ensuring knowledge transfer to and among team members.
C.5 Delegating in a way that clarifies purpose, outcomes, milestones, and probable issues.
D. Collaboration: Safeguards the process, facilitates interaction, and patiently deals with the level of frustration. Their approach to Collaboration includes:
D1. Knowing and using multiple techniques for engaging a team through problem-solving and decision-making.
D2. Creating and maintaining a productive and safe environment where participants with diverse styles and cultures can engage effectively and build on each other’s work.
D3. Understanding the causes of disagreement and effectively guide a team through conflict while consciously taking action to prevent, detect, and resolve dysfunctional behavior.
D4. Promoting a willingness within others to create a shared sense of purpose while investing time and effort because they enjoy the process and interaction and appreciate the small wins along the way.
D5. Forming quality relationships to influence, achieve results, and develop, and maintain a collaborative environment.
E. Professional Standards and Ethics: Through their behavior, they adhere to a code of conduct that includes legal, ethical, and moral standards appropriate to local laws, customs, and practices. Their approach to Professionalism includes:
E.1 Creating a respectful and trustworthy environment fostering a culture that protects against discrimination and promotes diversity (invitation to session), equality (giving everyone equal time to speak), inclusion (involving everyone), and equity (treating with fairness). Examples: race, disability, age, gender, sexual preference, national origin, religion, and ethnicity.
E.2 Encourages ideas, questions, and concerns. Allows for mistakes, using them as teaching moments.
E.3 Honoring the privacy of individuals and their experiences. This includes not sharing any private or confidential information without specific authorization.
E.4 Ensuring their work is as accurate and authentic as possible. Crediting all sources of information presented.
E.5 Accepting accountability for your or your team members’ actions. Accepts the consequences of your obligations and your responsibilities as a leader.
F. Results-Oriented: Taps into the expertise, skills, and talents of their team members, developing a strategy to produce high-quality, measurable results while having a positive impact on satisfaction, engagement, and performance. Their approach to Results Orientated includes:
F.1 Establishing credibility in your leadership so individuals and team members believe they can achieve the high standards and stretched goals.
Typical actions include understanding and staying focused on the ultimate goal or mission of the organization, creating small wins, helping keep motivation high, and actively recognizing and celebrating excellence.
F.2 Creating a clear understanding of the goals, ensuring they are relevant, collaborative, evaluable, and motivating teamwork. Ensuring clarity and ownership of the roles and responsibilities to achieve results. This also includes clarifying the next steps.
F.3 Providing a clear decision-making process, including
- Early-warning metrics, which would indicate that achievement of the goal is at risk, including both threats and opportunities.
- Creating a monitoring process for key activities that highlight early-warning metrics.
- Describing the escalation process for decisions or information including who has the authority.
F.4 Demonstrates the ability to think strategically and pursue excellence for their organization, their teams, and themselves by confronting problems directly and quickly rather than letting things fester. Monitors and addresses situations immediately, gauging the pace and progress toward excellence.
F.5 Developing cohesive strategies and supporting goals and programs to produce high-quality and measurable results.