Graphic Facilitation for Meetings

Here’s an important fact:
85% of the people in your meetings are visual learners.

Today we are continually bombarded with information. We need a new way to process ideas and concepts and capture collective thinking.

We encourage all of our clients to add graphic facilitation to their meeting process.

Intrigued?

Read more to discover how best to utilize this facilitation process!

Creative Meeting Facilitation with Graphic Recorders

Imagine your meetings and conferences coming to life before your eyes – we’re talking REAL TIME! Thoughts and ideas are captured in living color on the walls around the room as the conversations emerge. We’re not talking flip charts!

Imagine words that combine with images to capture key conversations, decisions, concepts and new ideas. A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS. If this is true, a simple elegant image has ROI written all over it, especially if you can “unpack” the experience and TELL THE STORY all the way through your second-tier audiences.

We take your ideas out of the realm of conversation and transfer them into creative visual images.

The intent is to capture the essence of the discussion and the specific points, statements and agreements in a graphic format. The output of each process is large, illustrated “maps” that you can use to “unpack the conversation” at a later time. This visual method is a powerful tool that assists learning and communication between groups and individuals. It creates a bridge between meeting decisions and accurate execution.

Meeting Design   Our Continuum Graphic Facilitator has spent more than 10 years co-designing Organizational Development processes for Fortune 500 companies. Our role begins at the initiation of the meeting planning process. We consult with your team leaders and determine how we can best apply Graphic Facilitation to achieve your meeting goals. We are focused on the outcome and success of your meeting!

Live Learning Maps   A map is an 8ft x 4ft illustration of your event. These maps are captured in real time during a meeting. Each individual's thoughts and input are recorded and made available to the whole group. A typical output is one map per two hours of conversation or process.

Studio Maps   Studio maps are created pre- or post-meeting. They can include an overall visual summary or can be used as a holder of information.

Pre-Charting   Pre-charts are done before the meeting. They hold information that will be referenced throughout the meeting, such as models, outcomes, research or interview data.

Post-Charting   These maps represent an overall visual summary that provides a high-level overview of the information and agreements from the meeting. They become your roadmaps (your visual action plan) to move storytelling and action implementation forward throughout your organization.

Story-telling Maps   Story-telling maps are a good way to communicate to employees, organizations or stakeholders where the company has been, what they were doing, and where they are going. This type of map evolves over time in conversations in the studio and boardroom, between the graphic facilitator and the people responsible for telling the story. Our team goes back to the studio and creates the final maps that can be presented to your group. This is a personal, powerful and effective way to communicate to your audience.

Custom Templates   We design custom templates specific to your needs to support a specific group process. The templates can be used by the graphic recorder or can empower you to facilitate your own meetings.

Meeting Documentation

The beauty of working graphically is that processes of the meeting are captured step by step as the visuals are created.

Maps/Charts   After the meeting, each map is digitally scanned. We return the original maps as well as a CD with the image burned in three formats — email-able, printable (11x17), and full size. The client also receives a few small-format color copies for easy reference. The maps are easily shared via email, Web and hard copy presentation. There are various output options from which you can choose.

Meeting Reports   A comprehensive representation of the meeting, including the maps, photos and written annotation and video. These reports serve as memory devices and agreement holders for those who were present at the meeting. They also act as an excellent summary and communication tool that can be used to share the meeting and its outcomes with those not in attendance. Reports can be created in hard copy, bound or digital formats.

Post-Meeting Consultation

After the meeting, we provide you with the tools to unpack the meeting and maps so that you can communicate vital messages and ideas to management, leadership and new hires alike.

How To Leverage The Power Of Graphic Facilitation

A sampling of ideas based on our client experiences

Re-Organizations   We assist both small-unit and large whole-system reorganization projects, working with you right from the beginning to ensure buy-in from the executive team down to the small group audiences. This is especially effective when major issues are driving the reorganization.

Leadership We assist corporate or public leaders in creating a platform, rolling out a vision or developing skills to meet performance objectives.

Statewide/Regional Meetings   We assist large groups by helping them see information and situations in new ways, in order to effectively distill the data into plans and programming.

New Product Launch or Company Start-Up   We work with groups of all sizes to support branding, new product launches, innovative ideas and roadmaps for change.

Teams    We assist organizations with clarifying and crystallizing their Vision, Mission and Values, which informs the entire organization’s goals and activities. We have supported team strategy, engagement, mediation, ideation and planning.

Sustainability   We work on Charette projects where community input is critical. Visual mapping is often key to creating buy-in and involvement of various audiences, and for streamlining the decision-making process.

Conferences   We have supported conferences where visually capturing the ideas of many sessions gave participants a better way to bring their learning back home to colleagues and stakeholders.

Strategy and Change Scenarios   We help teams create their roadmaps, see where they are going and clearly define what is needed to get there.