Why is it called “Facilitation Analytics”?

All of the books of address in some way how to facilitate dialogue, particularly public dialogue. The definition of “facilitate” is to make something easier or more convenient. Our tools help make the facilitation of dialogue easier by breaking down component parts of the overall process.  This allows the different factors and combinations of factors that help drive a successful facilitation to be identified, examined, and shared..

Many people rely on their intuition to facilitate meetings. It can take considerable time to gain enough experience to facilitate well. The frameworks we provide help both new and experienced facilitators to build their knowledge, share, and coordinate with others. For example,. if your intuition says “do A” and mine says “do B”, it can be hard without a framework to work out how to combine our insights and experience.  

FA provides a scaffold that can help those involved in a dialogue share their knowledge and experience  in spite of differences of background and especially when facing unfamiliar challenges. Once you’ve absorbed an analytical framework, you’re also in a better position to generalize and to adapt to new challenges and new constraints.

Do the books need to be read in order to be understood?

No, the books are modular, and each stands alone and also complements the others. We do suggest starting with Understanding the Facilitation Cycle, if you are new to dialogue.  Otherwise we recommend starting with the one most closely aligned with your immediate need.