"Creating New Trains Of Thought - Techniques to Challenge Your Thinking"
If we could learn to think about problems differently, what could we create or change in our lives? Everyone has the ability to think differently and to create new mental tracks to explore. Facilitators can be discouraged to hear comments like, "it'll never work" or "we've done that before", while trying to get groups looking forward into new possibilities. We'll spend part of the session experiencing different ways of looking at situations (even bad ones!) and discovering the energy that can emerge in a group merely by re-focusing conversations. Then, we'll practice different techniques to get our minds unwrapped and into new ways of thinking.

Odette Samuelson
(Pace Suburban Bus Service - Arlington Heights, IL)
http://www.pacebus.com

Christopher Hunter
(CLHunter Consulting - Palatine, IL) (A Forté Provider)
http://www.clhunter.com

Kim Ramsey
(The Executive Edge- Carol Stream, IL) (A Forté Provider)
http://www.theexecutiveedge.net

"The Need for Facilitated Thinking Environments"
Traditional ways of thinking are slow and ineffective compared with today's pace of rapid and accelerating change. What is needed is the development of Facilitated Thinking Environments (FTEs) that function by emulating how skilled educators, facilitators and consultants provide intellectual guidance. A first of its kind FTE, called MindSights, will be demonstrated to show how it helps harness the creative talent and improves personal, team and enterprise thinking performance in a systematic way for the betterment of workers, the organization and its customers.

Dennis Heindl
(Nth Degree Software - Greendale, WI)
http://www.nthdegreesoft.com

Paul Collins
(Jordan-Webb -, Chicago, IL)
http://www.jordan-webb.net

"Using the Innovation Process to Drive Word-of-Mouth"
Internal and external consultants increasingly are struggling with traditional communication and marketing methods becoming decreasingly effective in a message-cluttered environment and tuned-out clients. Word-of-Mouth is widely-regarded to be the most powerful and influential way to communicate your message and value to clients to create action, as they make the majority of their contracting decisions based on Word-of-Mouth from trusted experts and peers. Yet, very few organizations actively understand, manage, listen for, capture, and nurture Word-of-Mouth about their value delivery in any organized way. In this presentation you will gain baseline knowledge of the key concepts and components of Best Practice Word-of-Mouth and Innovation to dynamically grow your business.

"Motorola's Culture: Seamless Inside"
Motorola's goal of delivering seamless products and services to customers is backed by rock-solid, effective & efficient operations. The organization's culture (values, beliefs and assumptions) drives behaviors that ultimately impact its ability to execute strategy. This session will review the approach and recommendations that Motorola's Organization Development team made to build upon the rich heritage of Motorola, refreshing those parts of its culture that have made it great and recommending new ways to boost its marketplace competitiveness to new levels.

Jim Troxel
(Millenia Consulting - Chicago, IL)

Odette Samuelson
(Pace Suburban Bus Service - Arlington Heights, IL)

"Leadership Skills and the Facilitator"
This discussion focuses on Leadership skills and how these relate to being a facilitator. The session is interactive with half of the session consisting of an exercise on understanding diversity. Participants will explore the questions: What is "leadership"? How is it different from "management"? How does one lead? and How does this tie to facilitation?

"The Online Facilitator: Taking Our Skills to the Web"
More and more groups are accomplishing their meeting objectives via the Internet. As a facilitator, what is it like when your markers and flipcharts are replaced with a mouse, a modem and a headset? This session covers: how to interpret the IAF Facilitator Competencies in the virtual meeting world, using online ground rules effectively, when and when not to meet on the Web, and ideas for keeping participants engaged, even when you don't see them!

"Facilitating List Organization / Categorization - Art or Science?"
Imagine a workshop where participants have generated large lists of ideas. Now comes the question, "What do we do with all these ideas?" The activity of arranging lists into smaller meaningful and usable units has been called many names including list organization, categorization, affinity diagramming, grouping, clustering and may be the toughest collaborative activity for a group to undertake. In this session participants will review several list organization methods and techniques, get hands-on experience in selected methods, inspect the basic components, document perceived pros and cons, review when or when not to organize, and assess some organizational/political issues.

"Psychology of Growth for Facilitators"
During this highly participative session, Bruce will use simulations, lecture and visuals to clarify and amplify the three critical components of the "psychology of growth": Differentiation, Breakthrough Strategic Planning and A High Performance Team. Attendees will be provided with strategies and techniques that can be immediately implemented in the workplace.