S5 Ep25: Say goodbye to unproductive meetings with better facilitation featuring Jennifer Aitken

This week, we focus on a topic everyone can relate to: bad meetings. According to today’s guest, Jennifer Aitken, unproductive meetings can often be avoided with more forethought, clearer structure, and better preparation.

Jennie is Director of Medical Staff Quality and Improvement for Island Health and a professional facilitator with the Sofia Group. In this interview, we explore why meetings often fall short, how anyone can strengthen their facilitation skills, the organizational value of better facilitation, and the rewards of helping groups reach those meaningful “aha” moments.

Links and resources:

The Sofia Group

Steven G. Rogelberg, The Surprising Science of Meetings: How you can lead your team to peak performance (2019)

Priya Parker, The Art of Gathering: How we meet and why it matters (2018)

J. Elise Keith, Where the Action Is: The meetings that make or break your organization (2018)

John Koenig  The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Dr. David Rock, SCARF: a brain-based model for collaborating with and influencing others (2008).

Liberating Structures