In any research work for a business purpose you will be expected to be competent in generating, leading, and facilitating discussion about a particular topic.

Discussions do not just happen. They must be carefully planned and co-ordinated based on the following steps.

Seating Arrangements are Very Important.

People should ideally have eye-contact with each other. If you are part of a team responsible for the session, then those who are not involved in actually leading the discussion should disperse themselves amongst the rest of the participants.

Their task is to be part of the discussion, but not in a way which excludes others.

Relate Sympathetically to Your Participants:

a) assume that they are fascinated by the topic area, and can't wait to begin talking;
b) enable people to feel that their contributions are welcomed and valued.

People need guidance on what the point of the discussion is, so outline/recap on the aims and objectives of the topic in a broad way.

Explain the 'direction' in which you expect the discussion to proceed.

Have ready a list of up to six broad questions to facilitate the discussion (even though only one or two of the presentation team may be leading the discussion, it is important that more of you are involved in constructing questions), beginning with factual one which demands a 'straight' answer.

About the Questions:

a) Make sure your questions aim to further a debate about the topic, in relation to the issues.
b) Never use a 'closed' question (i.e. one which can be answered by 'yes' or 'no').
c) Wait for a response - people actually need time to think about an issue.
d) When someone responds, listen carefully, generating new questions or points in your head while they are speaking. This is active listening - an important skill for any researcher.
e) Address your responses to the point in a general way, in order to bring others into the discussion.
f) Be flexible about your list of questions. If the discussion is going well, go with the flow, but always be ready to bring it back into line when it wanders away from the subject in hand, or becomes pointless.
g) Be respectful and appreciative at all times, but don't be afraid to disagree with a comment. At the same time, try to avoid getting into a 2-way argument. Be ready to ask, "What do other people think about this?"
h) Make full use of the resources available; whiteboard, chalkboard, OHP, flipchart etc.
i) Make a few notes during the discussion, so that you can competently summarise what has been said at the end of the seminar.

These points apply equally to whole-group discussions, or series of small groups.

If small groups, ensure that each group has a facilitator from the discussion team.

Each facilitator should understand the point of the discussion, take their group along similar lines, and make notes of key points.

Arrange to draw discussions to a close early enough for a short plenary session (i.e. each facilitator summarises the key points of their discussion).

Leading discussion is hard work, and tiring if you are seriously committed to it; however, it can also be very rewarding.

Perhaps more importantly, the more experience you gain, the more confident and competent you will become.

The overall aim of discussion should be to 'further a debate'.

Your main objective therefore is that people should leave the discussion:

Understanding more than when they began;
Still discussing the topic as they leave; and
Feeling that they have had an interesting time.
When it is someone else's turn to lead discussion, be ready and prepared to participate.

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