Courses / ToP® Facilitation Methods
ToP® Facilitation Methods · Start here
Lead meetings that end in decisions, not another meeting.
If you run team meetings, committees or community conversations and too often walk out with nothing settled, this course is for you. You don’t need to be a facilitator. You need two days and a willingness to practice.
Next public course
Registration opens on top-training.net, run by the Institute of Cultural Affairs, the national home of ToP training. You’ll get your confirmation and course details from them.
Length
2 full days, in person
Price
$650 to $1,250, tiered by organization type
CE credit
CHES/MCHES 13.5 · AICP 14.5 · ICF 15 · PDU 14 hours
Prerequisite
None
What changes on Monday
Your meeting has a clear aim
Before anyone walks in, and you know how to get the group there.
Conversations reach a conclusion
A four-step question pattern moves a group from facts to a decision in 10 to 30 minutes.
Everyone’s ideas get used
Not just the loudest. Groups agree on a way forward, even when they started far apart.
You stop dreading hard meetings
You walk in with a plan for the conversation, not just an agenda.
Is this for you?
→ You lead a team meeting every week and leave frustrated more often than not.
→ You chair a board, committee or coalition, and decisions keep getting pushed to “next time.”
→ You run community or stakeholder input sessions and want the results to be usable.
→ You’re a manager, program lead, planner or consultant who wants people to leave ready to act.
→ You sat in a meeting that just worked, and you want to know how that happened.
→ Your organization already uses ToP, or someone you trust told you to take this course.
What the two days look like
Day 1 · The Focused Conversation
A four-step question pattern (known as ORID). You lead one yourself on a real topic and get feedback.
Day 2 · The Consensus Workshop and Action Planning
Turn a room full of ideas into a few clear agreements, then into a plan with names and dates. You lead it too.
You leave with the manual, your own practice designs, three methods for next week, 1 hour of coaching with a trainer to use within 90 days, and an invitation to our quarterly community of practice.
What people say
“This is one of those rare times that you spend a few days in a class and walk out with something you can use immediately!”
Erik Meyer · ToP Facilitation Methods participant
“I was shocked to learn that my role as a facilitator was not to come to the room with all of the answers, but to guide the group to find their own answers. That was a real revelation for me.”
Jim Mathis · ToP Facilitation Methods participant
Where this leads
TFM is the foundation. Most people take one of these next.
Facing a planning year?
Strategic Planning (TSP): lead the whole process, from vision to action.
Need the group on the same page?
Environmental Scanning (AES): one day of ways to see where things stand.
Want a credential?
TFM is the first of two core courses toward the Certified ToP® Facilitator (CTF).
Professional development
Getting your organization to invest
Your supervisor will want three things: the cost, what you’ll be able to do, and which credentials it counts toward. The request letter puts all three in one email.
Five or more people?
Bring a course to your team
I can bring TFM to your organization, adapted to your meetings and your space, often for less per person than public seats.
Questions people ask
I’m not a facilitator. Is this too advanced?
No. Most participants lead meetings as part of a bigger job. No experience needed.
Will this work for online meetings?
Yes. Both methods work online, and we’ll talk about how to adapt them.
What’s included?
The official ToP® manual, one hour of coaching with your trainer within 90 days, and the Great Plains ToP Community of Practice.
Get notified of new dates
Leave your email and I’ll let you know when the next course is scheduled.