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Facilitation Training

The best meeting your team ever has
might be the one
they run themselves.

Most meetings will never have an outside facilitator. ToP® training puts the methods of intentional meeting design into your team — so the meetings that already happen every week start producing what they claim to produce.

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Who This Is For

Two paths. Same methods.

👤

Individual practitioners

Consultants, nonprofit leaders, health educators, planners, coaches — anyone who regularly facilitates groups and wants to do it better.

  • →Open enrollment — register individually
  • →Small cohorts, real practice
  • →Skills you'll use the following Monday
  • →CE credits: CHES, AICP, ICF, PDU
View Upcoming Courses
🏢

Organizational teams

You don't need your staff to become professional facilitators — you need them to run meetings that produce something real.

Under 15? Send them to a public course — cross-sector learning adds value.

15 or more? Private in-house cohort — your team, your real work.

20? Full cohort. Ideal learning conditions.

Explore In-House Training
Training session

"The best meeting your team ever has might be the one they run themselves."

The Courses

What you'll learn.

Course One · ToP®

Facilitation Methods

Master the foundational tools of participatory facilitation — the focused conversation and the consensus workshop.

⏱ 2 Days 🎓 CE Credits 🏢 In-House Available
  • ●The Focused Conversation Method (ORID)
  • ●The Consensus Workshop Method
  • ●Designing & leading each method with confidence
  • ●CTF certification pathway preparation
  • ●Open enrollment + private cohorts available
Who: Teams, leaders, practitioners, nonprofit staff  ·  Prerequisites: None
Course Two · ToP®

Strategic Planning

Facilitate a full organizational strategic planning process — from practical vision to mission to actionable implementation.

⏱ 2 Days 🎓 CE Credits 🏢 In-House Available
  • ●Practical vision & mission facilitation
  • ●Underlying contradictions analysis
  • ●Strategic directions & action planning
  • ●Facilitation with real client organizations
  • ●CTF certification pathway preparation
Who: Leaders, consultants, planners, facilitators  ·  Prerequisites: ToP® Facilitation Methods recommended
Course Three · ToP®

Approaches to Environmental Scanning

See what's shaping your future before you plan for it — a participatory look at the forces affecting your organization.

⏱ 2 Days 🎓 CE Credits
  • ●Social, technological, economic & political scanning
  • ●Participatory methods that involve the whole team
  • ●Creating shared context before strategic planning
  • ●Connecting external forces to internal decisions
Who: Planners, strategists, organizational leaders  ·  Prerequisites: None
Course Four · ToP®

Secrets of Implementation

Because a plan nobody follows through on is just a document. Turn strategic directions into real action.

⏱ 2 Days 🎓 CE Credits 🏢 In-House Available
  • ●Moving from directions to concrete action plans
  • ●Assigning clear ownership without top-down mandates
  • ●Building accountability that sticks
  • ●Keeping implementation momentum alive over time
Who: Leaders, project managers, consultants  ·  Prerequisites: ToP® Strategic Planning recommended
“

The ToP training changed how I run every meeting. I use these tools every single week. Worth every hour.

Training Participant | K–12 Education
Technology of Participation® authorized trainer
Authorized ToP® Trainer
Certified ToP® Facilitator (CTF) ToP® Mentor Trainer Institute of Cultural Affairs
Ready to register?
View all public course dates or bring training to your team.
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Upcoming Dates
May 2026
August 2026
September 2026
No event found!
Professional Credits

Your hours count toward credential renewal.

All courses qualify for continuing education credits across multiple certifying bodies.

Credential Body Hours
CHES / MCHES NCHEC 13.5
AICP American Planning Association 14.5
ICF International Coaching Federation Contact us
PDU Project Management Institute 14
Questions about credits?
Private & In-House

Bring the training to your team.

When you have 15 or more people who all need the same skills, a private in-house cohort is often the smarter investment. Your team learns together on your real work and leaves with shared language and methods.

15+
Minimum participants
20
Ideal full cohort
Your location
Or delivered virtually
Your real work
Customized scenarios
TFM available
As in-house course
TSP available
As in-house course
Talk to Me About a Private Cohort
For Practitioners

The path to Certified ToP® Facilitator.

ToP® Facilitation Methods and ToP® Strategic Planning are the two core courses on the path to the Certified ToP® Facilitator (CTF) credential — the professional standard for ToP® practitioners worldwide. Certification is earned through ICA — the Institute of Cultural Affairs.

Ask About the CTF Pathway
Common Questions

Asked & answered.

Do I need prior facilitation experience to take ToP® Facilitation Methods?+
No. TFM is the foundational course and assumes no prior experience. Most participants come in as leaders, consultants, planners, or staff who run meetings regularly and want to do it better. The course teaches both methods (Focused Conversation and Consensus Workshop) from the ground up.
How is ToP® different from DISC, Working Genius, or other team-building tools?+
Different category of work. DISC and Working Genius are personality and team-style assessments — they help people understand each other. ToP® methods are meeting-design methods — they give your team a repeatable structure for running productive meetings. The two are complementary, not competing. Some clients use both: ToP® for how meetings run, an assessment tool for how teammates relate.
Are courses offered virtually or only in person?+
Public courses are typically offered in person at locations across the Great Plains. In-house courses can be delivered either in person at your location or virtually for distributed teams. The methods work in both modalities — though most participants prefer in-person for their first ToP® course because of the practice intensity.
What does pricing look like?+
Public courses use tiered pricing based on organization type — corporate, government, mid-sized nonprofit, and small nonprofit/student rates. Specific pricing is published on the registration page for each cohort. In-house cohorts (15+ participants) are quoted based on group size, location, and customization needs.
How big is a typical cohort?+
Public courses are kept small intentionally — usually 8 to 16 participants — so everyone gets real practice time on real content. In-house cohorts work best with 15 to 20 people; below 15, sending people to a public course is usually a better choice because the cross-sector learning adds value.
Do these courses count toward CE credits?+
Yes. All courses qualify for continuing education credits across CHES/MCHES (13.5 hours), AICP (14.5 hours), ICF (12 hours where applicable), and PDU (14 hours). Hours vary slightly by course — see each course's detail page for specifics.
What is a Certified ToP® Facilitator (CTF) and how does someone become one?+
CTF is the international professional credential for ToP® practitioners, awarded by the Institute of Cultural Affairs. The pathway requires completing ToP® Facilitation Methods and ToP® Strategic Planning, accumulating documented facilitation hours, and submitting a portfolio for review. I can help you understand the pathway in more detail — get in touch if you're considering it.
Can my organization sponsor multiple people?+
Absolutely. Many organizations send a senior team through TFM together so everyone has shared language and methods afterward. If you're sending three or more people, an in-house cohort is often the better economic choice. We can talk through what fits.

Ready to change how your team meets?

Whether you're registering for an open course or exploring in-house training — let's talk.

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