An excerpt from

Enlivening meetings with focused conversations

By Volodymyr Salamatov, ICA-Ukraine

The Focused Conversation Methods is part of a list of several methods for structured discussion concerning problems and decision-making. It is the core of the Technology of Participation (ToP), developed by the Institute of Cultural Affairs during the process of solving a wide range of socially important problems in different countries over about 40 years.

The method of Focused Conversation carries people through certain phases of reflection and allows the wisdom of individual and group experience to emerge. It uses questions that explore four levels of thinking:

1) objective level of thinking - questions about facts and external reality;

2) reflective level of thinking - questions to identify direct human response to data and circumstances, internal reactions, sometimes emotions or feelings, hidden images and associations connected with the facts. We experience an internal response when we encounter external reality (data, objective world);

3) interpretive level of thinking - questions to identify the meaning, significance, value and effect;

4) decisional level of thinking - questions to identify solutions, to complete the conversation and to provide the group an opportunity to define the future.
During the conversation/discussion, the more objective questions are raised initially. They ask: what is the data? These are followed by reflections - personal reactions, internal responses, feelings or/and associations. The follow-up interpretive questions move to a deeper level of understanding, learning, and semantic options. Questions about decision making “And what’s next?” identify consequences, solutions and next steps.

These four levels of reflection set the format or pattern for different conversations when there is a necessity for decision making.

Let’s imagine what may happen if we use the Focused Conversation Method instead of  the boring meetings of public commissions, government agencies or even parliament where a speaker from the podium delivers a speech about decisions “proposed/made by somebody somewhere” followed by questions and answers and more or less obvious propositions. The total atmosphere will change, if after the main report the audience gathers in a few groups to discuss the report for 15 to 20 minutes (preferably with the help of experienced facilitators) using the following questions:

Objective Questions:
1) What words or phrases from the report do you remember?
2) What were the key report ideas?

Reflective Questions:
1) What surprised you?
2) What was most interesting in the report for you?

Interpretive questions:
1) What was it all about? What was discussed?
2) What issues were actualized for you as a result of this report?
3) What deeper questions should be put to the speaker or considered by us in our activity?

Questions regarding the decision-making:
1) What decisions could be made on these issues? What is needed for this?

2) What could be started? What might be the first step?

Then each group will present its understanding, findings and action plans. In this way, the entire audience will be involved in developing solutions and will be much better focused on action implementation.
There are many advantages of using the Focused Conversation Method at the workplace:

• It is universal - the Focused Conversation works both in a group of strangers and in a group of colleagues long known to each other. It can be used with people with different experiences or age, as well as in homogeneous groups.
• It is a handy tool for focusing people’s attention on a specific topic long enough to determine the right direction. This type of focus saves time and psychological energy.
• This process helps to move away from politicizing and power games. It encourages people to be more creative instead of just criticizing.
• It promotes real listening; participants don’t have to shout and argue in order to be heard.
• It limits negative thinking; each comment or opinion during a session is heard, recorded and discussed, nobody is pushed away.
• The structured thinking process prevents aimless conversations. The disciplined group thinking process saves time by reducing the length of meetings.
• It allows people to be honest. They will say what they actually think and feel when they know their answers will be accepted just like everyone else’s. The experience of such honesty inspires and refreshes participants often.

The author is a professor at the National Academy of Public Administration, Ukraine.
e-mail: v.salamatov@fulbrightmail.org

Literature Used:

1. Active Participation Methods. Level One: A Training Seminar in Group    Facilitation. Methods and Techniques. – ICA-Ukraine, 2013.
2. The Art of Focused Conversation: 100 ways to access group wisdom in the   workplace / General Editor: Brian Stanfield. – The Canadian Institute of Cultural   Affairs,   2000.