ABSTRACT
The facilitator role is concerned with helping people to get things done, to improve their performance and develop themselves in the process. Research indicates that there are a number of generic behaviours that will assist facilitators as they go about this process, and they should become fundamental to the way that facilitators perform their role. The first important facilitative behaviour is creating empathy. Without the feeling that the facilitator is 'on the same wavelength' little is likely to be achieved, and the relationship may well deteriorate into a rather sterile, game-playing charade. The second ingredient is being specific. It is relatively easy to discuss issues in general terms, people do it all the time, often in an attempt to 'fudge' issues, but this method does not necessarily help very much if people's goal is to identify and achieve action on defined improvement opportunities. Genuineness is the third generic behaviour that will help the facilitative process.
