facilitation-patterns

# Facilitation Patterns

## Table of Contents
- [Purpose](#purpose)
- [When to Use](#when-to-use)
- [What Is It?](#what-is-it)
- [Workflow](#workflow)
- [Common Patterns](#common-patterns)
- [Guardrails](#guardrails)
- [Quick Reference](#quick-reference)

## Purpose

Facilitation Patterns provide structured approaches for running productive group sessions—from quick standups to multi-day workshops. This skill guides you through selecting the right format, designing agendas, managing participation dynamics, making group decisions, and handling difficult situations to achieve session objectives.

## When to Use

Use this skill when:

- **Planning sessions**: Design meeting agenda, choose workshop format, estimate timing
- **Running meetings**: Daily standup, 1:1s, team sync, all-hands, board meeting
- **Facilitating workshops**: Brainstorm, design sprint, strategy offsite, training session
- **Team decisions**: Need structured decision-making (voting, consensus, delegation)
- **Retrospectives**: Sprint retro, project postmortem, quarterly review
- **Stakeholder engagement**: Kickoff, requirements gathering, alignment session
- **Conflict resolution**: Tensions between team members, opposing viewpoints, stuck decisions
- **Participation issues**: Some dominate conversation, others silent, sidebar discussions, low energy
- **Remote facilitation**: Virtual meetings, hybrid sessions, asynchronous collaboration

Trigger phrases: "facilitation", "workshop design", "meeting patterns", "how to run", "session planning", "effective meetings", "group discussion", "team collaboration"

## What Is It?

**Facilitation Patterns** are proven formats and techniques for structuring group interactions to achieve specific outcomes (decisions, ideas, alignment, learning, etc.).

**Core components**:
- **Format selection**: Which pattern fits your goal? (divergent brainstorm, convergent decision, alignment, learning)
- **Agenda design**: Time-boxed activities in logical flow (diverge → con