Recently earning a Certified Virtual Facilitator™ credential, we have spent countless hours researching and test driving online tools to really wow our clients. Some work great; some had a learning curve before delivering; and some aren’t worth the time. 

When looking for new collaboration tools for facilitation, we evaluate them in the following areas:

• How easy are they for everyone to use, even those who are less familiar with tech?
• How well do they integrate with common tools, such as Zoom?
• How do they help the whole team communicate, especially those who might be inclined not to participate, for any reason?
• How many fun or intriguing features do they have, to get people excited about trying them out?

Here are a few standouts to explore. 

SessionLab*

SessionLab is a planning tool for group gatherings that includes a curated library of all kinds of facilitation activities. We love these because they help people get involved without the standard practice of...

We are so proud to announce that our founder and president Gina is now a Certified Virtual Facilitator™, or a CVF™, credentialed through the International Institute for Facilitation (INIFAC)

This reflects a deep and practical knowledge of productive virtual meetings. 

To receive this credential, Gina had to be evaluated against 22 competencies in the following areas: Presence, Assessment, Communication, Control, Consistency and Engagement. These competency areas are well-researched, international, and used for offline facilitation certification as well in-person meetings (remember those?). 

What does this mean for our clients? In an increasingly remote-working, technology-driven world, working with a facilitator who is not only comfortable and familiar with virtual spaces, but has certified competency means that you can relax knowing she can navigate that environment in effective and proactive ways. 

“My favorite part of the evaluation, and online...