Picture the setting!

A motley collection of worthies, no doubt intended to be representative but more likely to be wonderfully atypical and idiosyncratic – are gathered together and earnestly apply themselves to answering the questions posed in the consultation exercise ….! Out comes the faithful flipchart. Let’s brainstorm, says the facilitator….and off we go.

Of course, not all consultations are like this. Many rely upon more structured dialogue methods, but there clearly is a role for less formalised thinking-out-loud opinion-gathering from time to time. It’s a great way to pick up the gut feelings of stakeholders; to generate new ideas and to make connections between one person’s contribution and the others in a group. This is why it is such a favourite of the training course tutor. Faced with a choice of putting the answers to a question on a slide or inviting the audience to suggest the answers, the latter technique wins hands-down; it makes for a far more satisfying and successful learning experience.