Facilitation Basics

Facilitation Basics allows you to focus on the learners and help an audience "get" a facilitator's message by focusing on the basic principles that underlie effective learning facilitation. In addition, you will find solid tips and techniques on creating a learning climate, facilitating learning activities, managing difficult participants, using media to support learning, and assessing your facilitation quality and success.

About the Author

As founder and principal of Performance Advantage Group, Donald McCain has dedicated the organization to helping companies gain competitive advantage through the development of their human resources. With more than 28 years of corporate and consulting experience, McCain’s focus is on design and development of custom learning experiences in leadership, sales and marketing, call center management, and many areas of professional development that result in improved business unit and individual performance.

He also consults in HRD processes, including design/development, competency identification and development, certification, evaluation (including transfer and return-on-investment), presentation and facilitation, and managing and marketing the HRD function. Most of his clients are Fortune 100 companies across various industries. His work is international in scope. McCain has also consulted with many new consultants on the business side of training consulting.

McCain has a bachelor’s degree in business administration, a master’s degree of divinity, a master’s degree of business administration with a concentration in HR and marketing, and a doctorate in education in HRD from Vanderbilt University. He is a member of ASTD and the American Management Association International (AMAI), and a former member of the Academy of Human Resource Development (AHRD). McCain previously served as an adjunct assistant professor of leadership and organizations for Vanderbilt University and is currently an adjunct professor for the school of management at Belmont University. He also teaches for the University of Phoenix.

He is author of the book Creating Training Courses (When You’re Not A Trainer) (ASTD, 1999) and also wrote the lead article for Hrfocus, “Aligning Training With Business Objectives” (February, 1999). Additionally, he has published several evaluation instruments.