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A workshop to seriously consider "places of tomorrow" in Tokai: "AMP!2023" - A close look at the facilitators!
"AMP!2023" was held on July 19, 2023.
This event, which is part of ASNOVA's personnel system "ASNOVA WAY," was held for the third time this year with the cooperation of Loftwork Inc. and FabCafe Nagoya, with the aim of encouraging employees to learn and grow toward their goals.
Unlike previous initiatives, this time we implemented a program to develop "facilitation skills."
Why is facilitation ability necessary now?
What did the participants learn from this program?
We spoke to members who were involved in running the event and members who participated as facilitators.
Text: Sayaka Mitsuda
Photo: Sho Kobayashi
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PROIFILE
- Takeya Ogawa
- Belongs to Equipment Management Department Chiba Yotsukaido Center.
- Hiroki Ishii
- Belongs to Equipment Management Department Aichi Yatomi Center.
- Takumi Kawai
- Belongs to Osaka Sales Office Sales Department.
- Sho Kasahara
- Belongs to Nagoya Sales Office Sales Department.
- Motoharu Anami
- Belongs to Corporate Planning Office.
- Mayo Kasakawa
- Belongs to Corporate Planning Office.
- Yui Sato
- Belongs to Corporate Planning Office.
Learn team building and leadership skills in an unusual setting
It was 2:00pm and a large crowd had gathered at the event venue, FabCafe Nagoya.
"AMP!2023" is a personnel program implemented by ASNOVA as a "workshop to seriously consider the 'places of tomorrow' in Tokai." Topics to be taken up on the agenda are solicited from businesses, and general participants, including the theme owner who provided the theme, will discuss and dig deeper into the issue. By exchanging opinions from various perspectives in a real place, it is an event that gives you the opportunity to discover new perspectives and remove biases, find the perfect collaboration partner, and get ideas that you have never had before, and it is an event that gives you the opportunity to discover new perspectives and unexpected approaches for yourself.
The facilitators selected this time were Takeya Ogawa from Chiba Yotsukaido Center, Sho Kasahara from Nagoya Sales Office, Takumi Kawai from Osaka Sales Office, Hiroki Ishii from Equipment Management Department, Motoharu Anami, Yui Sato and Mayo Kasakawa from Corporate Planning Office. They were divided into four groups and facilitated the discussion.
We welcomed Learning Village representative Masaki Sawa to provide facilitation coaching, and have held multiple meetings since June to prepare for the actual event.
In fact, these seven people were selected based on recommendations from the human resources department and superiors.
We asked Mr. Ryo Fujiwara, senior manager of the Human Resources Department, about his expectations for them.
We asked Mr. Ryo Fujiwara, senior manager of the Human Resources Department, about his expectations for them.
Q. What do you expect from the facilitators and what do you want them to learn through the event?
Fujiwara: I'm looking forward to observing how the participants will support each other, who are meeting for the first time. They have all made preparations, so how will they utilize them, and how will they behave when things don't go as planned? I hope that they will acquire team building and leadership skills as they overcome each situation. This is a situation far removed from their usual routine, so I hope that they will take home many things that they would not get from their usual work.
Q. What did you participants pay particular attention to in preparing for today?
Anami: We have prepared an atmosphere that would make it easier for Mr. Ishii, who is on the same team, to do his job, and that would make the time spent by the theme owners as meaningful as possible.
Kasahara: The last AMP! 2022 was held only with in-house people, but this time it was an event that included people from outside the company, so I was nervous. I made sure to discuss with the theme owner in advance so that I could set a good theme.
Ishii: First of all, I thought it was necessary to strengthen the unity of the facilitators, so I called for the members to work on it as a whole group, rather than treating it as individual tasks. Personally, I am not good at communication or presentations, so I would like to work hard to improve and enhance those areas through this workshop.
After each group finished their self-introductions, they began working on their theme.
The facilitators will summarize and expand on the discussion, using the content they have prepared.
The ideas that are output are written on sticky notes and posted on a whiteboard to share.
If you observe closely, you will notice that groups also have their own personalities.
Some groups discussed things thoroughly before writing them down on sticky notes, while others wrote down whatever came to mind. We could see that each group was trying their best to keep the conversation going, listening to everyone's opinions equally, and so on.
Q. How did you feel when you were actually working on the theme? Please tell us what went well and what was difficult.
Ogawa: What I was conscious of during the workshop was to behave in a way that made the other person feel at ease so that they would feel comfortable around me. What went well was that I was able to do it with a smile on my face with my partner, Mr. Kasagawa! I was very happy that the theme owner proactively came to the whiteboard.
I felt like the direction of the conclusion I wanted to reach was a little different from the answer the theme owner wanted, so I felt like I could have done a better job of that.
Kawai: During the workshop, I was conscious of making sure the participants were enjoying themselves. I think that went well. What I found difficult was when things didn't go as we had rehearsed. I had to be flexible and think I could have done better there.
Sato: It was difficult to keep an eye on the theme owner and the four participants. I also had to keep an eye on the situation around me and give hints to help them come up with new ideas. I felt that I needed the ability to coordinate the whole group.
Kasakawa: I was conscious of not just being a moderator, but being a facilitator who could draw out the opinions of the participants. Before the actual event, we held a pre-workshop with the facilitators from each team, and it was great to be able to do role-playing there. During the actual event, we were able to proceed in a friendly atmosphere.
Anami: Timekeeping, progress, communication, and correcting course when things got difficult didn't go as expected. I also felt that working together to get things done is an issue for the future. I think that lack of preparation in advance showed up.
Kasahara: It was great that we were able to come up with ideas one after another and have in-depth discussions in groups. However, we lacked the ability to connect them, so I wanted to improve the quality of our output.
Ishii: My themes were "creating a space where each participant can freely express their opinions" and "creating ideas that cannot be produced by one person alone." To achieve this, I devised ways to encourage participants to actively participate in the work, such as having them post ideas on the whiteboard themselves and encouraging communication between participants.
One thing I would like to reflect on is that my sense of time was different during practice and the actual event. What I expected and what actually happened were different, so I tried to be flexible.
The event ended with great excitement!
One of the theme owners said, "We thought we had exhausted all our ideas, but it was a very meaningful time to hear new ideas from everyone."
Participants also shared their thoughts, saying, "It was fun to talk to people from other industries that I don't normally have contact with," and "It was unique to approach the theme in the following order: 1) conventional wisdom, 2) paradox, and 3) idea generation, so I was able to enjoy the process!"
Q. What have you learned as a facilitator and what would you like to apply to your work?
Anami: I realized once again that it is important to see things from a bird's-eye view. I also learned the ability to understand the other person's thoughts and words, and to summarize without denying or arguing, even if they are right.
In my work, I would like to utilize my ability to understand what the world and investors want!
Ogawa: I realized that by turning my eyes to the parts that are usually invisible, the questions I ask change. This also applies to my colleagues at the center, so I thought it could be a way to build a more meaningful team.
Kasahara: It was very stimulating to do things that I don't usually do. By broadening my perspective and thinking, I hope to hone my individual skills and grow as Sales Office.
Kawai: I think I was able to acquire the skills necessary to lead people. Since I deal with customers at work, I would like to utilize these skills when extracting information from interviews and to facilitate internal meetings.
Ishii: I learned that we can form ideas together with our colleagues that we cannot get by ourselves, that flexible approaches can broaden our thinking, and that facilitation can strengthen our sense of co-creation. I would like to use this knowledge when interacting with others or creating new businesses.
Sato: I learned the importance of thorough advance preparation. Recently, I have often been thinking alone about creating a service, but I realized that it is also important to proceed while getting opinions from various people. I learned that the outcome of a workshop depends on the facilitator.
Kasakawa: I realized that the facilitator's position and the way the meeting proceeds need to be changed depending on the theme. In the future, when I act as a facilitator in internal meetings, I would like to remember this experience and make use of it.
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