Services we provide

We provide practical products and services that are customized to your unique situation, improve your team's productivity and drive outcomes.

Clients describe us as:

• outcome-driven
• people-sensitive
• technology-wise
• enjoy-able

For the past twenty-five years Pitters Associates has been working with high potential leaders and teams interested in developing implementable solutions.  We provide practical services that improve your team's productivity and drive outcomes.

Our two main areas are:

1. PROCESS CONSULTATION AND FACILITATION

We begin by clarifying your interests in different facilitated processes.

Custom Design a Process

We CUSTOM DESIGN a PROCESS so it meets your organization’s exact needs and interests.

Develop a Unique Information Gathering Strategy

If a consultation phase is required, we DEVELOP A UNIQUE INFORMATION GATHERING STRATEGY that may include: electronic surveys, interviews, and/or focus groups; analysis of that data; and, a comprehensive but concise report.

Facilitate your Process

We will FACILITATE your process in ways that create a positive, respectful, interactive, results-oriented milieu for people of diverse professional backgrounds, styles, and experience. We provide full, on-site computer capability for immediate recording and distributing of discussion notes and decisions throughout the session.

Provide Implementation Support

Research on planning organizational change has identified critical factors that determine implementation success or failure. We PROVIDE IMPLEMENTATION SUPPORT to help you succeed - a post-session Communications Strategy and a Check-in System for sustaining the change process through continuous improvement.

Details regarding our approach are found in our latest publication.

2.TRAINING WORKSHOPS

Marian Pitters offers a range of proven, lively learning opportunities that will enhance employees' skills. All of these workshops are customized to your unique needs and interests.

Facilitation Skills

More organizations are identifying facilitation skills as a core competency for their managers. This workshop focuses on the skills you need to increase your confidence and competence when working with groups. Objectives include:

• Maximize participant involvement and group productivity
• Manage difficult people and situations
• Support effective decision making
• Select or develop questions to support both planned and spontaneous facilitation challenges
• Set learning goals for professional development as a facilitator

Doing More with Less: Critical Tools to Drive Core Business Outcomes

In demanding situations high-performing organizations expect managers to reorganize work so that they can do more with less. More than ever, managers need critical skills in achieving specific outcomes through group processes such as team meetings, community forums and partner consultations. Success requires sensitive and thoughtful attention to designing, facilitating and managing group processes – both virtual and face-to-face.

This session highlights three critical tools that senior executives and managers can use to lead and facilitate successful sessions that drive core business outcomes:

• Ensure sessions are designed to support group productivity: The Process Terms of Reference
• Scope out a meeting process, anticipating every management challenge and opportunity: The Management Prompter
• Enable action when groups get bogged down: The What/So What/Now What Questioning Framework

Where this session has been offered:

August, 2009
American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) seminar, Taipei, Taiwan.

Managing Facilitated Processes: A to Z

Great facilitated processes require thoughtful management that is blended with the event’s design and facilitation before, during and after a session.

In this not-to-miss workshop participants will:

• Learn about 18 different types of facilitated processes and related deliverables
• Review three types of agreements that support and sustain diverse relationships, from initial contact to final contract
• Apply an approach for managing facilitated processes that is integrated, customized, and systematic
• Use an efficient “forget-me-not” prompter for identifying pre-, in-, and post-session management functions related to a case
• Acquire skills in managing five key elements: participants, speakers, logistics, documents and feedback.

Where this session has been offered:

September, 2009
International Association of Facilitators Latin America and Caribbean Conference, St. James, Barbados.

August, 2009
International Association of Facilitators Asia (FACA) Conference, Taipei, Taiwan.

April, 2009
International Association of Facilitators North America (IAFNA) Conference, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Tools to Build Accountability for Outcomes

What happens after a facilitated session extends agreements and expectations developed in the session.

In this workshop participants will:

• Appreciate the challenges and opportunities related to accountability for outcomes of facilitated sessions
• Learn a four phase systematic approach to building post-session accountability
• Apply 10 user-friendly post-workshop tools that optimize the transfer of outcomes into a workplace or community over the short and long term
• Practice customizing tools and templates to address a real-life participant case
• Receive a copy of a complete toolkit developed by the presenter

Where this session has been offered:

September, 2009
International Association of Facilitators Latin America and Caribbean Conference, St. James, Barbados.

August, 2009
International Association of Facilitators Asia (FACA) Conference, Taipei, Taiwan.

April, 2009
Tools to Build Accountability for Outcomes. International Association of Facilitators North America (IAFNA) Conference, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

March, 2008
Tools to Build Accountability for Outcomes. International Association of Facilitators North America (IAFNA) Conference, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

October, 2007
Tools to Build Accountability for Outcomes. International Association of Facilitators Europe (IAF) Conference, Edinburgh, Scotland.

March, 2007
Tools to Build Accountability for Outcomes. International Association of Facilitators North America (IAFNA) Conference, Portland Oregon.

Key Skills for Consultants

Trying to enable group participation and productivity in your own or others’ organizations?

In this session you will:

• Learn about the key components of effective consultation, when working as an individual, in a team, internally or externally
• Understand the types of consulting roles: expert, resource process
• Apply the phases of a consulting process to a case: entry, data collection and analysis, planning, implementation, moving on

Keynote Speaker for your Conference

Contact Marian about a lively and informed presentation, e.g.,  

1. Facilitation: Put Some Magic in Your Method
2. Planning Your Facilitation Business: A Complete Crash Course
3. On the Offence: Rebounding from Letdowns in Facilitated Sessions
4. New Tools for New Thinking in Uncertain Times
5. Mentoring Matters for Success
6. Making Your Workplace your Well Place
7. Best Practices in Leading Up
8. When the Public Gets Angry, Step Up to Outstanding Service
9. The Little Engine that Could: Celebrating Accomplishments

Where this session has been offered:

June, 2007
Take Care of Yourself. Ontario Colleges of Social Workers and Social Service Workers (OCSWSSW) Annual Meeting & Education Day

March,2008
Planning Your Facilitation Business: A Complete Crash Course. International Association of Facilitators North America (IAFNA) Conference, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

October, 2007
Facilitators on the Offence: Rebounding from Failure in Facilitated Sessions. International Association of Facilitators Europe (IAF) Conference, Edinburgh, Scotland.

UPCOMING EVENTS featuring MARIAN PITTERS

Check back soon for the next event!

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