Facilitation

Joe Randel never planned to become a facilitator—he was already doing the work, he just didn’t have the word for it. In this alumni story, Joe traces a winding career across arts, education, philanthropy, and music (especially jazz improvisation) to show how listening, shaping space, and helping people think together became his throughline. Discover how Voltage Control’s Facilitation Certification gave him language, frameworks, and tools to design more intentional sessions, trust the “groan zone,” and step into facilitation as a craft and professional identity.

From middle-school tower challenges to large-scale light installations and systems-change workshops, Voltage Control alum Chris Lunney shares how facilitation became the bridge between art, strategy, and collective action. He traces his path through product design, experiential art, and innovation consulting to founding Togethering, a facilitation practice that helps teams sense, decide, and act together. Discover how Voltage Control’s Facilitation Certification and Master Certification helped him turn lifelong curiosity into a grounded craft for guiding groups through ambiguity, conflict, and change.

Tech leader Brian Buck shares how he shifted from being “the smartest person in the room” to designing rooms that are smart together. In this Voltage Control Facilitation Certification alumni story, he explains how bridging tech and business, embracing professional facilitation, and learning to trust the room helped him lead enterprise-level transformation, build psychological safety, and amplify others—especially in an AI-enabled world.

Nonprofit strategy consultant Robin Neidorf shares how the chaos of early Zoom meetings pushed her to fully embrace facilitation as her craft and calling. Discover how finding Liberating Structures, attending Voltage Control’s Facilitation Lab, and completing both the Facilitation Certification and Master Certification programs transformed her practice—from 80% presenter to 80% participant engagement. Robin now designs purpose-driven, human-centered meetings that help nonprofits, foundations, and communities tackle intractable problems, build genuine connection, and unlock their collective wisdom.

From stage lights to safe spaces, facilitator and storyteller Rabilyn Abalo shares how growing up in a tight-knit Filipino community, working at Philz Coffee, and navigating ambiguity at Strava shaped her facilitation superpower. In this personal reflection, she traces her journey from shy emcee to confident leader, and how Voltage Control’s Facilitation Certification, diversity scholarship, and tools like 1-2-4-All and portfolio projects helped her build psychological safety, inclusion, and shared ownership. Discover how embracing beginner’s mind, cultural roots, and community-centered leadership can transform meetings, empower teams, and turn everyday moments into spaces of belonging.

Noelle Pourrat’s journey from international affairs and conflict resolution to collaborative leadership through facilitation. Raised in a multicultural community and trained at Sciences Po & Columbia, Noelle honed bridge-building at Carnegie Corporation before discovering facilitation’s power. A 2020 misstep sparked a focus on presence over tools; Voltage Control’s certification, Practice Playgrounds, and community unlocked breakthroughs like the Diamond of Participation. She’s since led high-impact retreats, rolled out Crucial Conversations, and launched Facilitation Lab NYC—applying facilitation to strengthen teams, civic dialogue, and culture.