Facilitation Lab HQ: Atypical Thinkers in the Workplace – Effective Communication With Neurodiverse People

Featuring: Brian Monroe (CryptoKnightUS on TikTok)

They are the ones that seem “off” to you. They may be the quiet ones, or the ones who never let you get a word in edgewise. They may be blunt and harsh-speaking, or highly sensitive and easily hurt. They are often (but not always) perceived as the genius in the room, and dealing with them can be difficult. We will dive in to the “neurodivergents” in our lives, and discuss perspectives and techniques for leveraging their “super powers” while maintaining a sense of harmony on the team based on a foundation of understanding and awareness.

If all of that above seems like something you haven’t run across, yet, then “Welcome! You are one of us!”

___

Facilitation Lab Meetup is a virtual meetup focused on helping facilitators & leaders hone their facilitation craft to help improve the quality of team collaboration and innovation.

We present and share many different methodologies, including Liberating Structures, Game Storming, Thinking Wrong, MG Taylor, Improv, and much more.

At each meeting, we switch venues and rotate topics between highlighting practitioners sharing tips and tricks, open facilitation practice where you go hands-on with tools and deep-dive skill-building workshops.

Facilitation Lab is a community of Facilitators organized by Voltage Control. In addition to meetups, Facilitation Lab provides many resources and learning experiences for facilitators and people seeking facilitation skills. In addition to Facilitation Lab HQ hosted by Voltage Control, there are events around the globe hosted by Facilitation Lab global chapter leads. Current chapters include HQ, Austin, Seattle, and Oslo.

Date

November 16, 2023

Time

1pm - 3pm CT​

Location

Live Online

This event is happening again!

You should join us on May 2

Get Tickets

Interested in a private cohort for your team?

What to expect

What to Expect

We offer opportunities for facilitators to gather in a safe judgement-free zone to learn from experts and one another. Our community offers many levels of engagement and exclusive resources for facilitators, whether you are a beginner or a Master Facilitator. Our weekly Facilitation Lab makes up 5 key segments: impromptu networking, our guest facilitator session activity, community critique, a weekly giveaway, & After Hours. Come & network with facilitators from around the globe and expand your facilitator toolbelt from each Lab experience!

What You'll Learn

In the Facilitation Lab, you will learn to elevate your skills in facilitation and collaborative leadership. This global community offers a vibrant and dynamic environment where both new and experienced facilitators can grow and develop their craft. You will have the opportunity to explore and learn a variety of practices and techniques that are essential for effective facilitation, ranging from fundamental concepts for beginners to advanced strategies for seasoned practitioners.

How You'll Learn

The learning experience in the Facilitation Lab is designed to be interactive and community-driven. You will learn through weekly virtual meetups that provide a supportive space for facilitators and collaborative leaders to connect and practice their skills. These meetups act as a playground, where you can engage with peers, receive prompts, and participate in hands-on activities.

Agenda

Impromptu Networking

Engage with everyone in the community during a quick round of introductions to network and begin our time together

Guest Facilitator Session

Experience the lead facilitator's activity & method to engage together as a community.

Rose, Thorn, Bud Critique

Share your feedback as a community and offer expressions of tangible takeaways to our lead facilitator.

After Hours

Stay awhile & chat post-session about your experience in the Lab.

Who Should Attend

Team Managers & Leads

who want to learn more & benefit from the power of facilitation practice

UX Designers

who want to expand their facilitation skillset while gaining inspiration of new approaches

Experienced & New Facilitators

who want to level up their facilitation skills and enhance their facilitation tool belt

Teachers

who want to gain feedback & uncover new resources with forward-thinking activities

Key Takeaways

Discover what withholds are getting in the way of your life, career, and intimacy

Learn how to transform a Raw Withhold into a Skilled Withhold

Get a peek into the most advanced conscious communication skills training available

Practice a facilitation skill to have a room of crickets speak up

This event has ended

Interested in hearing when this workshop will occur next?

Chris Federer

Chris has helped design and facilitate Unconferences, Design Sprints, Team Alignment, Kickoffs, Business Strategy, and Collaboration Training for companies such as Dell, Alliant Insurance, Snap, and FAI just to name a few. His previous roles include Design Sprint Facilitator, Community Builder, UX Designer, Program Director, and Event Director.

Brian Monroe

Brian Monroe has been a technology professional for around 40 years (yes, I was getting paid for it in middle school) and has always had a specific focus on cyber security. From school-aged shenanigans to his current overly-wordy role as the “Enterprise Digital Security Architect, Digital Security Risk Officer and Manager of Network and Cloud Infrastructure” for the U.S. division of one of the largest energy companies in the world, Brian’s path to InfoSec and leadership came up through the system and networking side of technology.

Brian has served as the Manager of Security Engineering for Level 3 Communications, the Chief Information Security Officer for Denver International Airport, the Head of (Cyber) Security for a large advertising technology company, and the Head of Security for a division of software giant Oracle.

While it is generally accepted that neurodivergents make up roughly 15% of the US population, Brian maintains that, in his experience, highly technical jobs will often see between 80% and 100% of employees having some mixture of autism spectrum, ADHD, anxiety, OCD, depression, Tourette’s Syndrome or other forms of neurodivergence.
What People Are Saying

“I will be more intentional about anchoring around purpose before any event I host thanks to my experience in the Facilitation Lab. I loved the realization behind letting participants know we will be more effective if we are fully present."

Anonymous

Facilitation Lab Attendee

"I always enjoy the opportunity to network with other facilitators in the Facilitation Lab. I've gained so much knowledge from other attendees' insights & experiences each and every week in our community."

Anonymous

Facilitation Lab Attendee

Apply for a Diversity Scholarship

A key part of our mission is to support diverse facilitators from different methodologies, backgrounds, races, genders, sexual orientations, cultures, and ages. If you are a part of, or serve, a traditionally underrepresented group and feel that this scholarship would allow you to amplify this mission, please apply now.

Photo Disclaimer

Please note that photographs, video & audio recordings will be taken throughout this event. These will be used by Voltage Control for marketing and publicity in our publications, on our website and in social media, or in any third-party publication. Please contact us via email if you have any concerns or if you wish to be exempted from this activity.​

The Books

Bring Your Ideas to Life

Innovation can seem complex or reserved for the exceptional. But we believe innovation is for everyone. We’ve set out to illuminate a path for you to generate bold ideas, visualize and share them, overcome obstacles, and turn them into reality. Our books are equal parts guidebook and stories from years of experience helping companies adopt an innovation mindset and culture. They’re practical & actionable, so you can get started now. We hope they’ll help you on your journey to realizing your biggest, boldest ideas.

Learn More