A reflection on #thefutureofgraphicfacilitation conversation series

Being that the last 18 months has been a brutal confirmation that we ARE living in a VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguity) world, it got Peter Durand and me curious about what changes are happening for the #visualpractitioner. We've all endured the collective trauma at the beginning of the pandemic with a total bottoming out of our field. Next came a surge of upskilling and learning new ways to adapt to the virtual environment and a furious pace of knowledge sharing. We find ourselves "returning" to work as society "reopens" or adjusts to living with complete uncertainty: variants, outbreaks, testing, climate change events, hybrid events, and so much more. And then there are those that don't want to focus on digital, or have found very analogue ways of working digitally. Others have blossomed into the next phase of where facilitation may have to go, hybrid. (Have you seen Dancing with Markers® new book on Hybrid? Or Lizard Brain's book on virtual meetings?)

So we thought, wouldn't it be cool if The Value Web and IFVP - International Forum of Visual Practitioners hosted a series of conversations around #thefutureofgraphicfacilitation by inviting the field in for conversation? Featuring #graphicfaciitators from all over the world, with expertise in specific fields, from new to experienced to share their perspectives? In the process, we will emerge ways of working, frameworks, and best practices but most importantly, community.

One of the biggest themes that has come out in just two discussions is the importance of centering and deepening relationships, both personal and professional, to anchor oneself in community. There is an integration of work/life values that are being nurtures and fed in community. The other theme hard to ignore is many of us are shifting to a more of a coaching/consultative approach in helping clients adjust to the new reality of virtual and hybrid. Then there are those who have chosen not to go digital. We coined a term, "digital listening" among many other terms for the new world we are navigating.

Many other wonderful themes came through, such as the alignment or realignment of values and integration of those values throughout our practice, business, and eco-systems. The next conversation will start there and go... where? Stay tuned for more information on the next round of discussions.

Thanks to Heather Willems, Neha Govil, Renatta Algalarrondo P Algalarrondo A, Philip Bakelaar, and Emily Jane Steinberg for the second conversation. Thanks to our panelists from the first discussion, Alfredo Carlo, Christoph J Kellner, Santosh Nair, Guillaume Lagane, Elena Urizar and Claudia Lopez.

Interested in joining this discussion? Send me or Peter a PM.

#graphicfacilitation #graphicrecording #graphicrecorder #facilitation #weareIFVP #IFVP #thevalueweb