Corporate Graphic Storytelling Helps Your Visual Thinkers Learn and Retain Meeting and Event Objectives
How motivated are you to review and act on the outcomes of a 3 day offsite when you get a document with bullet points taken from flip charts as the final meeting report? Does that word document reflect your groups ideas, agreements and commitments? How do you take those juicy conversations back to your team and relay the next steps when all you have to lean on is what you kind-of remember and the bullet points?
Here’s an important fact:
85% of the people in your meetings are visual learners.
That that number will continue to climb. we are in fact experiencing an active VISUAL REVOLUTION (Daniel Pink is a good resource for more information).
If you are tasked with making meaningful decisions fast and you have less time to reflect, then you need a new solution.
Given the emerging landscape- it is especially important to leverage the idea of visual thinking as a way to GET EVERYONE ON THE SAME PAGE! Graphic Facilitation is a visual thinking process that helps to create understanding because we can begin to see patterns and combine ideas in new ways that allow us to see things more clearly, innovate and problem solve together. Often when we can SEE a pattern we can understand the solution to a problem.
Creative Meeting Facilitation with Graphic Recorders
Imagine your meetings and conferences coming to life before your eyes- we’re talking REAL TIME! Imagine thoughts and ideas are captured in living color on the walls around the room as the conversations emerge- we’re not talking flip charts! Imagine words that combine with images to capture key conversations, decisions, concepts and new ideas. A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS and if this is true, then a simple elegant image has ROI written all over it especially if you can “unpack” the experience and TELL THE STORY all the way through your organization or stakeholders.
We take your ideas out of the realm of conversation and transfer them into creative, visual images.
The intent is to capture the essence of the discussion and the specific points, statements, and agreements in a graphic format. The graphic recorder uses felt markers and large sheets of butcher paper, sometimes in combination with pre-made templates. The output of each process is large, illustrated maps that you can use to unpack the conversation at a later time. This visual method is a powerful tool that assists learning and communication between groups and individuals.
Meeting Design – Our role begins at the beginning of the meeting planning process. We have spent 12 years co-designing Organizational Development processes for Fortune 500 companies. We consult and ideate around how we can best apply Graphic Facilitation to the meeting design and facilitation. We are focused on the outcome and success of your meeting!
Live Learning Maps – A map is an 8ft x 4ft piece of paper. These maps are captured in real time during a meeting. Each individual’s thoughts and input are recorded and made available to the whole group. A typical output is one map per two hours of conversation/process.
Studio Maps – Studio maps are created pre- or post-meeting. They can include an overall visual summary or can be used as a holder of information.
Pre-Charting – Pre-charts are done before the meeting. They hold information that will be referenced throughout the meeting, things like models, outcomes, research, or interview data
Post-Charting – These maps represent an overall visual summary that provides a high-level overview of the information and agreements from the meeting. We have done roadmaps, vis
ion and engagement stories
Story-telling Maps- Story-telling maps are a good way to communicate to employees, organizations or stakeholders where the company has been, what they were doing, and where they are going. This type of map evolves over time in conversations in the studio and boardroom, between the graphic facilitator and the people responsible for telling the story. Our team goes back to the studio and creates the final maps that can be presented to your group. This is a personal, powerful, and effective way to communicate to your audience.
Custom Templates – We design custom templates specific to your needs to support a specific group process. The templates can be used by the graphic recorder or can empower you to facilitate your own meetings.
Meeting Documentation
The beauty of working graphically is that processes of the meeting are captured step by step as the visuals are created.
Maps/Charts – after the meeting, each map is digitally scanned. We return the original maps as well as a CD with the image burned in three formats — email-able, printable (11×17), and full size. The client also receives a few small-format color copies for easy reference. The maps are easily shared via email, Web, and hard copy presentation. (This cost is not included in the consulting fees).
Meeting Reports – a comprehensive representation of the meeting, including the maps, photos, and written annotation and video. These reports serve as memory devices and agreement holders for those who were present at the meeting. They also act as an excellent summary and communication tool that can be used to share the meeting and its outcomes with those not in attendance. Reports can be created in hard copy, bound, or digital formats.
Post-Meeting Consultation
After the meeting, we provide you with the tools to unpack the meeting and maps so that you can communicate vital messages and ideas to management, leadership, and new hires alike.
Our Experience…. These are just a few.
Re-Orgs: We have started at the beginning of LARGE and I do mean LARGE reorganization projects where the maps were used to get the top 12 executive team rallied around the big issues in the organization.
Leadership: We have worked with leaders who are creating a platform, rolling out a vision or developing skills.
State Wide/Regional Meetings: We have worked with large groups to help them SEE new information that they are expected to plans and programming around.
New Product and Start ups: We have worked with organizations small to large to help develop a new brands, new ideas, and a clear understanding of strengths and they are really good at. .
Teams: We have worked for years helping teams with Vision, Mission Values work. We have worked on strategy, engagement, mediation, ideation and planning. You name it, if a team needs to do it, we have mapped it.
Sustainability: We have worked on Charette projects where community input is critical. We have also worked on projects where SEEING the system is important in the decision making process.
Conferences: We have worked on conferences where the need to capture the ideas of many sessions gave the participants a way to bring their learning back home.
Strategy and Scenarios: We have helped many a team create their roadmap, see where they are going and clearly define what they need to do to get there.
