Lessons Learned From Facilitating Task Forces

By Anna Peters

The idea of a task force is simple: put expert brains together around a table and give them a problem to solve. However, achieving success depends on skillfully navigating an unclear process clouded by messy human dynamics. We have learned many lessons from several task forces or working groups we’ve facilitated, and share them here.  

Once a task force comes to consensus around a set of recommendations or a strategic direction, it’s easy to point to operational milestones that led to success, such as forming subcommittees or drafting initial solutions. The hidden milestones, however, lay a critical foundation, specifically, building relationships and mutual trust. Of all the good practices we highlight here, it is worth stressing the investment in relationships.  

People are often in a hurry to get to the task at hand, yet we find that investing initial time getting to know each other pays dividends. You could technically finish the job without that investment, but you run the risk of task force members checking out or even opting out of signing off on the final product. As facilitators, we are eagles who spot the slightest ruffle on the ground. We see who trusts whom and how power is leveraged around the table. We lean into open communication and equitable air space to build understanding of each other.  

We have learned many other lessons from facilitating task forces:  

• Group members tire quickly of being asked about structure and process, but clarifying foundational elements is critical. They’ve been invited because of their content expertise. However, establishing integrity in the process is essential so we need their buy-in to the structure and process. We often develop maps of milestones and a breakdown of roles among the task force, our team, and the state, to provide clarity and get their feedback. A common question is, “How will we resolve disagreements among group members?” We tend to provide examples to build their confidence that they can speak their minds and trust the process will protect them. 

• Asking people to do homework before a meeting is too tall an order for most. The work primarily gets done during the meetings. We often help form subcommittees to narrow their tasks and engage them outside of full group meetings.  

• People notice when their insight isn’t represented. Taking thorough discussion notes and representing them with robust summaries or other materials will assure group members that their contributions are building something. We often hear compliments like, “nice work organizing all that mess into something useful.”  

• People’s engagement naturally wanes after the initial hype wears off. They often re-engage when we personally invite them to assist with a specific task. You won’t have 100% engagement throughout the entire project, but all task force members can be met where they’re at to ensure consensus at the end of the day.  

• Scheduling meetings is very time-consuming. We strive to set all meeting dates as soon as we sense people’s preferences for meeting cadence and virtual vs. in-person.  

The state managers or leads who are ultimately responsible for success face their own challenges. Often, task force members are skeptical of the state’s presence and are slow to trust them. An important part of our role is to coach those leaders on how they can show up in a way that builds trust. For example, it is important that the state is transparent about the level of “vetting” that will be done of the task force’s final product, say by a Commissioner. Another challenge can be finding the balance between controlling and trusting the process.  We strive to instill trust in our clients by taking responsibility for drafting a structure and process, and building a rapport with all task force members. We often conduct individual interviews with each group member at the beginning of the process, to get to know them more personally and understand their unique perspectives that they may not voice in a large group.  

On every task force we’ve facilitated, we hear the concern of developing or delivering something that will sit untouched on a shelf. People join task forces because they care deeply about solving a particular problem. We take that concern and passion seriously in our facilitation, to ensure their work is meaningful, feasible, and makes a difference.