Award Sounds Music, Photography and Consultancy

Being freelance I get asked a lot of questions about "how to become an x". The job I'm asked about is usually just one role I'm fulfilling when I'm asked. It can range from facilitator, business analyst, process analyst, process architect, test manager, etc. For all of them, my answer is the same: learn from working with the best, reflect on your experiences and read to build up your knowledge.

Try to estimate the level of experience of the person (or persons) that you're learning from. If they've worked in one environment for a long time, there's a good chance that their skills aren't up-to-scratch. We all improve from different experiences and the more environments we encounter, the broader those experiences. Also, if they've only been in the job for a couple of years, they can't be at the top of their field; it takes longer to get there than that. They can be on the way up and still have enough to help move you forwards, but think where to go to after that.

Facilitation references:

I can't recommend highly enough Practical Facilitation: A Toolkit of Techniques and Understanding Facilitation: Theory and Principle by Christine Hogan. They're brilliant books covering the cross-domain history of facilitation and its emergence into its own domain. From there the author takes you through the Dos and Don'ts of facilitation with plenty of advice based on actual experience. No matter how much experience you've got, it's worth reading these books, even just for a refresher in what you already know. For anyone involved in ICT/IT implementations, pay particular attention to the parts on facipulation.

I'll add further references as I find them. I'll have to dig out some of my old books.