“I have been through numerous strategic planning sessions at the College of Opticians of Ontario and this I can honestly say has by far surpassed them all. The facilitator’s style was a breath of fresh air. She kept our group engaged and on task by utilizing a variety of fun and interesting exercises. The ground rules set the tone for our sessions by helping us to agree upon shared principles that would guide our discussion and interaction. The vision boards helped us to formulate our thoughts and ideas conceptually and then categorize them into higher priorities, goals and action steps.
The facilitator challenged our group, without judgement, by actively listening to us and by asking probing questions which brought to surface our preconceived notions and assumptions which were then tested. Overall, she encouraged us to see the bigger picture, embrace change and become fully engaged in the process.”
– Manager, Registration Services, College of Opticians of Ontario
“Where the facilitator stood out the most was her ability to ‘herd the cats’. She was often called upon by Project Sponsors and Business Leaders to bring groups with diverse objectives to a common consensus, all the while maintaining constant neutrality throughout the sessions.”
– Eric A, former VP, TD Bank
“The facilitator always prepares by working with the business or product owner to understand the objective of the session, any potential issues and asks the right questions to ensure that the right people are invited and involved. She ensures the session is planned to cover all the points.”
– Maria M, Senior Manager, TD Bank
“The course had great content and I enjoyed the variety of activities and balance between group/class work.”
“Appreciated the knowledge and background that the instructor brought to the course.”
“The course was at a good pace. I enjoyed how each group activity built upon the previous one.”
“The instructor was engaging and made us feel like we already knew the material.”
“The course is going to help me organize projects, prioritize tasks and set deadlines.”
“The instructor presented well, responded to questions, got the class involved. The class flowed nicely and it was a great day!”
– Students from Project Management for Non-Project Managers workshop at College of Midwives of Ontario
“The instructor was very engaging and knowledgeable”
“Great job in facilitating and getting through so much detail”
“Instructor was excellent – patient kind, knowledgeable and personable”
“Instructor was very professional and obviously knowledgeable”
“I liked the interactive nature of the training. I liked Rita’s facilitation style and her use of humour.”
– Students from Project Management for Non-Project Managers workshop
“We asked Live Wire Consulting to come in and assist us with developing an administrative strategic plan. Rita took us through the entire planning process from beginning to end. We knew what we wanted to achieve as an end result, but Rita was able to take our ideas and express them clearly into our plan. People in groups tend to veer off of track and Rita had a great way of keeping everyone focused and on task. There were quite a few times where people needed to be reminded of what our goal was at that point in time (if we were brainstorming about issues instead of trying to find a solution to the problem, for example). Rita definitely had command of the room, while still being very friendly and always approachable. Rita was great at actively listening. She always had one ear on what the group was discussing, while organizing and summarizing our thoughts on to paper or on her laptop. The general environment of the session, with Rita facilitating, was really positive. I would absolutely recommend Rita as a professional facilitator; she helped us to achieve our objective much more successfully than we had planned.”
– Manager, Discipline and Executive Office, College of Opticians of Ontario