Tools for Integrating an Equity Lens

Tools for Integrating an Equity Lens

Interviewing a Facilitator for an inclusive process

One of the major choice points in a facilitated process is the selection of the facilitator. Even though facilitators are not leaders or decision-makers, the choices they make often drive who has a voice in the process, the types of discussions that happen, whether problematic issues are surfaced and resolved, and ultimately the quality of the decisions being made.

This tool includes questions you can use as you interview potential facilitators to identify whether they are likely to help with or hinder inclusivity in the process. Behavioral interviewing is a form of interviewing premised on the idea that past performance is the best predictor of future performance. It tends to be more probing and, thus, objective than traditional interviewing techniques. The following is a set of behavioral interviewing questions you may want to ask when selecting a facilitator.

1. Please describe an example of facilitating a process that had a mix of professionals and either consumers, constituents, or members of the public, particularly from nontraditional or marginalized groups. What are some of the things you did to make the process successful?

(Look for examples of onboarding the nontraditional participants, mentoring, managing the use of jargon/acronyms in meetings, the numbers of nontraditional voices involved, support between meetings for these individuals, and facilitation processes used to draw all participants into the conversation.)

1. Please describe a specific example of when you helped a diverse group with varying levels of experience and technical expertise use new information to inform their decision-making process. How did you help them introduce, process, and apply the information?

(Look for techniques for helping groups process new information, discuss the information in accessible ways, agree on its validity/value, and consider the implications for specific decisions.)

1. Please describe the steps that are important to you in a decision-making process? What is critical for participants to go through together? How would you work to move the group towards decisions that positively influence equity?

(Look for examples of setting group norms, selecting decision-making rules, practices for brainstorming or bringing options to the table, practices for vetting options, practices for making the decision, and ways of building commitment to the decision.)

1. Please describe two examples of your actions when facilitating a decision-making process whose participants had conflicting needs or expectations. Give one example of when the conflict was resolved quickly and another when it was persistent.

(Look for the facilitator to have specific techniques or facilitation processes to resolve in the moment conflict and to manage high conflict groups ongoing.)

Are you interested in more tips and tools for taking an equity lens?

Spark Policy Institute’s ( interactive Tools for Integrating an Equity Lens is available at Please share your stories about integrating equity into your planning process, share your tools, and access tools and ideas from other organizations.