Impressions and testimonials from the BusinessMind Summer Academy 2018: From colour card allergies, grilled fish skewers to false World Cafés
Beginning of July two of my favourite events took place yet again: the moderation Seminars in my BusinessMind Summer Academy!
This time we spent both 2-day events at wonderful Liv’s in the „Ideenräumen“ in Vienna 1060 and learned many things there, laughed together, moderated to our hearts’ content and – on the side – ate our way through stacks of Liv’s homemade cakes.
The first event, “Moderation Training” took place on Thursday and Friday (5/6 July) immediately followed by the second, “Moderating Large Groups“ (by the way, „large group“ means 16 participants and more!) on Monday and Tuesday (9/10 July). A total of 29 keen learners and motivated participants.
As an extra special treat, in the evenings after the 1st seminar day respectively, there was yoga with Stela for those who still had enough energy.
Oh, and for the first time we tried out the blink.it learning and transfer platform. The feedback was more than positive, for example this one from Brigitte. We will be using it more in future: „The online platform Blink.it helped me tune into the seminar ahead of time. That’s why I was able to go there with clear expectations and achieve exactly what I wanted to.“
Methods, methods, methods
I always bring my „classics“ to these two moderation workshops, the ones that, in my opinion, are essential to moderating while making your life a whole lot easier. These include card queries with topic list, headstand, dreams & nightmares, mind mapping, brain walking, the RIGHT World Café, (Note: you wouldn’t believe what all is being called “World Café” these days. The name has come to stand for every “run of the mill” working group) fish bowl and sociometry/constellations. I have already presented these methods in my blog.
But ATTENTION! Some of these methods are only suitable for large groups (as described in the respective articles.)
Along with that, there are always a lot of new things – like speed dating, fast networking, the 4F method, diversity bingo and much more. Here are some photos to give you an idea:
Impressions from the “Moderation Training” on 5/6 July 2018
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Group and Rank Dynamics | Instructions for moderation design |
Impressions from the “Moderating Large Groups” workshop on 9/10 July 2018
 |
 |
 |
 |
Learnings from the seminars
What you learn in these Moderation seminars can be applied in many areas, for example to structure time-robbing meetings more efficiently (above all to define the right goals) or to remind yourself again and again of a useful mindset! You also learn about the important difference between a trainer and a moderator! You can read about some of this in my book.
Would you like to learn more about the seminars? Then read what some of the participants have to say, here:
Thomas Krahofer, DOKA |
„The „Moderation“ Seminars have entirely met my expectations.
The content and methods for moderating were presented to me with ease, vigour and sensibility. “Easily digestible,” so to speak. I learned how I can ideally prepare, implement and follow up my own moderation events in future. It’s not only about the method; a main outcome for me was how to approach moderation and the participants with the „inner attitude“. This is probably the key to success. Thank you for the emphatic days with lots of hands-on, learning by doing. Now I really “feel” like moderating!“ Participation in both seminars |
| „It was absolutely fabulous! We were immediately thrown in at the deep end, learned and learned to love the many different methods by applying them directly and putting them straight into our own practice. This means engagement and learning at several levels at the same time, and it works, with a lot of fun besides.
Stimulating atmosphere, beautiful location, good handouts, the trainer was excellently prepared and structured, while being extremely positive and motivating. I’m very impressed how much knowledge and experience can be taught in such a short time. And not least, learning a lot from and with each other. The two days were inspiring and intensive and I’m looking forward to trying out everything we learned.“ Participation in „Moderating Large Groups“ |
Ursula Holtgrewe, ZSI |
|
Vera Pachtrog, Lower Austrian Chamber of Agriculture |
„I had the pleasure of attending the BusinessMind Summer Academy „Moderating Large Groups“ seminar. If training can be described as “practical,” then this is it!
Birgit Baumann knows how to structure the two days in an entertaining manner despite an extremely dense programme, how to fill them with the joy of learning and to present the content clearly and to the point. I can only say that you can expect an exciting and intensive time led by an excellent trainer! I have definitely achieved my goal, because I go home equipped with well-elaborated methods and full of enthusiasm for my upcoming workshops. Thanks Birgit Baumann for these lively and professionally delivered two days! „ Participation in the „Moderating Large Groups“ workshop |
| „I travelled all the way from Frankfurt to Vienna to make myself fit to moderate large groups. My expectations were high. I wanted to learn many methods and how to apply them with confidence.
Birgit Baumann made this seminar so exciting and practice-oriented that I didn’t want to miss one second. I found her to be a true expert in leading large groups. What I particularly liked was that we applied the methods ourselves soon after the introduction. This practical approach highly motivated me and I already had the first ideas in the seminar as to how I could implement what I learned in my work. Again and again, Birgit Baumann shared pearls of wisdom with us, e.g. “trust the group.“ It was exactly this wisdom that got me thinking about how it relates to me. With a colourful bouquet of methods for large groups in my hand, and very inspired, I travelled home again. re Blink.it: The online platform Blink.it helped me get into the mood for the seminar in advance. Therefore I was able to go there with clear expectations and achieve exactly what I wanted. A hearty thank-you to the wonderful trainer Birgit Baumann.“ Participation in the „Moderating Large Groups“ workshop |
Brigitte Hettenkofer, Neuro Resilienz Brigitte once also wrote a blog article on „resilience“ for us, here! |
Stela Jacobs, Präfacto |
„In each and every one of us there is a lot of hidden power, wisdom and creativity. Bringing these to light and at the same time teach the participants unbelievably great, interactive and complementary methods, and allowing them to shape and practice them playfully and joyfully from the first moment, is a gift, for which you need the best trainer.
And this is what Birgit Baumann is: emphatic, with a vast store of experience, a lot of contagious positivity, dynamics and energy and a bottomless toolbox full of highly efficient methods and tips for excellent moderation for both small and large groups. After this training course you will easily and joyfully master every moderation scenario.“ Participation in the “Moderating Large Groups” workshop |
| „In the Summer Academy’s „Moderating Large Groups,“ Birgit created a Seminar in her humorous way and with a view to the needs of the participants that left plenty of room for own creativity and going down new paths, and trying out the various moderation techniques as a moderator yourself. With good intuition and confidence in the group, she drew on the treasure of experience in all the participants so that we were able to optimally learn and profit from each other.
After the seminar we were all equipped to work directly with our own large groups in the future, and to consolidate the learnings with a view to the future. This is why attending the seminar paid off hundred percent for me. It speaks for itself that, after two days of intensive and enjoyable work, we were immediately able to infuse the new knowledge with more life in future events, to hopefully make them fully blossom and to achieve top-notch results. Thank you Birgit and the whole group for these two great training days.“ Participation in the „Moderating Large Groups“ seminar |
Jan-Ove Wiesner |
Sincere thanks for this feedback, which absolutely thrills me!
I myself am also always delighted by these two seminars. It shows me every time why I love this job so much. I can watch my participants master their tasks, grow with them, and blossom into countless great moderators!
That’s also why I always say „Trust your group!“ – Because every group holds unbelievable potential that you, the moderator, should tap into!!
Have lots of fun..
Yours, Birgit
PS: There are already dates for the 2019 Summer Academy: Workshop Moderation on 4/5 July and Moderating Large Groups on 8/9 July. Save the dates in your calendar immediately 🙂
Leave A Comment