The Tamarack Institute is a registered Canadian charity dedicated to ending poverty in all its forms, for good. We support real people and invest in real communities for long-term change.
Facilitating Meetings that Center Relationships and Results
Tool #3 - Effective Questions
In the fall and summer of 2023, a group of Tamarack team members and network members wrote a guide to hold spaces where people can connect and find things to work on together, even when they think they’re really different from each other.
The guide is structured as seven invitations – seven practices we can deploy as we design and facilitate meetings that center relationships and results. This tool is tied to invitation #6 – Give Context, Ask Effective Questions, and Listen for Responses. It is also tied to invitation #3 – Check In and Check Out.
The Effective Questions Tool is designed to enhance meetings and group sessions by fostering deeper understanding, connection, and meaningful progress. By using well-crafted questions, facilitators can help participants uncover their own knowledge, expand their thinking, and clarify shared priorities. Effective questions are concise yet powerful, serving to surface assumptions, bring diverse perspectives to light, and create empathy.
Key dimensions of effective questioning include construction (e.g., open-ended formats like “What if...?” or “How might we...?”), scope (clarifying boundaries and possibilities), and assumptions (recognizing prior knowledge and seeking further insights). This tool supports groups in making meaningful connections and advancing towards common goals.
