ISSUES AND CONCERNS ABOUT COMPUTER-SUPPORTED MEETINGS - THE FACILITATORS PERSPECTIVE

In an effort to boost meeting productivity and success, managers may e mploy trained group facilitators. They may also implement group suppor t systems (GSS) for the same reason. The two approaches can be taken s eparately or together. In this study, in-depth interviews with 37 prac ticing facilitators provided their perspectives on critical factors th at influence meeting success and potential benefits and concerns with the use of GSS. Respondents focused on a core of communication and gro up process skills as critical for facilitator success. Overall, the re spondents observed or anticipated more efficient and effective task pe rformance as benefits of GSS technology. Their concerns focused on tec hnology-related issues: participant anxiety, systems inflexibility, an d systems reliability Views of facilitators with high and low levels o f GSS experience are largely consistent. High-experience GSS facilitat ors viewed technical issues as more central to meeting success, while low-experience GSS facilitators focused more heavily on attributes of the group. The paper concludes by offering suggestions for identifying and training GSS facilitators and comments on key issues of importanc e to GSS designers, based on the facilitator's perspective.