Workshop Formats

Specialized collaborative methodologies designed to create actionable outcomes for infrastructure professionals

Modular Workshop Types

Our workshops are designed as modular components that can be tailored to specific infrastructure challenges, stakeholder groups, and desired outcomes. Rather than applying a one-size-fits-all approach, we select and customize workshop formats based on careful assessment of participant needs and event objectives.

Case Clinics

Structured problem-solving sessions where participants work through real infrastructure challenges presented by their peers. Following a defined protocol, groups analyze the case, identify root causes, and develop practical solutions drawing on collective expertise and experience.

Best for: Complex operational challenges, procurement dilemmas, and stakeholder management issues where diverse perspectives can illuminate new approaches.

Simulation Exercises

Immersive scenarios that replicate real-world infrastructure decisions, allowing participants to experience consequences in a compressed timeframe. These exercises build decision-making capacity while revealing system dynamics and interdependencies not visible in theoretical discussions.

Best for: Emergency response planning, long-term infrastructure investment decisions, and multi-stakeholder negotiation scenarios.

Policy Labs

Collaborative environments where participants analyze existing policies, identify gaps or unintended consequences, and prototype improvements. These workshops bridge theory and practice, producing recommendations that are both ambitious and implementable.

Best for: Procurement policy refinement, maintenance standard development, and regulatory framework improvements.

Implementation Planning

Structured sessions where participants translate high-level concepts into detailed action plans for their specific contexts. These workshops address practical barriers to implementation and develop strategies to overcome organizational, financial, and technical challenges.

Best for: Technology adoption, process improvement initiatives, and organizational change management in public works departments.

Each workshop format incorporates principles of adult learning, ensuring participants actively engage with content rather than passively receiving information. Our facilitators are trained to create psychologically safe environments where professionals can honestly discuss challenges, share failures, and collectively develop solutions.

Timing, Group Size, and Facilitation Methods

The effectiveness of infrastructure workshops depends not just on content, but on thoughtful design of timing, participant groupings, and facilitation approaches. We carefully calibrate these elements to maximize engagement and ensure meaningful outcomes.

Workshop Timing

Our research has identified optimal durations for different workshop types in the infrastructure context:

  • Sprint Workshops (90-120 minutes): Focused on a single, well-defined challenge with clear deliverables. Effective for technical problem-solving when participants come prepared with necessary background information.
  • Half-Day Workshops (3-4 hours): Allow for deeper exploration of complex issues, including time for context-setting, divergent thinking, and convergence on solutions. Ideal for most case clinics and policy development work.
  • Full-Day Workshops (6-7 hours): Provide space for comprehensive treatment of systemic challenges, including implementation planning. These extended sessions incorporate varied activities to maintain energy and engagement.
  • Multi-Day Workshops (series of connected sessions): Enable participants to gather data, test assumptions, and refine approaches between sessions. Particularly valuable for transformative initiatives requiring organizational change.

All workshops include carefully planned breaks that support networking and informal knowledge exchange, recognizing that some of the most valuable insights emerge in these unstructured moments.

Group Size and Composition

We strategically design participant groupings to balance expertise, perspective, and interaction quality:

  • Small Groups (4-6 participants): Create environments where everyone can actively contribute, ideal for deep technical discussions and case clinics. We ensure each group includes diverse perspectives relevant to the topic.
  • Medium Groups (10-15 participants): Provide sufficient diversity of viewpoints while maintaining meaningful dialogue. Effective for policy discussions where multiple stakeholder perspectives are essential.
  • Large Groups (20-30 participants): Appropriate for initial divergent thinking and final convergence phases, with participants breaking into smaller groups for detailed work in between.

Group composition is carefully curated to include appropriate mixes of:

  • Technical experts and generalists
  • Policy makers and implementers
  • Representatives from different infrastructure domains (transportation, water, energy, etc.)
  • Participants from municipalities of varying sizes and regions
  • Public sector officials and private sector partners

Facilitation Methods

Our facilitators employ a range of techniques tailored to infrastructure topics and professional audiences:

  • Structured Dialogue: Protocols that ensure equitable participation and focused discussion, preventing domination by the loudest voices or highest-ranking participants.
  • Visual Facilitation: Graphic recording and collaborative mapping techniques that make complex infrastructure systems and relationships visible, supporting systems thinking.
  • Decision Methods: Frameworks for transparent, criteria-based decision-making that acknowledge technical, financial, social, and environmental factors in infrastructure planning.
  • Digital Collaboration: Tools that enable real-time contribution, documentation, and prioritization, creating efficient workflows and comprehensive records.

All facilitators have backgrounds in infrastructure-related fields, ensuring they understand technical terminology, regulatory contexts, and practical constraints. This domain knowledge allows them to ask insightful questions, recognize important connections, and guide discussions toward implementable solutions.

Output Templates

Effective workshops produce not just insights, but structured outputs that support implementation long after the event concludes. We've developed specialized templates that capture workshop outcomes in formats optimized for infrastructure contexts, ensuring the work translates into real-world impact.

Action Trackers

Comprehensive implementation plans that document:

  • Specific actions with clear ownership and deadlines
  • Required resources and potential funding sources
  • Dependencies and sequencing requirements
  • Potential obstacles and mitigation strategies
  • Success metrics and measurement approaches

These trackers include built-in checkpoints and reporting mechanisms, creating accountability for post-workshop implementation.

Implementation Checklists

Practical guides that break complex initiatives into manageable steps, including:

  • Prerequisite conditions and foundational elements
  • Stakeholder engagement requirements at each phase
  • Technical specifications and standards references
  • Regulatory compliance considerations
  • Quality assurance checkpoints

These checklists serve as roadmaps for implementation teams, ensuring no critical elements are overlooked during execution.

Decision Frameworks

Structured approaches for making consistent, defensible infrastructure decisions, including:

  • Weighted criteria reflecting organizational priorities
  • Evaluation matrices for comparing options
  • Risk assessment protocols
  • Stakeholder impact analysis tools
  • Documentation requirements for transparent decision processes

These frameworks help teams apply workshop insights to future decisions, extending impact beyond the immediate focus case.

Knowledge Assets

Documented learnings that build organizational capacity, including:

  • Case studies with context, approach, outcomes, and lessons learned
  • Process maps showing optimized workflows
  • Reference guides summarizing best practices
  • Training materials for knowledge transfer
  • Expert directories facilitating ongoing consultation

These assets transform individual learning into institutional knowledge, creating lasting value from workshop investments.

All templates are provided in both digital and print formats, with consistent structures that facilitate comparison and integration across different workshops and events. Participants receive completed templates within one week of workshop conclusion, ensuring momentum carries forward into implementation phases.

Our follow-up protocols include scheduled check-ins at 30, 90, and 180 days post-workshop, providing accountability and support during critical implementation periods. These touchpoints allow us to track outcomes, address emerging challenges, and document success stories for broader sharing.

Through these structured outputs and follow-up processes, we ensure workshops deliver not just engaging experiences, but tangible improvements in infrastructure planning, delivery, and management across Canadian communities.

Back to Methodology Explore Engagement Protocols