A worshop is a path to a destination. The points you pass while walking down that path are the deliverables.
It is absolutely critical to determine the workshop deliverables . At the beginning of the planning process we meet with the sponsor of the workshop and discuss what he or she wants to accomplish. Then we take it a step deeper and come up with the list of specific deliverables, tangible, measurable things. This creates the list of expectations.
We choose these deliverable with you and discuss them to make sure reaching these deliverables will mean meeting your expectations of the workshop. We also gather information about the group, their level of support, their attitudes, and any other factors we should be aware of.
Then we go through our own planning process. For each deliverable we think of what needs to happen to take the group from where they are to where they need to be in order to reach the deliverable. Then we identify the steps that will take them there. Finally we determine the activities that will move them from one step to the next.
This is facilitation, not manipulation. We are very careful to be completely honest and transparent. If the participants in a workshop think they are being led by clever activities to a predetermined decision, the value of the workshop is lost.