For more on this occasional series of free facilitation webinars, including recordings and other outputs of previous sessions, please visit free facilitation webinars.

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In this session we will look at what it takes to achieve professional certification as a facilitator, and what are the advantages of doing so. We will explore the two leading and internationally recognised, competency-based certifications - IAF Certified Professional Faciliator (CPF) and ICA Certified ToP Facilitator (CTF).

I shall be joined for this session by Lindsay Sumner CPF, IAF Director of Certification Operations; Alexey Svetlichny CTF, Director of ICA Ukraine; and again by Sunny Walker CPF CTF of the Virtual Facilitation Collaborative.

Lindsay was among the first to gain the CPF designation, in the UK in 1998, and she has managed the CPF programme for IAF since 2006. ICA Ukraine is the first ICA in Europe to offer CTF certification, and Alexey became one of the first CTFs in Europe in 2014. Sunny is an assessor for both CPF and CTF programmes, a founding member of IAF and one of the founders of ICA's Technology of Participation (ToP).

We will invite you to share some of your own experience of certification, and to respond with us to questions that are raised.

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Each session in this series of free facilitation webinars is hosted in Adobe Connect for a highly interactive learning experience.

Each topic is addressed by a short case study or other presentation, with links to further online material for later reference. In the sessions we apply tools and techniques of virtual facilitation to help participants to engage with the material and the presenter, and with their own and each other's experience on the topic. A short technical orientation directly before the session introduces the features of the virtual meeting room, and the tools to be used. A brief closing reflection at the end of the session invites reflection and learning on the facilitation process and virtual tools, as well as on the content of the session.

For full voice participation in the session for a more conversational experience, microphone rights are available to up to 15 participants who are first to login and set up their audio. Others are able to listen and interact via their keyboard alone.

Login details will be circulated to registered participants within 7 days of the session. The session room will open 45 minutes in advance of the session start time. In order to enjoy microphone rights please login at least 30 minutes in advance. Participants arriving less than 15 minutes in advance will be able to participate by keyboard only. Once logged in early, participants may 'step away' until it is time to begin.

The session will be recorded, the recording will be made publicly available online and the chat transcript will be shared with registered participants. We recommend that you do not reveal private information during the session. You will be invited to share contact details if you wish after the recording is stopped.

Adobe Connect will use your computer audio for the session. You will need a computer with internet connection and speakers, or (for voice participation) a microphone and headphones so that others don't get feedback from your speakers to your mic. Adobe Connect apps are available for participation via tablets and smartphones, however use of a computer is recommended. A wired ethernet connection is recommended in preference to wifi.

Please test your connection to Adobe well in advance of the meeting, in case you need to install any software or adjust any settings in order to participate fully - complete the test in a few moments by following the instructions here. Your computer needs to have the latest version of Adobe Flash - please check and if necessary download and install that here..

We reserve the right to cancel any session without notice and without liability for any consequential or indirect loss, however in this case we will give us much advance notice as possible by email to those registered.