This page [linked above - http://knowledge.cafe/open-cafe-procedure/ ] describes the roles, procedure and the approximate timing of a typical Open Knowledge Café.
http://knowledge.cafe/open-knowledge-cafes/
open knowledge cafes
I run open Knowledge Cafés in London and Farnborough in the UK several times a year, and I frequently run them in other countries around the world during my travels. The London Cafés have been running since September 2002.
I usually hold them in the evening from 18:30 until 21:00. They are open to the public and are entirely free.
Unlike a Café held in an organizational setting, open Knowledge Cafés are usually larger (30 – 60 people compared with 12 – 24), and their purpose is more of a learning/social one.
You can browse some of my past London Cafés here and find many more stories about the Café here.
You can learn about planned events and register for them or sign up for the mailing list on the Gurteen Knowledge Community website.
http://conversational-leadership.net/knowledge-cafe-process/
Basic process
The Café is highly adaptable to many different purposes and should be designed to meet a particular purpose.
Consider this description of the process as a starting point for your thinking and not a prescriptive recipe.
People are invited to the Café. They are not mandated to participate.
A Café is a gathering, not a meeting.
The Café host welcomes the participants.
The host initiates a short session to help connect people. This often takes the form of three short rounds of speed conversation.
The host briefly explains the intent or purpose of the Café and the Café process.
The host makes the point that during the small group conversations it is OK to go off topic.
The host then introduces the Café Speaker.
The speaker gives a short talk. Ideally, this is without powerpoint slides, but a few slides are acceptable in some contexts.
The speaker typically speaks for less than 10 minutes but usually no more than 20 minutes.
At the end of the talk, the speaker poses a provocative question to the participants to initiate the conversation.
The participants sit in small groups of 3 or 4.
Everyone is equal. There are no table hosts, leaders or not takers.
Three rounds of small group conversation now follow. Each round lasts 10 to 15 minutes.
At the end of each round, the host asks a few people from each table to move to another table. The instruction is not more prescriptive than that.
At the end of the three rounds, the host stops the conversation and asks the participants to move the tables to one side of the room and to form a circle of the chairs.
A whole group conversation then continues in the circle.
The host goes around the circle and asks each person to share one actionable insight that they are taking away from the Café.
Finally, the host thanks everyone and closes the Café.
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