Many people helped me write this book, and I want to thank them. Carrie Hays, Gail Young, Terrie Hutaff, and Betsy Monier-Williams, my colleagues at Roger Schwarz & Associates, read chapters and gave me helpful feedback. So did former Roger Schwarz & Associates consultant Peg Carlson, Larry Dressler, and Mark Adkins. Ruth Wageman helped me think more comprehensively and clearly about interdependence in teams. In addition, each of these colleagues has shaped my thinking about facilitation and groups.

For more than 20 years, Anne Davidson and I have worked together helping Roger Schwarz & Associates clients get better results. We've spent countless hours discussing how best to think about, write about, practice, and help others use mutual learning. In addition to reading chapters for the book and giving me feedback, Anne has helped me think differently about many aspects of facilitation, consulting, coaching, and training. You can't see it, but her influence is on most pages of this book.

I am grateful to have clients who think rigorously about my work and challenge me to answer the difficult questions they pose. This includes clients whom I have worked with in their organizations and clients who have attended open enrollment workshops. They have helped me see when the Skilled Facilitator approach doesn't fully take into account the realities of their work situation, and they have encouraged me to think through how I can improve the Skilled Facilitator approach to do so.

Dale Schwarz, an art therapist and coach—and most important to me, my sister—has continually encouraged me to put more of myself into the book—and just plain encouraged me in my work and life in general. She helped me think through the chapter on emotions and the role of compassion. She is a wonderful role model for integrating thoughts and feelings. Dale and Anne Davidson are the coauthors of the book Facilitative Coaching, which shows coaches how to apply mutual learning in their work.

There are two people whose work has shaped mine and is reflected throughout this book. Chris Argyris gave me a wonderful gift: a framework for thinking about consulting, facilitation, and human and organizational behavior in general. In the early 1980s, I was one of Chris's graduate students at Harvard. He taught me his approach to improving life and learning in organizations; he inspired me to live my life and practice my profession congruent with the same set of core values I ask my clients to apply; and he stimulated me to continue developing my own thinking about organizations. Richard Hackman's work on teams provided the basis for my thinking about what makes teams effective. He helped me see how interdependence and team design are powerful factors in creating more effective teams. Both Chris and Richard died in 2013. In my work, I seek to integrate, build on, and honor theirs.

At Jossey-Bass, I worked with a skilled team who brought the book into the form you're now reading: Jeanenne Ray, Lauren Freestone, Pete Gaughan, Heather Brosius, Shannon Vargo, and Ellen Dendy. David Kerr of David Kerr Design created the clear and engaging graphic art for the models and the cover art.

Mike Mitchell, who manages operations for Roger Schwarz & Associates, helped to lighten my load so that I could make time for writing this edition.

Finally, I want to thank my wife, Kathleen Rounds, and my adult children, Noah and Hannah. For more than 30 years, Kathleen has helped me become the better person I want to be. Noah and Hannah have watched me carefully and have pointed out when I was not acting congruently with the values I espoused. Through our conversations, they have helped me become a better father. I am blessed to have the three of them in my life.