The days have long gone when organisations that are serious about getting their message across could afford to leave their key meetings in the hands of any old functionary. Increasingly, they hire professional facilitators to chair conferences, seminars, AGMs and other important gatherings. Why?

Because a pro can:

• Make sure your agenda gets covered in full and on schedule
• Focus debates, to keep discussion to the point
• Lend presence, humour and insight to proceedings
• Encourage the reticent, and challenge the blasé
• Coax maximum involvement from delegates
• Create a congenial atmosphere for networking
• Draw conclusions together in a cogent and coherent form

Keith Aitken is one of Scotland's most experienced and accomplished conference facilitators. No-one has a sharper ear for humbug and evasion, a shrewder understanding of public policy issues, or a more engaging style in the chair.

He is a chairman of choice for many of Scotland's top policy conference organisers, including Holyrood Events, Indigo and Catchline, while a large and diverse range of bodies (such as the Scottish Countryside Alliance, Forward Scotland, the Institute of Civil Engineers, Angus Council, Scottish Business in the Community, the Princess Royal Trust, SEPA, Inclusion Scotland and the Institute of Internal Auditors) have hired him to facilitate their own major conferences. Many people regard the Scottish Council for Development & Industry's Annual Forum as Scotland No 1 public policy conference: Keith has been retained to chair it ten years in a row.

Whatever the meeting, Keith Aitken can be relied upon to make it happen on time, on message, in style and to the point.

Pictures courtesy of Lewis Segal Photography

Email Keith : keith@kaitken.fsnet.co.uk