I first met Ben Crothers at an asset-management conference in Sydney earlier this year. While I was running a session, he was at the back of the room doing his thing — graphically recording everything we covered. Afterward, we started chatting, and the conversation was so good that I knew I had to bring him onto the podcast.

Ben’s been a facilitator for over 15 years and a designer for even longer. Through his consultancy, Bright Pilots, he’s helped teams from organisations like Atlassian, Westpac, the Parliament of Australia, and the Leukaemia Foundation solve problems, formulate strategy, and work better together. He’s also the author of several books, including Presto Sketching: Simple Drawing for Brilliant Product Thinking and Design and Draw in Four.

In this episode, Ben and I riff on:

• How facilitation and design overlap — and why every facilitator is really a designer.
• His belief that “design wants a better world” and how that philosophy drives his work.
• Why so many meetings “suck” — and how a little intentional weirdness can make them better.
• His tip for giving participants the “gift of five minutes’ silence” before a meeting begins.
• The role of visuals and sketching in helping teams listen better and make meaning together.
• How he can tell within five sentences whether a presenter is seasoned or still finding their rhythm.
• The creative warm-up he calls “Spam Can” (it’s brilliant and hilarious).
• How to make clear gear changes between divergent and convergent thinking.
• What it means to “call the game” as a facilitator — and why it keeps your group driving the bus.
• His self-proclaimed two-word personal brand: Corporate Anthropologist.

Ben’s work reminds me that facilitation isn’t about filling time — it’s about designing experiences that help people think, feel, and connect differently.

You can connect with Ben here:

👉 bencrothers.com

👉 brightpilots.com

Sign up for free for my best articles every week: Work Fame.

Show notes for every episode at https://podcast.leannehughes.com

P.S. Ready to take things up a level? Here are some ways I can help:

1. Watch My 2025 Speaker Reel: Let's energise your next event.
2. Get My Book: Design your workshops fast using The 2-Hour Workshop Blueprint. 

Let's connect on all the channels:

Leanne Hughes on LinkedIn

Leanne Hughes on Instagram

Visit my website: leannehughes.com

Email me: [email protected]

Would you like to deliver your own private podcast feed to your audience? Sign up for a free trial today at Hello Audio.