A tweet by Joyce Matthews, reminded me of our check list in our compilation of 24 cases of facilitation.
We adapted a questionnaire by Sandy Schumann, compiler of the IAF Handbook of Group Facilitation. It’s in our book Diverging Conversations through Facilitation.
The list is based on objective aspects of your situation. Here you can find the list Do I need an external facilitator (pdf).
And no, you don’t need to be afraid of hiring a facilitator.