Appreciative Inquiry Lesson workbook Your companion guide
Table of Contents Lesson topic Page Before you jump in 4 Introduction to Appreciative Inquiry 5 Part 1: What is Appreciative Inquiry 8 Part 2: Theory and Methodology 15 Part 3: Conducting an AI Summit 22 Personal action plan 29 References and suggested readings 30 Order a certificate of completion for this course 32 General instruction for watching all Zone Positive videos
Key Points The Appreciative Inquiry movement was founded in the mid 1980 s by Professor of Organizational Behavior David Cooperrider and his colleagues at Case Western Reserve University. Since then, the subject has been extensively researched, and applied worldwide by thousands of organizations and communities. The goal of AI remains today as it has been from the very start. It seeks to help organizations build upon what they do best in a generative manner. In the words of Thomas H. White, former head of GTE Telephone Operations, Appreciative Inquiry focuses us on the positive aspects of our lives and leverages them to correct the negative. It s the opposite of problem-solving. Appreciative Inquiry proposes that within every human grouping or system, people have experienced periods of exceptional performance and achievement, and moments of connectedness, meaning, and joy. They have also been stirred and energized by visions of a valued and positive future. These times of extraordinary success and inspired feelings often tend to be forgotten. They can get swallowed in the day-to-day grind, and lost in the seemingly relentless cycle of damage control. So Appreciative Inquiry creates a framework for systematically recalling the behaviors, attitudes, and emotions that were present during these peak experiences or exceptional achievements. It asserts that it is through the exploration of what has gone right that new insights can be arrived at which can refashion the culture of a system. A fundamental assumption of Appreciative Inquiry is that systems grow in the direction of the questions they ask. Hence, if we ask what is thriving within a system, we will nourish the system s development in a generative, forward direction. And conversely, if we look for what is wrong, we will be more likely to push a system in the direction of continued dysfunction. To be clear, AI does not propose that we ignore our problems; rather it just attends to them with a different mindset. It addresses dysfunction through harmonizing a system with that which it normally does well. Keep in mind that this is a real paradigm shift. It s a whole new way of doing business. And this process is all centered around the quality of inquiry meaning the kinds of questions we ask.
Meet the expert David Cooperrider David L. Cooperrider is the Fairmount Minerals Professor of Social Entrepreneurship at the Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University. Professor Cooperrider is past Chair of the National Academy of Management s OD Division and has lectured and taught at Harvard, Stanford, University of Chicago, Katholieke University in Belgium, MIT, University of Michigan, Cambridge and others. David is founder and Chair of the Fowler Center for Sustainable Value. The center s core proposition is that sustainability is the business opportunity of the 21st century, indeed that every social and global issue of our day is an opportunity to ignite industry leading eco-innovation, social entrepreneurship, and new sources of value. David has served as advisor to a wide variety of organizations including the Boeing Corporation, Fairmount Minerals, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, McKinsey, Parker, Sherwin Williams, Wal-Mart as well as American Red Cross, American Hospital Association, Cleveland Clinic, and World Vision. Most of the projects are inspired by the Appreciative Inquiry (AI) methodology for which Professor Cooperrider is best known. His founding theoretical work in this area is creating a positive revolution in the leadership of change; it is helping institutions all over the world discover the power of the strength-based approaches to multi-stakeholder innovation and sustainable design. Admiral Clark, the CNO of the Navy, for example brought AI into the Navy for a multiyear project on Bold and Enlightened Naval Leadership. In June 2004 Cooperrider was asked by the United Nations to design and facilitate a historic, unprecedented Summit on global corporate citizenship, a meeting between Kofi Annan and 500 business leaders to unite the strengths of markets with the authority of universal ideals to make globalization work for everyone. Cooperrider s work is especially unique because of its ability to enable positive change, innovation, and sustainable design in systems of large and complex scale. At the 2007 international conference on AI hundreds of organizations such as Hewlett-Packard, IDEO, Yahoo!, and US Cellular shared the breakthrough results they are experiencing as a result of becoming strengths-based organizations.
Compare Approaches Traditional problemsolving approach What problems do you face in your work? Appreciative Inquiry approach Under what circumstances does your work give you the most satisfaction? How do we get our staff to reach out more to the community? How do we reduce absenteeism? How do we stop sexual harassment and EEOC complaints? What are the dynamics in the office when the staff is fully engaged in community work? How would this unit perform and look like if it were fully staffed? What would this place be like if we all treated each other with dignity and respect?