AI 1

Appreciative Inquiry
 This presentation is intended to help a group understand, as
well as have a short but powerful experience of, Appreciative
Inquiry. It is not an end, just the early stages of an
awakening. The slides heavily leverage the knowledge, energy
and resources of the Appreciative Inquiry community. You
can connect to through the Appreciative Inquiry Commons at:
http://appreciativeinquiry.case.edu/. There is a lot of great
material here.
 Thank you to David Cooperrider who gave life to this idea,
and to Sue Hammond and others I have interacted with over
the years. This is a very powerful, yet simple technology. I
have personally used it often in M&A integration, multiple
organization change efforts, organization design, strategic
planning, process redesign and team building. Enjoy.
Goals:
 Learn a little
 Dialogue a little
 Create a little

Agenda:
Introductions 2 - 5 Minutes
Presentation 10 - 15 Minutes
Exercise 10 - 20 Minutes
Application 5 - 15 Minutes
Wrap & Close 3 – 5 Minutes

Interpersonal:
Interactive
Informal
Listen
Respect
Assume the best
Maybe Darwin Was Wrong
Maybe…… Life is about invention, not
survival

We’re here to create, not

defend

Everything is in a constant
process of discovery &
creating

Life organizes and seeks

systems so that more may
flourish

Life is a great playground we

make up as we go

4
Appreciative Inquiry is…
a short story
 The study of what gives
life to human systems
when they are at their
best.
 The art and practice of
asking questions that
strengthen a system’s
capacity to apprehend,
anticipate and heighten
positive potential…..

 A way to focus on what we

want & what we want
more of, as opposed to
focusing what we don’t
want 5
 Ap-pre’ci-ate, v.
1. The act of
recognizing the
best in people or
the world around
us; affirming
past and present
strengths,
successes, and
potentials; to
perceive those
things that give
life (health,
vitality, 2. To increase in value, e.g. the economy has
excellence) to appreciated in value.
living systems.
3. Synonyms: VALUING, PRIZING, ESTEEMING,
HONORING.
6
In-quire’, v.
1. The act of exploration
and discovery.

2. To ask questions; to
be open to seeing new
possibilities

3. Synonyms: DISCOVER,
EXPLORE, SEARCH,
STUDY

7
Assumption of AI
1. In every human situation something works
2. What we focus on becomes our reality
3. Reality is created in the moment and there
are multiple realities
4. The language we use shapes our reality
5. The act of asking questions influences the
outcome in some way
6. People have more confidence going into
the future (unknown) when they carry
forward parts of the present (known)
7. If we carry parts of the past into the future,
they should be what are best about the
past
8. It is important to value differences
Words Are Tools

to a hammer
everything
is a nail!

"It is tempting, if the only tool you have

is a hammer, to treat everything as if it
were a nail. Abraham Maslow
Powerful Questions
People, organizations and communities move in
the direction of what we most frequently and
systematically ask questions about.

What would the universe

look like if I were riding
on the end of a light
beam at the speed of
light

Albert Einstein
Exercise
Question
Describe a time in your life you felt alive,
engaged, were performing at a high level. How
did you feel? What were you doing? Who else was
involved? How did your “best” emerge?

Share the story: 5 + 5

What were the common elements?


What if we could accelerate the
delivery of [ ], and
save/prolong more life? What
would that mean?
Provocative Proposition
Questions:
1. What is the future we wish
to bring about?
2. What are we willing to
engage our hearts and
minds to create?
3. What new assumptions
must we embrace?
4. How do we come together
in different ways?
5. How will we know if we are
successful?
13
Problem Solving to Appreciative Inquiry
 Deficit Thinking
 Identify Problem
 Conduct Root Cause
Analysis
 Brainstorm Solutions &
Analyze
 Develop Action Plans
Metaphor: Organizations are
problems to be solved
Possibility Thinking
 Appreciate “What is”
(What gives life?)
 Imagine “What Might Be”
 Determine “What Should
Be”
 Create “What Will Be”
Metaphor: Organizations are
treasure chests filled with
potential
15
“The best way to
predict the future is to
create it.”

….and….

“The task of
leadership is to create
an alignment of
strengths…making
a system’s weaknesses
irrelevant”.

--Peter Drucker
 “Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of
choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a
thing to be achieved.“
Created by Susan Copple William Jennings Bryan17
Back-Up
Appreciate Inquiry 4-D Model

19
A
I
 Focuses on what is already working well and
contributing to the success
 Values people’s personal experiences and
contributions
 Raises the sense of what is possible
 Creates openness to change
20
 Asking Different Questions
to
What is the biggest What possibilities exist
problem here? that we have not thought
about yet?

Why do you mess up What’s the smallest

so often? change that could make
the biggest impact?

Why do we still have What solutions would

those problems? have us all win?

Why does everything What makes my questions

go wrong all the time? inspiring, energizing, and
mobilizing?
Appreciative Inquiry
Involves a Shift

“No problem can be solved from the same level of

consciousness that created it. We must learn to
see the world anew.”

“There are only two ways to live your life. One is

as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as
though everything is a miracle.”

– Albert Einstein
Using Appreciate Inquiry
 M&A
 Team Building
 Organizational Change and Integration
 Strategic Planning
 Conflict Resolution
 Performance Management
 Communications
 Alliances and Joint Ventures
 Community and Customer Relations
 Diversity Initiative
 HR Practices
 Leadership & Management Development
 Work Process Redesign