Driving Positive Change with Appreciative Inquiry (AI)
Appreciative Inquiry (AI) is a collaborative, strengths-based approach to Organization Development (OD). Instead of focusing on problems, AI shifts the spotlight to what’s working well — because organizations grow in the direction of what they focus on.
Think about it:
Start your weekly meeting by asking “What went wrong?” and you might end up with a Wailing Wall.
Start by asking “What went right?” and you’ll unlock stories of success, spark inspiration, and surface the strengths that already exist within your team.
The Power of Appreciativ Inquiry
At its heart, AI is about curiosity and discovery. It’s about asking powerful questions, seeing new possibilities, and celebrating the strengths and successes — past, present, and future — that fuel excellence.
Rather than a strict methodology, AI is an evolving approach to change, guided by a few key principles:
- It’s inquiry-based: conversation and questions drive the process.
- It includes the whole system: everyone’s voice matters.
- It focuses on the positive: positive questions lead to positive change.
- It’s vision-driven: images of a better future inspire action today.
The Five D Cycle offers a flexible framework for applying AI in teams or organizations:
- Define — Clarify the purpose: what do we want to explore?
- Discover — Uncover the best of “what is” through storytelling and interviews.
- Dream — Envision bold new possibilities built on shared successes.
- Design — Map out how to make the dream a reality.
- Deliver — Take action and bring the vision to life.
Appreciative interviews are a central pillar of Appreciative Inquiry, serving as a catalyst for any change process. They are a powerful tool for uncovering strengths, fostering collaboration, and inspiring innovative solutions, which can also be effectively applied in any team setting.
→ Every time I work with a team — big or small — using Appreciative Inquiry, I’m reminded how powerful and transformative it can be. Engaging everyone in positive dialogue, tapping into creative visualization (“the power of images“), and carefully crafting language (“words create worlds“) are essential tools in my work — across everything I do.
* David Cooperrider and Suresh Srivastva introduced Appreciative Inquiry to the world in 1990 with their groundbreaking work: “Appreciative Management and Leadership: The Power of Positive Thought in Organizations
