appreciative inquiry: an innovative process for organization change

APPRECIATIVE INQUIRY.’ AN INNOVATIVE PROCESS FOR ORGANIZATION CHANGE

Diana Whitney, Ph. D., is president of Whitney Consulting and cofounder of The Taos Institute in Taos, New Mexico. She is an international speaker and consultant whose work focuses on organization transforma tion, strategic culture change, communication, and leadership development for corporate, nonprofit, and government organizations. She applies social constructionist theory to mergers and acquisitions, organization development and strategic planning, and works collaboratively and creatively with executives, managers, and organization members to build teams and support them in the construction of the organization’s future. Carol Schau is an employee communications manager for GTE in Irving, Texas, and a member of the company’s Culture Council. She has been actively involved in the company’s culture transformation, manages the positive revolution for change among GTE‘s front- line employees, and uses communications to advance the culture change effort. She is also a co-creator of a training course that focuses on culture change, strategic business direction, and customer service that is being delivered to all 45,000 G TE front-line employees twice a year.

Diana Whitney and Carol Schau

ompanies around the world are engaged in bold experi- ments with an innovative process of organization develop- C ment called appreciative inquiry (AI). Developed by Dr.

David Cooperrider and colleagues at Case Western Reserve Uni- versity and The Taos Institute, A1 is based on the principle that organizations change in the direction of what they study. In- quiry-whether it is an organization survey, a question posed by a manager at the start of a meeting, or the analysis used to redesign a work process-is fateful. It plants the seeds of the future.

Consider, for example, two ways you as a manager might welcome new employees. If you ask them to tell you about problems they encounter as they get acquainted with their new colleagues and new job, you are, no matter how well intended, planting seeds of problems and you will most certainly hear about them. If, on the other hand, you request that they try to discover what contributes to their new work group’s high levels of cooperation and success, you are planting seeds of learning about cooperation and team success. 0,n a daily basis, the agenda for organizational performance, learning, and change is established through inquiry and dialogue.

Appreciative inquiry deliberately focuses the attention, dialogue, and learning of an organization’s members and stakeholders on what gives life to the organization when it is at its best. By assuming the best of people, organizations, and relationships, A1 leaves deficit-oriented approaches behind and offers affirmative processes for organization development.

Appreciative inquiry engages the whole organization in dis- covering the best of what has been and dreaming about the best of what might be. Imagine an organization in which 850 employees interview one another to discover stories of their company at its best and how they contribute to it. Imagine an organization in which 250 labor union leaders and managers meet to discover the possibilities for partnership that will benefit the company, the unions, and their respective members and stakeholders. Imagine an organization that brings hundreds of people together on-line to

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Diana Wbitney and Carol Scbau

share positive life-affirming stories and discuss and create global policies and practices. Imagine an organization in which 1,500 people are interviewed and 500 come together to envision and design their company’s future.

Appreciative inquiry, by design an affirmative process, dis- mantles organizational habits of distrust, animosity, and blame, and replaces them with a willingness to learn, mutual respect, and cooperation. Imagine an organization in which daily conversations are stories of success and expressions of hope for the future, and fear is transformed into trust through mutual inquiry into what gives life to the organization and its people. Imagine hundreds of people engaged in interviews, focus groups, and large- group planning focused on the best of their organization’s past, their hopes and dreams for the future, and specific designs for change.

Appreciative inquiry assumes that as an organization’s domi- nant stories change and evolve, so does the organization. Organi- zational stories are the habit patterns of the organization. They tell organization members what they must do and be in order to fit in and be successful in the organization. If we hear stories of leadership distrust and turfism, then we will certainly find and possibly create our own cases of distrust and turfism. If, on the other hand, we hear stories about management respect and collaboration across functional lines of business, then we will discover and display respect and collaboration in the workplace.

The 4-D model of appreciative inquiry (see Exhibit 1) is a process for positive change. Based on the assumption that change

Exhibit 1

4-D Model of Appreciative Inquiry

AFFIRMATIVE ‘What will be” TOPIC CHOICE

Design Determine

12 Spring 1998 Employment Relations Today

Appreciative Inquiry: An Innovative Process for Organization Change

The discovery phase is a quest to fill the organization ’s conversations with talk of positive possibilities.

occurs through thoughtful inquiry and dialogue into affirmative life-giving forces, the four phases of the process are: discovery, dream, design, and delivery.

Discovery-Appreciating What Gives Life The discovery phase is a quest to identify positive stories and

spread them throughout the organization. It brings into focus what gives life and energy to people, their work, and their organization. It is based on the assumption that life-giving forces are indeed present in every situation, but our habits of organizing and talking often overlook the positive in favor of analyzing obstacles, resistance, and deficits. The discovery phase shifts the balance of organizational attention from what isn’t working to what is working and what may possibly work in the future.

An all-too-common myth is that we learn from our mistakes. Actually, all we can learn from mistakes is what not to do again. Positive learning and innovation come from studying, adapting, and replicating what works. An ancient Taoist adage suggests, “If you respect and admire a quality in another, make it your own.” The discovery phase is a quest to fill the organization’s conversations with talk of positive possibilities.

The starting point of any appreciative inquiry is the selection of affirmative topics. As organizations move in the direction of what they study, the choice of topics to study is significant and strategic. Topics are stated in the affirmative and must be some- thing that the organization wants to learn about and enhance in their way of doing business. For example, a recent client raised concerns about employee turnover and wanted to use it as an inquiry topic. When reminded that topic choice is like planting seeds and asked if they really wanted more employee turnover, they quickly chose employee retention as one of their affirmative topics. Topics selected by one corporate culture change team included inspired leadership, fun, quality moments, customers first, and innovation. Topics selected for an executive-development effort were team leadership, collaborative decision making, work-family balance, and global contribution.

At the heart of appreciative inquiry is the appreciative interview. Generally done as a mutual interview among organization members, it may also be conducted as a focus group process. Interview questions are crafted around the affirmative topics and an interview guide is created. The interview guide explores a person’s beginnings with the organization, what they value most about themselves, their work and the organization, their appreciative stories related to the topics, and their hopes and dreams for the organization’s future. Discovery involves interviewing many-

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T h e dream phase of the 4-D process encourages participants to consider what it is that their organization is being called on to do.

preferrably all-members of an organization. The mini-interview is often used to help the members rediscover these thoughts and stories. It becomes the basis for each interview. Sample interview questions are listed below.

1. Think back over your career, through all of its ups and downs and twists and turns. What do you consider to be the peak experience or ”high point”-a time when you felt most committed, most connected, and most alive in your work?

2. Without being humble, what is it that you value most about:

Yourself? The nature of your work? Your organization?

3. What do you consider to be the core factor that gives life to your organization-that without it, your organization would be dramatically different?

4. What three wishes would you make to heighten the vitality and health of this organization?

Dream-Imagining What Might Be The dream phase is a time for groups of people to engage in

thinking big, thinking out of the box, and thinking out of the boundaries of what has been in the past. It is a time for people to describe their wishes and dreams for their work, their working relationships, and their organization.

The dream phase of the 4-D process encourages participants to consider what it is that their organization, whether a department, business unit, or entire company, is being called on to do. This phase connects the work of all the members of the organization to a greater purpose. The dream phase takes place in a large group meeting during which the data and stories collected in the discovery phase are shared. Wishes and dreams for the future of the organization are often acted out to further dramatize the positive possibilities envisioned for the organization.

Design-Determining What Will Be Appreciative inquiry is a high-involvement process. The design

phase provides an opportunity for large numbers of employees and stakeholders to come together to co-create their organization.

Whereas the discovery and dream phases generate and ex- pand the organization’s images of itself, the design and delivery phases allow members to make choices for the organization. In the design phase, organization members and stakeholders, including



customers and vendors, participate in crafting what are called ”provocative propositions,’’ or design statements.

Appreciative organization design is grounded in the data and stories collected during the discovery process. Whereas the dream process encourages possibility thinking, the design process focuses on creating action around the possibilities. Provocative propositions, however, are intended to stretch the organization as it moves to realize them.

Successful organizations navigate the white waters of change in ways that maintain the positive images of the company in the stories of employees and stakeholders. By participating in the design process, organization members quickly reorient and realign themselves to the changing organization and business environment (see Exhibit 2).

Exhibit 2

Steps in an Appreciative Inquiry 4-D Process

1.

2. 3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

Establish context. Introduce A1 in theory and in practice. At a minimum, conduct a two-hour introduction to AI. Define the contract. Clarify the purpose of the effort. Identify the core team. Select and train the core team-a highly diverse group of people from across the organization. Select the topics and develop the interview guide. Select inquiry topics, craft questions, and develop the interview guide. Begin the discovery phase. Conduct as many interviews as possible. Reflect on the stories. Conduct interview reflection and storytelling sessions to share highlights and success stories. Report the results. Prepare and distribute reports high- lighting themes, quotations, and stories. Dream about the possibilities. Conduct dream meetings to enhance the collective sense of what is possible. Design the future. Conduct design dialogues and craft provocative propositions related to the purpose of the effort:

10. Plan and implement in the delivery phase. Establish personal and organizational commitments and develop application plans to realize the provocative propositions.



During delivery sessions, commitments are made to ensure that the provocative propositions are realized.

Delivery-Creating What Will Be Change occurs in all phases of the A1 as it provides an open forum

for employees to contribute and to step forward in the service of the organization. The delivery process specifically focuses on action planning at both the personal and organizational levels. During delivery sessions, commitments are made to ensure that the provocative propositions are realized. Individuals commit to applications and action plans; small groups work on areas that require collaboration; and teams may be established for new initiatives.

Alignment on actions to be taken is high as a result of the extensive involvement of large numbers of people in the discovery, dream, and design processes. By mobilizing a massive number of interviewers and holding large group meetings, the members get a sense of what the organization is really about.

The following story about a front-line employee, as recounted by the front-line employee who interviewed him, illustrates how an employee can move from apathy to leadership through the A1 process.

At the beginning of his A1 interview, Ron told me he was not a positive person. He said there was nothing positive in his life. If he could, he would prefer to live alone in a cave, but his commitment to his wife and children kept him from doing that.

As the interview progressed, I could see that Ron did have positive ideas, comments, and suggestions. After the interview, I filled out the summary sheet and took the report to Ron to read. He read it and said, ”Well, that’s just because you are a good interviewer.”

”No,” I told him, ”it’s because you really do have good things to say.” I was surprised to see Ron at the summit meeting. I watched as he

hung toward the back and gradually moved in to take part in small group discussions. At the end of the last day, he had taken the microphone twice to speak to the entire assembly. The last thing he said was, “We are going to do this.”

When I asked Ron if I could tell his success story, I also asked him if he realized how far he had come in five weeks since the interview. He had gone from wanting to be a hermit in a cave to accepting the challenge of leadership on the issue of eliminating mandatory overtime. I told Ron how much I admired his change. He got a big grin on his face and said, ”The summit is the most positive thing that’s happened in my life in a long time.”

Appreciative inquiry is a process for organization development. As such, the 4-D model takes shape differently in different organizations and contexts. The process may take place in one meeting, as was the case of a Brazilian food-processing company that closed the plant for five days and invited 700 employees, customers, and vendors to participate in redesigning the organization. The process may also take place over months, with each step involving progressively more people until the entire organization is engaged.



Comments from participants engaged in A/ processes frequently revolve around its tremendous personal application and benefits.

THE APPRECIATIVE ORGANIZATION SUMMIT In most cases of appreciative inquiry, a large group meeting

(100-1,000 people) called the Appreciative Organization Summit is held. The summit is designed around the 4-D model and takes a large group of people through the process simultaneously. The summit follows the mass-mobilization of the discovery phase. An appreciative organization report that collects and highlights results of the interview process is generated and distributed prior to the summit. The data and stories collected in the discovery phase are shared and built on during discussions at the summit.

Organization change succeeds when it balances continuity, novelty, and transition. The summit process includes dreaming (novelty), recognition of what needs to be preserved (continuity), and planning for implementation (transition). An organization life line is created to illuminate historical trends and to identify significant traditions and practices that must be maintained as the organization grows and changes. Groups envision the organization’s future, and provocative propositions are crafted as a step toward organization redesign and renewal.

POWERFUL APPLICATIONS OF APPRECIATIVE INQUIRY The applications of A1 are varied, ranging from global organiz-

ing, corporate culture change, team building, and leadership development to selection interviewing and performance management. Although organizations benefit when using A1 as a vehicle for organization change, comments from participants engaged in A1 processes frequently revolve around its tremendous personal application and benefits.

Organization Culture Change The largest division of an international company used A1 to

engage 850 employees and some customers, vendors, and community members in their Focus 2000 process for organization culture change. Due to the tremendous success of AI, the 4-D process is now being used in the organization for strategic planning on an annual basis.

Another example of successful culture change is the use of A1 at Hunter Douglas Window Fashions Division in Broomfield, Colo- rado, an innovator and manufacturer of high-fashion window cover- ings. Amanda Trosten-Bloom has provided organization development (OD) consulting to the organization for seven years. She writes of her recent experience using AI at Hunter Douglas.

In early ‘97, a subteam of the company’s leadership team had just completed a two- to three-month state-of-the-company analysis. The annual employee opinion survey had, for the first time ever, shown


Diana Whiiney and Carol Schau

“knployees have reported striking applications of A/ in their personal lives. ”

diminishing levels of employee satisfaction. Traditional one-to-one diagnostic interviews with another independent OD consultant had unmasked issues related to leadership, vision, culture, communications, continuous improvement, and business process.

The subteam was preparing to present the issues to the full leadership team, along with a recommended plan of attack on how to address them. Their goal was to initiate formation of action teams to correspond to the identified issues. In the eleventh hour, two members of the subteam experienced A1 as part of another project. As a result, they ended up proposing A1 as an altemative-and more effective- way of accomplishing the goal of culture transformation. After a brief experience with the process, the subteam and then the entire leadership team elected to ”change trains” and use A1 as the engine for driving the desired changes.

Less than six months after its initial introduction, approximately half of the company’s 850-person work force is solidly on board with AI. Those who have not yet experienced the process directly have been educated in its principles and have begun to testify to the remarkable changes they‘ve witnessed since its first introduction. Here are a few comments made by randomly selected employees when asked about the impact of A1 on the organization:

“I’m excited about getting involved in the company. People feel the company cares.” ”. . . people are starting to focus more on communications.” ”Everybody is coming together as a team. People are listening to us.” “People are more positive and outgoing. A feeling of openness- and we are made to feel welcome.” ”Individuals who normally don’t get involved with areas outside their departments are now doing so.”

In addition to these comments, employees have reported striking applications of A1 in their personal lives:

On the evening of their 31st wedding anniversary, an employee and her husband did an appreciative inquiry into their marriage. They spent allnight talking. She reported it was their most intimate anniversary ever. Someone wrote recently of his use of A1 with his son, who has attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder. He says it’s [AI] the only intervention that he’s found that has made a consistent and significant difference in his son’s behavior, after six years of trying different approaches. An employee has reported that his use of A1 with his partner who has been terminally ill for the past two years, has helped turn this otherwise devastating experience into an opportunity for personal and spiritual renewal.

AT has literally inverted the traditionally hierarchical structure of this organization. Line employees are making decisions previously made one or two levels above them. They are coaching their supervisors when the supervisors slip and fall back into the older, more familiar patterns of communication.



A community development process called Imagine Chicago is using A1 as a vehicle to transform the city of Chicago.

For example, one supervisor posted a mandatory overtime list for the coming weekend. More than half the members of his group refused the assignments. They told him they wanted him to tell them what needed to be done, and let them work out how it got done. He tooktheir advice and posted a description of the business needs. Within an hour, most of the people who had previously refused the overtime were signing up for Saturday hours.

The results of this work have been quicker, deeper, and more dramatic than any I have witnessed before, in my nearly twenty years of organizational development work. In a period of months, this company and its people have been transformed. It will never go back to where it was again.

But perhaps more importantly, individual lives have changed. People who would otherwise have had little or no access to training or support in the area of personal growth have grabbed the ball and run with it. A1 has created a ripple that has already spread fa r beyond this organization. It may well change the world.

Community Transformation A community development process called Imagine Chicago is

using A1 as a vehicle to transform the city of Chicago. They are conducting one million interviews within the city-one for every household. After two years, results are apparent in the educational system and in the relationships among city, government, and business groups. Currently, A1 is being designed into the educational curriculum throughout the city.

Similar projects have occurred or are under way in cities, states, and countries around the world including Imagine South Carolina and Imagine Africa.

Organizational Renewal A major health-care cooperative applied A1 to engage 1,500

people-staff, nurses, doctors, administrators, and patients-in the creation of a renewal process. Interviews were conducted among 1,500 people, and 500 attended the summit, during which they envisioned, designed, and committed to the organization’s future. As a result, collaboration is at an all-time high; there is a renewed sense of hope among employees and a steadily improv- ing outlook for the organization.

Organizational Excellence Corporations are using A1 for enhancing organizational excel-

lence in business units, departments, and work groups. Teams selected from various business units choose their own topics, develop interview guides and conduct interviews within their own organizations. Then they attend an A1 summit along with eight to ten other teams. During the summit, teams share what they have learned with one another and design and plan change



Companies are using A1 for performance planning and appraisal, 360-degree feedback, selection and interviewing, and employee relations.

within their own organization. The cross-functional learning is extraordinary.

Customer Surveys Companies are changing their survey strategies to include

studies of their best customers and what satisfies them. As find- ings are collected and shared throughout the organization, significant increases in customer satisfaction and employee satisfaction occur. Employee morale increases as employees hear stories of satisfied customers. Stories from satisfied customers provide great insight into how to improve customer relations companywide.

Mergers and Acquisitions A major accounting firm used A1 to successfully manage the

integration of several acquisitions over a short period of time. The new company was designed during an Appreciative Learning Summit based on interviews throughout the merging businesses. At all levels of the organization, managers and employees from merging companies interviewed one another to discover the strengths of the partnership. Newly created business units and work teams used A1 to discover their own hopes and expectations and to enhance relationships with customers and vendors. The affirmative involvement of hundreds of people contributed to the successful integration-both financially and culturally.

Employee Relations and HR Management Companies are using A1 for performance planning and ap-

praisal, 360-degree feedback, selection and interviewing, and employee relations. When people are given opportunities to hear how they are valued and contributing to their work group and the organization, they feel better about themselves and their work, and as a result they want to do more.

Mike Burns, vice president of HR for Hunter Douglas, offered the following thoughts on AI:

For years, I have used the analogy of the cup being half full rather than half empty when helping folks look at the positive side of issues rather than the negative. When individuals or groups see things from the perspective of the ”best that has been” and the ”best of what is” and they frame their future vision into the “best of what could be,“ the transition is magical. The whole perspective becomes positive; the energy level increases, and the cup goes from half empty to half full.

I have seen a very negative, hostile situation between two employees be turned positive by asking them to tell each other about the best experiences they have had with each other in the past and what their vision is for the relationship between them in the



future. The conflict was put into perspective and resolved immediately with positive rather than negative energy.

In the employment interview processl frequently a stressful situation for applicants, I have found it helpful to ask about a peak professional experience from their past. This provides the applicant a chance to tell me about a positive situation. This gives me a great deal of insight into the candidate and helps set a positive tone for the interview.

DESIGNING THE FUTURE Organizations can no longer afford to operate as if the needs of

the business and the needs of the people doing business are at odds. They must begin to operate with the realization that p e o p l e employees, customers, and vendors-are not only the greatest resource for creating the organization’s future, they are the only resource. Human resources professionals, along with organizational leaders, must look beyond the organizing principles, processes, and change-management practices of yesterday. They must seek out innovative processes, such as AI, that collectively and positively involve people in the design of their own future at work. +


appreciative inquiry: an innovative process for organization change

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