Facilitation · 2-4 day intensive summits or multi-week organizational cycles

Appreciative Inquiry (AI)

A strengths-based organizational development model that facilitates self-determined change by focusing on an organization's 'positive core.' Rather than identifying and fixing problems, it uses collective inquiry to imagine and design a desired future state based on what is already working effectively.

When to use Appreciative Inquiry (AI)

Ideal for organizational transformation, strategic visioning, culture shifts, and situations where traditional problem-solving has led to stagnation or low morale.

How Appreciative Inquiry (AI) works

Facilitators can use this framework to structure large-scale summits or strategic planning sessions. By replacing traditional 'gap analysis' with appreciative interviews and generative storytelling, designers can move a group from shared discovery to autonomous, self-organized action.

Phases of Appreciative Inquiry (AI)

  1. Define
  2. Discover
  3. Dream
  4. Design
  5. Destiny (or Deploy)

Key principles

  • Constructionist Principle: Language and discourse co-construct the reality of the organization.
  • Principle of Simultaneity: Inquiry and change happen at the same time; the first questions asked set the direction for change.
  • Poetic Principle: Organizations are like open books; we can choose which stories to study and amplify.
  • Anticipatory Principle: Collective images of the future act as a mobilizing agent for current behavior.
  • Positive Principle: Sustainable change requires positive affect, such as hope, joy, and social bonding, to increase creativity and cognitive flexibility.

Best for

  • Organizational Development
  • Strategic Planning
  • Culture Transformation
  • Community Building

Considerations

  • Must focus on 'generativity' (creating new ideas) rather than just 'positivity' to ensure transformational change.
  • Requires a high degree of stakeholder engagement and a willingness to move away from deficiency-based thinking.
  • The 'Generative' approach to the Destiny phase (allowing action without waiting for permission) is more transformational than traditional top-down management.

Attribution & sources

Developed by David Cooperrider and Suresh Srivastva (1987)

Primary source

Design a session with Appreciative Inquiry (AI)

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