What is appreciative inquiry?
At its heart, AI is about the search for the best in people, their organizations, and the strengths-filled, opportunity-rich world around them. AI is not so much a shift in the methods and models of organizational change, but AI is a fundamental shift in the overall perspective taken throughout the entire change process to ‘see’ the wholeness of the human system and to “inquire” into that system’s strengths, possibilities, and successes.
– Excerpt from: Stavros, Jacqueline, Godwin, Lindsey, & Cooperrider, David. (2015). Appreciative Inquiry: Organization Development and the Strengths Revolution. In Practicing Organization Development: A guide to leading change and transformation (4th Edition), William Rothwell, Roland Sullivan, and Jacqueline Stavros (Eds). Wiley
My guest, Stacey Margaret Jones, calls it an elegant methodology. And after our conversation, I understand why. Appreciative inquiry focuses on the positive and getting in touch with what makes the organization a great place for those who work there.
The positives about your business impacts:
- culture
- employee morale
- employee recruitment and retention
- brand (both internal and external perceptions)
- and customer experience.
About Stacey Margaret Jones:
Stacey Margaret Jones is a market research consultant in central Arkansas, who has worked with regional and national organizations on custom research studies to provide the foundation of comprehensive and targeted communications campaigns. Her consultancy, Ariel Strategic Communications, celebrated its 10th year in March 2019, and her research has been used for award-winning and effective campaigns by nonprofits, universities, health systems, retail, educational, transportation and professional organizations, among others. She holds a master’s of science in communications management from Syracuse University and a master’s of fine arts in creative writing from the University of Central Arkansas, along with her bachelor’s degree in elementary education and English from Northern State University in Aberdeen, S.D. She’s an adjunct instructor at UCA and a published novelist who likes to travel and run marathons and half-marathons. She lives in Conway, Arkansas, with her retired medievalist husband and four dogs.
As she says during the interview, we deal with problems all the time so taking 90 minutes to focus on the good the organization does is good for everyone involved.
As always, pursue your purpose,
Resources from this episode:
- Learn more about appreciative inquiry
- Stacey M. Jones on LinkedIn
- Stacey’s recently released novel: Mr. Catherine
- Previous episodes of The Pursuit of Purpose
