I was recently introduced to a concept called appreciative inquiry (AI) at a conference in Phoenix, Arizona, called Amplifying Your Effectiveness. I was so excited about the possibility of using AI with project teams that I searched the internet to find more information. I discovered that Dr. David L. Cooperrider of Case Western Reserve University is one of AI’s primary originators. AI originally grew out of the organization development (OD) field as far back as the 1970s.
Look for Abundance, Not Just Problems
In a nutshell, AI emphasizes finding what works well and doing more of that, as opposed to the traditional problem-solving approach of finding what is wrong and fixing it. AI seeks to activate the abundance of positive energy in individuals, teams, and organizations for the creation of desirable outcomes rather than the elimination of undesirable outcomes. Problem-solving is about deficits, needs, and gaps. AI is about abundance, desires, and possibilities. With problem-solving, the question is “What’s wrong?” With AI, the question is “What’s right?”
AI is not a substitute for problem-solving. We need to be able to identify problems and create solutions. We also need to be able to identify what we do well and keep practicing that. What I make of all this is that working on deficits can keep us from sliding back. Working on strengths is where we get real growth. Excellence is more than the absence of deficits.
A Touching Demonstration of AI
An experiential demonstration of AI during the conference session touched me deeply. The experience of AI was far more instructive than the brief lecture that preceded the demonstration. Here is what I recall happened. There were approximately forty participants in a large conference room. The chairs were arranged in a sort of oval configuration rather than the standard conference configuration–rows of chairs. The session leaders gave the following instructions:
“Pair up with someone. Tell your partner a real story about a time when you had a peak experience. A time when you used yourself in a way that you perceived had a positive outcome. When you were at your best and were proud of how you used yourself. After you each have told your story to your partner, we will then hear the stories in the large group in the following way. You will tell your partner’s story and your partner will tell your story. Tell the story in first person using the I-pronoun as if it were your story. If you prefer not to have your story told in the large group, let your partner know.”
Listening to the stories told by partners in first person was amazing. There were stories of taking a risk, facing and overcoming fear, creating solutions in innovative, even paradoxical ways, and transforming difficult interpersonal dilemmas. The content and scope of the stories varied, but some common themes emerged–courage, hope, responsibility, compassion, persistence, and personal triumph. These are universals to which we all can relate. Project teams certainly face their share of risks, fears, searching for solutions, and difficult interpersonal dilemmas.
I thought that when it came my turn I would be unaffected telling my partner’s story. After all, it was her story, not mine; I was just repeating her words. Wrong. Almost from the beginning, my voice started to quiver. By the time I finished the less-than-two-minute story, my eyes were filling with tears of appreciation. I appreciated my partner for allowing me to share her shining moment with the large group. I felt a connection with my partner, whom I had only known for a few minutes.
Applying AI to Project Teams
After returning home from the conference, I began to get ideas about how AI could be useful to project teams. Here are three ideas that occurred to me:
Project kickoff meeting: A project kickoff meeting seems like a perfect time to activate the positive energy in team members. Here are some questions that might get the juices flowing. The more detailed and concrete the answers, the easier it will be to evaluate progress as time goes by. What lessons have we learned from previous projects that we want to remember in this project? How can we make the quality of our experience with each other better during this project? What would a quality experience look and feel like?
Periodic project review: It is a good idea to give your project a checkup periodically to see how healthy it is. Consider these questions. What is working well? How can we leverage that? What are we really good at doing? Are we doing that? How can we do more of that?
Project retrospective: The end of a project or a major project phase is a good time to include some AI in addition to problem-solving. Try these questions. What worked well? What are we really good at doing? How much of that did we do? How could we do more of that next time? What did we enjoy most? How could we do more of what we enjoy?
Add the concept of AI to your project manager’s toolkit if you haven’t already. Some day it may be just the tool you need to rejuvenate your project team.
For more resources on AI, you might start with the following website: http://www.appreciative-inquiry.org/
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* First published in the January 2002 issue of Successful Project Management
Wayne Strider is a consultant, author, speaker, and executive coach.
His book, Powerful Project Leadership, was published in 2002 by
Management Concepts, Inc. He and his partner Eileen Strider cofounded
Strider & Cline, Inc. an information technology management consulting
firm. Wayne can be contacted at waynestrider@att.net. To read more of
his articles, go to http://www.striderandcline.com/takeaways.shtml
