January 9, 2004
 Appreciative Inquiries Newsletter by Corporation for Positive Change, Issue 1

APPRECIATIVE INQUIRIES
for January, 2004


                                                        Gutes Neues Jahr

    Bonne Année          Gott Nytt Ar       Feliz Ano Nuevo
HAPPY NEW YEAR
from Corporation for Positive Change!


      Yeni Yiliniz Kutlu Olsun              Shanah Tovah

                                 Xin Nian Yu Kuai
 
 CPC Flash                                                                                                        Issue 1
 
Appreciative Inquiry and the Practice of Positive Change
Certificate Program

Are you looking for a way to develop your skills, capabilities and knowledge in the practice of Appreciative Inquiry? You can build your AI expertise, develop a powerful set of tools, connect with a vibrant network of people, and access a complete set of resources and materials by enrolling in the new Corporation for Positive Change Certificate Program. Through this program, consultants and leaders of change will engage in sequential learning, with the goal of acquiring knowledge and skills for leading, designing and facilitating positive change in organizations and communities using Appreciative Inquiry. For more information and to register, contact Corporation for Positive Change at 505-751-1232 or e-mail us at office@positivechange.org.

 
 
"Dear CPC:"
a source for ongoing capacity-building, questions and answers

Dear CPC:

I have two questions, related to your concept of whole system involvement. First, whom do you regularly include, when you involve “all” the stakeholders in a system? Second, how do you handle it, when it is physically or financially impossible to bring everyone together in the same place at the same time?

Chris Sansone, Ph.D.
Chain Reaction Partners
Boulder, CO

Dear Chris:

When we are planning a summit, we first work to engage all those who have a vested interest in the outcome of the project or process. Then we expand that pool to include those who have insight or expertise to enhance the system’s understanding of what it is and what it might become. This almost always includes all levels of employee, customers, and suppliers. It often also includes community members, end users, people from similar organizations with similar processes, and subject matter experts. Whenever it makes sense, we work to create functional, ethnic, and even generational diversity. For example, in our work with the United Religions Initiative, we have regularly engaged people from entirely different faith traditions and cultures with one another, also partnering youth with elders for key interviews and activities.

With regard to your second question, only rarely have we been fortunate enough to physically involve an entire stakeholder community in one of our inquiries or summits. When dealing with less than 100% participation, we bring other people’s voices into the room through pre-work (interviews conducted before a summit) and/or fieldwork (as part of the summit agenda). For example, in a strategic planning process that we conducted years ago with the Rocky Mountain Adoption Exchange, participants conducted interviews with employees, families, and community members prior to the meeting, sharing key stories and data as part of the opening interviews and small group discussions. Similarly, when we recently worked with a national intelligence agency, we brought in some of the organization’s key customers to talk about where they were heading in the future and what support they needed to achieve their mission, as part of the summit’s Discovery phase.

Sincerely yours,
Amanda Trosten-Bloom
for the CPC Consulting Team

Do YOU have a question for CPC? If so, contact us at office@positivechange.org. We will answer it in our future NewsFLASH.

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Workshops in early 2004

Being Appreciative Inquiry: A Spiritual Retreat for Change Agents, Taos NM - Feb 9-12, 2004. EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT APPLIES UNTIL JAN 12. The beginning of the year is a great time for personal reflection, reassessment of values, and the reinvention of one’s self in service to a better world. If you are hearing a new call, being drawn to live and work in greater harmony with spirit, or just want time to honor the transitions of your life, Being AI: A Spiritual Retreat for Change Agents may be for you. With Diana Whitney as your guide you will have four days in community with others on the journey of spiritual development. You will have an opportunity to engage in self-discovery, envision your future and explore ways of being your best in the service of bringing out the best in others. For information and to register contact Corporation for Positive Change at 505-751-1232 or email: office@positivechange.org.

What participants are saying about Being AI:

Being AI was one of those exceptional learning experiences I know I will look back on as transformational. Applying the 4-D cycle to my own spiritual journey in the company of like-minded seekers, I reconnected and deepened my connection with my own positive core. Through that process, I found the courage to choose living fully over self-protection, a life-transforming shift I had been struggling to make. I would recommend this workshop highly to everyone who is DOING AI, because BEING AI in that process is such an essential component of success.

Nancy Ogilvie
Independent Consultant

Being AI was life altering for me: a precious five-day period of focusing and interacting on a spiritual level of consciousness. Diana shared wisdom that has emerged out of her life of conscious learning, brought together with the pure intention of creating transformational positive change. It’s now my responsibility to put it all to use and remember what’s truly possible, through the expanded perspectives that I now live in.

Dan Petersen
Director
Edges Learning Community


Appreciative Inquiry Summit: a large group method for Positive Change, Chicago, IL, Feb 23-26, 2004. EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT APPLIES UNTIL JAN. 23. Jim Ludema and Diana Whitney, lead authors of The Appreciative Inquiry Summit: A Practitioners Guide for Leading Large-Group Change, offer this workshop for consultants and leaders who wish to learn the principles and practice of applying AI to large group meetings (50-2000 people) and whole system transformation.

The workshop leaders will introduce the Summit methodology, share case stories of their work designing and facilitating large group AI Summits, and provide opportunities for participants to practice crafting Summit designs. They will discuss applications of the AI Summit to strategic planning, corporate culture change, enhancing exceptional customer service, vision and values clarification, global organizing and reinventing businesses, communities and complex social systems such as health care. They will share stories and videos from their work in corporate, non-profit, global and international settings. Prior attendance at the Appreciative Inquiry workshop, “The Foundations of Appreciative Inquiry,” is required. For information and to register contact Corporation for Positive Change at 505-751-1232 or email: office@positivechange.org.

What participants are saying about theSummit:

I have read articles and books on AI, worked with practioners and participated in a couple AI sessions, however the AI Summit workshop is the highlight of all my AI experience. The workshop brought it all together for me. While the workshop is geared toward large group summits, the information and ideas are valuable for any size groups. I now understand how to use the flexibility of AI to fit particular situations. The AI Summit book is an excellent reference and has become my righthand for any AI work. I just wish I had a tape recorder for all the wonderful, inspiring stories and ideas I heard!

Annette P. McEnery
Human Resources Director
Experian

As an AI practitioner, I found the Summit workshop extremely worthwhile in helping me deepen both my practical and theoretical understanding of designing and facilitating large-scale AI Summits. I left the workshop with more tools and greater confidence about taking my practice to the next level in facilitating groups involving large numbers of participants. Thanks to Diana and Jim for creating an inspiring, thought-provoking and practical learning experience!

Donna Stoneham
President
Positive Impact, LLC


The Foundations of Appreciative Inquiry, Taos NM, April 9-12, 2004. EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT APPLIES UNTIL MARCH 9. Whether you’re a consultant or leader of change, Foundations of AI will guide you through an exploration of the theories, principles and practices of Appreciative Inquiry. This workshop provides hands-on experience of Appreciative Inquiry, preparing you to guide clients and groups in creating interview protocols, conducting interviews, working with appreciative data and stories, and crafting provocative propositions and organization design principles. Understand the difference between Appreciative Inquiry and deficit-based approaches to change, and experience the power of positive change methodologies. For information and to register contact Corporation for Positive Change at 505-751-1232 or email: office@positivechange.org.

What participants are saying about Foundations of Appreciative Inquiry:

I found the Foundations workshop most beneficial in helping me to solidify the whole concept of Appreciative Inquiry. AI is a fresh approach to build more trusting relationships, foster better communication, and will help recruit and retain a dynamic, diverse and imaginative workforce. I am absolutely confident that this approach will be a huge success at our hospital.

Graig Casada
Nurse Recruiter
University of Kentucky Hospital

I am more and more convinced that we can truly make a difference in this organization. I am positive. I almost feel like this can be the biggest contribution to nursing and health care that I will ever make in my career. I get so excited when I talk to folks here, that I am sure I am being somewhat of a zealot. But again the week reinforced my belief that Appreciative Inquiry is indeed a very good thing.

Karen Stefaniak
Associate Hospital Director and Chief Nursing Officer
University of Kentucky Hospital

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BOOKS

 Good news!!! Diana’s and Amanda’s book The Power of Appreciative Inquiry is being translated into Thai, and an abridged version of the same book is being translated into Hebrew. Stay tuned for more details. For our non-English speaking colleagues who might seek a similar translation into their native tongue, please contact Nina in the Corporation for Positive Change office (email: office@positivechange.org or call 505-751-1232).

Check out the full listing of leading books on Appreciative Inquiry and positive change by CPC consultants:

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Request for Proposals
The 2nd International Conference on AI

Corporation for Positive Change is proud to be the first corporate sponsor of the Second International Conference on Appreciative Inquiry. This conference, the theme of which is Creating Extraordinary Organizations for Business and Society, is scheduled for September 19-22, 2004 in Miami, FL. Conference coordinators have issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) for case studies, AI applications, and theory building / research presentations. If you have good work to share, click here to download AI Consulting's online RFP form and complete the RFP. Proposals must be sent electronically to Connie Thornton-Reed at catreed@aiconsulting.org no later than January 21, 2004, 5:00 p.m. EST.

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About Corporation for Positive Change

 Corporation for Positive Change (CPC) is dedicated to the design and development of Appreciative organizations - those capable of sustaining innovation, financial well-being and market leadership by inspiring the best in human beings. CPC provides consultation and training based on the principles and practices of Appreciative Inquiry. For more information about CPC, or to contact any of our principal consultants, please visit our web site at www.positivechange.org.

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