The Fowler Center for Business as an Agent of World Benefit at Case Western Reserve University Weatherhead School of Management is the global home for appreciative inquiry and AIM2Flourish.
The appreciative inquiry interview is at the heart of the AIM2Flourish assignment, which is the world's first higher-education program combining the United Nations' Global Goals for sustainable development and the concept of business as an agent of world benefit.
What is Appreciative Inquiry?
Appreciative inquiry (AI) is an approach that focuses on what’s working well, analyzing why it is working well and how to do more of it. AIM2Flourish is built on appreciative inquiry’s core idea that lifting up positive examples and sharing stories about “what’s working” is the best way to motivate, inspire and educate tomorrow’s leaders, while celebrating the leaders of today.
Who Created Appreciative Inquiry, and How is it Used Today?
David Cooperrider and Ron Fry developed the concept of appreciative inquiry (AI) at Case Western Reserve University in the late 1980s. Their work helped create a positive revolution in organizational change, and built a framework used by organizations across the globe to flourish.
Interested in learning more about appreciative inquiry? Check out these resources:
- “Appreciative Inquiry in a Pandemic: An Improbable Pairing” (The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science; Cooperrider, Fry 2020)
- “The Essentials of Appreciative Inquiry: A Roadmap for Creating Positive Futures” | Lo Esencial de la Indagación Apreciativa Un Mapa para Crear Futuros Positivos (ESP)
- Leading Positive Change through Appreciative Inquiry (Professor Ron Fry, Coursera)
- “What is Appreciative Inquiry?”: An overview from the Cooperrider Center at Champlain College
- Appreciative Inquiry Practice Interview Guide
- How to do an Appreciative Inquiry Interview Video
- "AI Practitioner" Journal
- “Appreciative Inquiry: Igniting Transformative Action” (By Bernard Mohr, The Systems Thinker, 2000)
- “Leading Positive Change through Appreciative Inquiry” (coursera.org)
- “Appreciative Inquiry: Organization Development and the Strengths Revolution” (Jacqueline M. Stavros, Lindsey N. Godwin, and David L. Cooperrider Chapter "Practicing Organization Development: 4E, eds.", Rothwell, et al., published by Wiley, October 2015)
Additional Resources
- Visit the Appreciative Inquiry Commons, a comprehensive website for the global appreciative inquiry community. The site is proudly hosted by The Champlain College David L. Cooperrider Center for Appreciative Inquiry in partnership with Case Western Reserve University’s Weatherhead School of Management.
- Visit the David L. Cooperrider Center for Appreciative Inquiry at Champlain College.