Positive Change Methods: Appreciative Inquiry and More

Positive Change Methods: Appreciative Inquiry and More

A podcast about Appreciative Inquiry and related approaches to change, with Andy Smith. Practical tips in each episode!

Episodes

September 17, 2026 10 mins

What happens in the Design Stage of Appreciative Inquiry - especially when working with a team? That's what this episode of the Positive Change Methods podcast with Andy Smith is all about

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Provocative Propositions: what they are, what makes a good one, and how to use them with teams and with larger-scale organisational change

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This episode is full of practical tips to build psychological safety in your team, even across digital divides - interview with bestselling author and leadership consultant Jenny Ainsworth.
Transcript and show notes at https://coachingleaders.co.uk/pcm28

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How to facilitate the Dream stage when you're conducting an Appreciative Inquiry workshop with a team (Appreciative Team Development), with some tips on scaling up for larger groups - plus ideas for what to do if unexpected situations crop up

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Practical Appreciative Inquiry podcast: How to frame the Dream stage of Appreciative Inquiry so that participants understand it
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September 27, 2025 12 mins
Appreciative Inquiry talks a lot about generative questions - but what are they? What do they do? And how to ask them successfully? Find out in this episode!
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Exploring the transformative world of Appreciative Inquiry with Jackie Stavros and Cheri Torres, authors of 'Conversations Worth Having'. Learn how to ask generative questions and frame conversations positively to foster collaboration and growth in your personal and professional life. Plus, the importance of curiosity, and how to avoid toxic positivity! Show notes: https://coachingleaders.co.uk/pcm24
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Interview with Wendy Burton, who's been using Appreciative Inquiry in the NHS in conjunction with Lean and Design Thinking to help improve processes and turn around struggling teams. Lots of useful tips and insights applicable beyond coaching in healthcare! Shownotes: https://coachingleaders.co.uk/pcm23 (includes transcript)
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When you're creating a vision of the ideal future with a team, or even a whole organisation, wouldn't it be great if they could get free of the constraints of past problems and limits? That's what the Dream stage of Appreciative Inquiry's 5-D format is designed to do. Show notes: https://coachingleaders.co.uk/pcm22
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Many business processes, essential as they are, don’t in themselves make the heart beat faster. How can we use Appreciative Inquiry to stimulate generative thinking about topics that are hard to engage with emotionally? Show notes: https://coachingleaders.co.uk/pcm21
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How do you conduct appreciative interviews with people who are feeling negative, or who are going through a tough time? This episode has some tips for doing the interviews sensitively, and for handling ‘negativity’ or cynicism from the interviewee. Show notes: https://coachingleaders.co.uk/pcm20
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So your group have done their appreciative interviews with each other - now, how do they identify the themes emerging from them? This episode is a deep dive the into practicalities of facilitating an Appreciative Inquiry process, starting with a small-group appreciative team development session and including tips for scaling up to larger groups. Show notes: https://coachingleaders.co.uk/pcm19
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Appreciative interviews are a great way to find what's working so you can do more of it. Here are three ways you can use them Get the show notes at https://coachingleaders.co.uk/pcm18
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There are various formats for appreciative interviews in the Appreciative Inquiry textbooks - this one works nicely for business. Show notes: https://coachingleaders.co.uk/pcm17
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June 16, 2025 10 mins
Appreciative interviews are the heart of Appreciative Inquiry's Discovery stage. This episode covers what they are, why we do them, and what you need to know to be a successful appreciative interviewer. Show notes: https://coachingleaders.co.uk/pcm16
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What should you do BEFORE you plan any change? Discover what's already working! Find out how to conduct Appreciative Inquiry's Discovery stage, and discover: - What can so easily go wrong with conventional 'deficit-focused' change methods. - Why your vision of the future is stronger if you first look at what's worked in the past. - How to make it easier to believe the future vision can happen. - How you can strengthen workin...
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The 'Problem to Possibility Exercise' - how to get a problem-focused team to move on to desired solutions and accept an appreciative approach. Show notes at https://coachingleaders.co.uk/positive-change-methods-podcast-14-problem-to-possibility
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In this week's episode, a checklist for a well-defined affirmative topic, plus the easy way to flip problem statements to affirmative topics
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What you need at the start of an Appreciative Inquiry project, and why you need to flip problem statements into affirmative topics
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A quick overview of the most-used format for structuring an Appreciative Inquiry process, the 5-D Format. Plus, why it's so great!
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