Appreciative Intelligence.Appreciative Intelligence, by Tojo Thatchenkery and Carol Metzker, Book, 2006, Berrett-Koehler Publishers, $24.95. According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. the authors, Tojo Thatchenkery and Carol Metzker, "appreciative intelligence" is "the ability to perceive the positive inherent generative gen·er·a·tive adj. 1. Having the ability to originate, produce, or procreate. 2. Of or relating to the production of offspring. generative pertaining to reproduction. potential within the present," or, as the subtitle sub·ti·tle n. 1. A secondary, usually explanatory title, as of a literary work. 2. A printed translation of the dialogue of a foreign-language film shown at the bottom of the screen. tr.v. suggests, being able to see the mighty oak in the acorn acorn: see oak. acorn Nut of the oak. Acorns are usually seated in or surrounded by a woody cupule. They mature within one to two seasons, and their appearance varies depending on the species of oak. . Oddly enough, the tenets of appreciative intelligence are extremely similar to those of appreciative inquiry Appreciative Inquiry (AI) is a organizational development process or philosophy that engages individuals within an organizational system in its renewal, change and focused performance. Appreciative Inquiry was developed by David Cooperrider of Case Western Reserve University. , which is looking for Looking for In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. the best in people and organizations--identifying existing strengths in order to achieve more of the same going forward. Marcus Buckingham takes a somewhat similar approach to leadership. Thatchenkery and Metzker do a fine job of explaining the three components of appreciative intelligence, which are the ability to reframe Re`frame´ v. t. 1. To frame again or anew. , appreciate the positive, and see how the future unfolds from the present. Those individuals who have these abilities are likely to successfully achieve goals even when faced with challenges Persistence, conviction that one's actions matter, tolerance for uncertainty, and irrepressible resilience are identified as the four personal qualities of appreciative intelligence. Lacks Practical Advice This book devotes many pages to laying out how appreciative intelligence was used at a school for students with learning disabilities. The case study is interesting, but it would have been helpful if the authors provided the same kind of in-depth case study about a business organization. Several business organizations are used as examples for various aspects of appreciative intelligence, as are various psychologists and scientists. Like the case study, the anecdotes are interesting, yet they give the book an academic textbook slant. Pragmatic how-to directions are scant scant adj. scant·er, scant·est 1. Barely sufficient: paid scant attention to the lecture. 2. Falling short of a specific measure: a scant cup of sugar. . Website Doesn't Provide Much The section "Appreciative Intelligence: Working for You" invites the reader to a website where "you can learn more." The website is nothing more than an advertisement for books one of the authors has written. In addition, this section encourages the reader to contact the authors about workshops, consulting, and speaking engagements. Perhaps that explains why this book lacks the non-academic "real world" information sought by business professionals who wish to become more effective in their organizations. The Organizational Appreciative Intelligence Profile included in the book at first glance appears to be a useful for helping recognize leaders within the organization who have strong appreciative intelligence characteristics, and to discover what characteristics their organizations share with other organizations with appreciative intelligence. However, the questions included in this assessment are exceedingly similar to the questions asked as part of an appreciative inquiry intervention. This similarity is curious because the authors indicate that the two are different and that appreciative inquiry is "an organizational analysis approach and methodology, whereas appreciative intelligence is a mental ability found in an individual." The two share common ground, so much so that I had great difficulty seeing a clear distinction between the two. In addition, nearly a quarter of the book (50 of the 214 pages) consists of notes, bibliography, acknowledgements, etc. That seems excessive for a fairly short book. Thatchenkery is a professor of organizational learning Organizational learning is an area of knowledge within organizational theory that studies models and theories about the way an organization learns and adapts. In Organizational development (OD), learning is a characteristic of an adaptive organization, i.e. at the School of Public Policy, George Mason University Named after American revolutionary, patriot and founding father George Mason, the university was founded as a branch of the University of Virginia in 1957 and became an independent institution in 1972. . He is the author of several books and articles on change management. Metzker has a master's degree master's degree n. An academic degree conferred by a college or university upon those who complete at least one year of prescribed study beyond the bachelor's degree. Noun 1. in organizational learning from George Mason University and has more than 15 years of experience in communications and corporate environments. Here are the chapters of the book: 1. Appreciative Intelligence: The Missing Link 2. Leveraging Appreciative Intelligence 3. Appreciative Intelligence in Action 4. Reframing reframing (rē·frāˑ·ming), n the revisiting and reconstruction of a patient's view of an experience to imbue it with a different usually more positive meaning in the Reality for a Great View 5. Appreciating the Positive 6. Seeing How the Future Unfolds From the Present 7. Appreciative Intelligence at Work 8. Developing Your Appreciative Intelligence 9. The Case for Appreciative Intelligence 10. The Brains Behind Appreciative Intelligence 11. Moving Forward for an Extraordinary Future Recommendation Appreciative Intelligence provides some interesting information and stories that support and complement the appreciative inquiry approach but breaks no new ground in the leadership development arena. Product Ratings Appreciative Intelligence Overall rating ** Review by Donna Walsh |
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