Abstract

Leaders desire the positive outcomes of employee empowerment, but often do not know how to coordinate the actions of employees to ensure the desired group outcome for the organization. This paper establishes and evaluates a method that leaders might use to unleash greater motivation, results, and achievements through the application of Appreciative Inquiry approaches at the individual and group levels, allowing employees to identify and set goals that are aligned with their passions and hopes. Data gathered from 95 subjects will be used in examining 2 pairs of departments, each pair consisting of a control and action group, to study the impact an appreciative approach toward department goal setting. Data from interviews, cultural surveys, and performance results have been collected to study impact of the intervention across the one-year period of this company's annual performance management cycle