Mexicans are seriously detained by self-criticism, sometimes going as far as self-demonstration and a lack of confidence in their own abilities. “We are constantly trying to tell each other what we lack, pointing out what we fail at and what we are bad at.
We hardly take an appreciative approach to embracing the potential for individual and group strength. ”
This was pointed out by Dr. José DelaCerda Gastélum, director of External Relations at ITESO, the Jesuit University of Guadalajara, who commented that in order to compete in an increasingly aggressive, competitive and globalized environment, the organizations that offer services must use their faculties already built, those they already have, to enhance them, instead of dedicating themselves to correct what does not work.
As an ideal alternative to exploit the positive aspects of organizations and companies, the academic pointed to appreciative leadership, a technique that for the first time will be taught in Mexico by Dr. James Ludema, who will give the seminar Appreciative Inquiry: Leadership and appreciative search in organizations, on May 14 at the Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City.
What is appreciative leadership?
It is a branch that originated in the mid-1990s, at Case Western Reserve University in Ohio and at the University of Michigan. These institutions found that the organizational change methodologies commonly used have deficit approaches, that is, they look for a defect, error or weakness to try to solve it.
"The academics of these universities wondered if the same method was not carrying its own defeat, since counting the possibilities for improvement based on the knowledge of weaknesses, deficiencies, defects and errors, was counterproductive," said the ITESO expert.
It was then that both institutions began to develop a method of positive psychology, which made possible the emergence of appreciative leadership, a new aspect or paradigm of organizational change.
According to Dr. DelaCerda, more than a methodology or technique, appreciative leadership is a new conception or philosophy of how organizations should run.
“Essentially it shifts from a deficit approach based on weaknesses to an appreciative one based on the strengths of the organizations. In other words, when one tries to compete, sell or do something, it is done with the best of resources, with strengths and not with weaknesses ”, he commented.
Thus, this appreciative search allows us to find the great strengths of organizations and take advantage of them to transform the organization until it reaches its maximum potential.
The advantages of appreciative leadership
Despite being a young philosophy, the organizations that have decided on this philosophy and methodology in management –McDonald's, Nokia, British Airlines, Harley-Davidson- have found interesting and impressive increases in productivity, in the quality of service, of the product, in retaining talented employees and attracting talented others, a critical factor in today's competition. They have also found advances in the well-being, physical and psychological health of the workforce, said the specialist.
“Job satisfaction, that is, people's statements about how they feel at work, is highly positive in relation to appreciative leadership. In contrast, work-related stress and illness are highly negative in their statistical reaction to positive leadership. In other words, the more appreciative leadership there is, the stress and work-related illnesses tend to decrease ”, said the expert.
Through this technique, teamwork tends to prosper, as well as improving the quality of work relationships, achieving much more collaboration than competition. "Competition - it is proven in different investigations - tends to improve performance, but it also tends to affect the work environment because tensions, problems, and conflicts are created," he commented.
An option for Mexico?
In Mexico and other emerging or developing countries, the approach would be ideal, said Dr. DelaCerda. “There is serious research on the way in which Mexico and its organizations exercise leadership and they all point towards one of the destructive type, which does not build and rather depreciates and deteriorates the other. Thus, it is unimaginable to be able to build a productive relationship from depreciating the other, ”concluded Dr. DelaCerda.
