To Realize Opportunities, Approach Issues with Appreciative Inquiry

Do you ever feel stuck in a cycle of firefighting and problem-solving? That might be because problem-solving typically usually only gets you back to the status quo—a state without the current problem. It doesn’t push you, your team, or your organization into a more positive, more resilient state of excellence.

Instead, try approaching business challenges with the lens of appreciative inquiry, say Jen Hetzel Silbert and Tony Silbert, owners of Spartina Consulting and the facilitators of this year’s CSO Center Secure Horizons event, sponsored by QCIC, at GSX 2025.

Appreciative inquiry can help leaders more effectively influence and woo others by homing in on what people value and aiming for those outcomes, rather than focusing primarily on problems. It’s easier for people to complain about immediate problems and demand quick solutions, but those solutions rarely move the needle on business outcomes or add notable value. Asking open-ended questions with a positive bias can uncover the end goals that can make a difference for the organization.

This requires a curious and open mindset, and it will take more time than the urgency-centric problem-solving approach, Silbert warns. But it provides more sustainable results and a better footing from which to have future conversations about business, risk, and long-term goals.

For instance, if an airline is having significant problems getting customers’ luggage delivered correctly and on time, the problem-solving fix is to improve how quickly lost baggage is located. But by asking deeper questions about the challenge and what it poses to the organization, you may discover that the real issue that should be addressed is how to provide an outstanding overall arrival experience for customers—not only luggage but also going beyond it.

How do you get to those deeper answers, though? It’s story time.

Storytelling is an effective and engaging way to glean information about someone’s priorities, values, and methods, Silbert says. When you tell a story, an active listener will be able to hear much more than the narrative itself—they hear your approach to work, challenges, opportunities, and relationship management.

The next time someone comes to you to ask for help to solve a problem, consider—did you ask any questions beyond the task at hand? If not, you likely didn’t get any strategic information that would help address the root causes of the situation. Instead, take more time and invite a story through open-ended questions that tap into lived experience, personal observations, and past relationships. Not only will this uncover more information that can help inform a new strategy, but it will foster a relationship with that individual moving forward.

When we take the time to prioritize learning, Hetzel Silbert says, working with open-ended questions and stories helps create a better connection—it helps people lower their defenses and be more open to collaboration.

What's the value of appreciative inquiry? We asked Jen and Tony Silbert, co-founders of Spartina Consulting, to share some insights at #GSX2025. pic.twitter.com/Zi6i0jqDaA

— Security Management (@SecMgmtMag) September 29, 2025

So, what makes a good, informative appreciative inquiry conversation? It breaks down into three parts.

Back. Invite the individual to share a high-level story about a specific point in time or specific experience. For example, ask a new colleague about a time someone greatly influenced him or her in their career or personal life.

In. Use open-ended questions to dive deeper into the story. This will uncover key insights to help you build a relationship with that person and understand their motivations or priorities. You could ask that new colleague about how that influential individual helped them get things done, how their new perspectives were embraced, or what conditions contributed to the story. This can reveal what that person considers the “secret sauce” for success.

Forward. This pushes the conversation into a future-facing, imaginative direction and identifies the actions needed to make that vision of excellence possible. So, you could ask the colleague: “Considering that story, if leading with influence had a recipe, what would that look like?”

This conversational structure and reframing helps teams break out of cycles focusing on the negative, complaining, or firefighting.

If an organization is having major challenges maintaining its supply chain, the CSO would identify who the other players are in the conversation and then focus the initial questions to elicit a story about a time when the supply chain worked really well, when all supplies were accessible or where they needed to be at the right time, or when workarounds or surprise innovations delivered positive outcomes.

“Sometimes that means tapping into stories and experiences that may feel foreign and irrelevant, but yet they hold the recipe for what we need to consider moving forward,” Hetzel Silbert tells Security Management. “So, it’s about really examining—even if we have to dig, and even if the stories aren’t plentiful—but really looking for what does work, studying it, and replicating those conditions for success.”

This reframed approach can also help overcome resistance to change by inviting more participation and revealing the root causes behind those conflicts.

If an organization’s leaders are deliberating over a return-to-office mandate but employees are vehemently against the idea, conversations built around curious inquiry can evaluate the why for both sides. Leaders could ask how remote or in-person work fits into individuals’ plans or ways of life, what organizational priorities are not being met with remote work, what support might be needed to reach a more positive end state, and what would happen if the two parties do or do not follow through on the mandate.

In appreciative inquiry, Hetzel Silbert says, what we ask determines what we find, what we find determines how we talk, how we talk determines how we imagine together, and how we imagine determines what we achieve. But that thread starts with taking the time to dig deeper into goals and motivations through open conversations, nuanced questions, and storytelling.

Learn more about the ASIS International CSO Center here.

Claire Meyer is editor-in-chief of Security Management magazine, the publisher of the GSX Daily. Connect with her on LinkedIn or at [email protected].