Capacity-building: the making of a curry

Organisational capacity-building may be so focused on the hope for an improved future that it unwittingly fails to draw upon key learning from past experience. Reflection upon and public affirmation of those moments in organisational life when members felt high commitment can ignite imagination and build momentum for a better future. Appreciative Inquiry (AI) methods of organisational transformation suggest that a positive future image of one's organisation can be a compelling, if not irresistible, force, the creation of which needs to embrace the already-lived and shared satisfying moments of members. Organisational capacity is best understood, and most enjoyably and authentically pursued, when the process and desired product is co-generated from within the lived realities of all its stakeholders. This article is freely available as a chapter in Development Methods and Approaches: Critical Reflections