Inspiration and stories
KS News, events & blogs

For us, the week before September 1st is always a moment to come together as a group, with our colleagues from The Netherlands, Germany and Belgium. We reconnect after the long summer break and make plans for the upcoming work season. This year, we spent 3 days in Erfgoed Bossem (NL) where the green scenery and starlit sky proved the perfect environment for us to explore our experiences on designing - this year’s topic.

It was many years ago when we first realized that the questions we ask, the strenghs we notice every day, and the stories we share, can completely change how teams show up and grow. That insight became the heart of our book: 'Appreciative Inquiry as a Daily Leadership Practice'. Together with our publisher Taos Institute, we decided to make our book part of the WorldShare Books program. With that our book is from now FREELY available for everyone!

As Kessels & Smit, The Learning Company, we support in questions related to learning & development, organisational change, leadership & team development, structure & strategy processes and sustainable employability & job satisfaction. But how do we do that? In the coming months, we will highlight an example of such a client question each time. This time, a project from our talent practice.

As Kessels & Smit, The Learning Company, we support in questions related to learning & development, organisational change, leadership & team development, structure & strategy processes and sustainable employability & job satisfaction. But how do we do that? In the coming months, we will highlight an example of such a client question each time. This time, a project from our design practice.

The Open Issue 2025 is out now! The Open Issue has become an annual feature of AI Practitioner. It is the one issue that doesn’t have a linking theme for the articles. Instead, authors share their thoughts, their interests and their passions related to Appreciative Inquiry.

Last week colleagues Pieterjan, Remko and Saskia visited colleague Martine for a working visit to Rwanda. One of the activities: Supporting Dieudonné Gakire with the opening of his hub. A place for young and old to meet and learn from and with each other. A community hotspot in the countryside.

As owner of RB Konnekt, Roos Beerkens has dedicated herself to creating an inclusive society, especially through organisations. From her rich experience, she is committed to diversity, equality and inclusion (DGI) with heart and soul. These values also drive her mission for her. Derk van der Pol talked to her about it.

The September issue of AI Practitioner, the International Journal of Appreciative Inquiry, is out. This is the second bilingual English-French issue, giving us a glimpse into appreciative inquiry practices in French speaking organisations and communities. The issue holds stories from France, Morocco, Canada, Senegal, Belgium and Switzerland.

In the newest episode of Inspiring Impacts Luc Verheijen speaks with Dr. Lindsey Godwin about how to use appreciative inquiry and learning networks to address challenges, improve performance, and create energized workplace environments.

What if we choose even more radically to place all of life – including the more-than- human world – at the centre of everything we do? What might it look like if we made more space for non-human voices? How can we work more explicitly with and in nature? How do we broaden our perspective from human flourishing to a thriving planet? These are the central questions of the special issue of the International Journal for Appreciative Inquiry (AIP) that was guest edited by our K&S colleague Joeri Kabalt.