This is not a typical conference. The Forum is slated to be highly interactive, using the renowned Appreciative Inquiry methodology to drive strength-based dialogues. Instead of standard keynote speeches or academic “paper sessions”, intimate, high level conversations of no more than 30 participants and provocative plenary sessions are designed to break new ground in transforming the field of management.
 
Plenary sessions, group dialogue, parallel sessions are all designed to result in specific action by the end of the Forum. Therefore the Forum will follow a specific flow: (1) the current state of reality, (2) envisioning our future, (3) designing how we will move from our current reality to our vision and (4) agreeing on the specific next steps to be taken following the forum.

“I would like to commend you more particularly for your methodology of Appreciative Inquiry and to thank you for introducing it to the United Nations. Without this, it would have been very difficult, perhaps even impossible, to constructively engage so many leaders of business, civil society, and government.”

- Kofi Annan, Secretary General, United Nations, in reference to the work professor David Cooperrider did in facilitating the UN Leaders Summit, 2004, a precursor event to this Forum