As I told my new “discovery,” Andree Iffrig, I’m amazed that after nearly four years of combing the Internet for storytelling materials, I had never before come across Andree’s work. Andree has agreed to respond to a Q&A, so I’m hoping to learn more about what sounds like a fascinating journey from her beginnings as an architect to her current life as a writer who “uses her broad background in environmental design and community development to investigate trends in architecture and urban design.”

In addition to her intriguing career, Andree has developed an approach to organizational storytelling that is not quite like any I’ve seen. While leadership and management play a role in her approach, Andree champions what I would describe as “worker storytelling” aimed at creating friendlier workplace communities. She also writes about (and, I suspect, does more than write about) communities of inquiry — peer-learning groups that meet outside of workplaces, enabling workers to “cultivate deeper meaning” in their work lives through storytelling.

Best of all, she offers wonderful resources:

• Her book, Find Your Voice at Work: The Power of Storytelling in the Workplace ($17.50).
• A workbook to accompany the book — and the workbook is a free download.
• Inspiring articles both on her site (including how-tos for creating communities of inquiry/peer-learning groups) and at Suite 101.

Read about her sustainability work here.