About Us
Group Members: Carl Durr, Nick Hinman, Jonathan Leathery, Andrew Mummolo, Kevin Smith
We decided to publish this blog as a resource for others seeking information/inspiration for Organizational Creativity. We hope you find some useful information and encourage you to share your thoughts, experiences and resources with us.
Introduction to Creativity
Creativity is defined as the process of using imagination and skill to develop a new or unique product, object, process, or thought.
Creativity can help keep employees stimulated and involved, as well as producing new and innovative solutions to a company's problems.
Creativity is a skill that can be enhanced through training and experience.
By encouraging and nurturing creativity, organizations innovate new methods and products that lead to success and profit.
The Five Stages of Creativity
Doing some sort of research to gain knowledge of what needs to be accomplished
Concentration
Organizing one's thoughts and focusing on finding or creating a solution
Incubation
Allowing your subconscious to work on your ideas while you perform everyday tasks
Illumination
When your ideas come together and a solution is found or created (the "aha" moment)
Verification
Reexamining the process to make sure that your solution is valid
Individual Creativity
The knowledge and talent that people have in a particular area
Creative ideas usually come from people who are skilled and experienced in a specific field
Task Motivation
Successful completion of a task motivates individuals to be creative and find new solutions
Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic
Intrinsic motivation occurs when an individual engages in an activity for personal fulfillment. This is encourages creativity.
Extrinsic motivation comes from an external reward or incentive. This can shift focus away from the task and hinder creativity
Goal Setting Theory
By setting goals, individuals may be encouraged to find new and creative ways to attain them
Group Creativity
Contradictory views force group members to consider new ideas. When forced to consider other perspectives, group members may produce creative ideas
Diversity
Diverse groups tend to generate and implement more innovative ideas than groups that lack diversity due to their ability to provide a wider range of perspective on distinct topics
Brainstorming
Sharing ideas ,back and forth, between all group members lead to numerous ideas of thought and can produce creativity.
Corporate Creativity
Alignment
Ensuring that the interests and actions of all employees are directed toward a company's key goals
Self-initiated Activity
Employees should be able to produce new and useful solutions without being shown or taught
Unofficial Activity
Activity performed without organizational support
Allows for more creative freedom with fewer restrictions and constraints
Serendipity
Discovering connections between elements that seem unconnected
Diverse Stimuli
Encouraging employees to be creative by exposing them to different things
Within-Company Communication
Communication lines within a company need to be open and available so that employees can share crucial ideas that may lead to creative solutions
Affect vs. Creativity
Cognitive flexibility broadens an individual's actions and allow them to think with greater variation.
Negative Affect
Some studies show a positive correlation between depression and level of creativity
Being discontent can create the need to inject creative ideas into a situation
Works Cited
Levi, D. (2007). Group dynamics for teams (2nd ed.).: SAGE, 2007.
Dynamic Thinking (n.d.). The Real Challenge in Fostering
Creativity. Retrieved April 16, 2009 from Dynamic Thinking,
Web site: http://www.dynamicthinking.com/fostering_creativity.htm
McNamara, Carter (1997). Basics in Internal Organizational
Communications. Retrieved April 15, 2009 from Free Managment
Library, Web site: http://managementhelp.org/mrktng/org_cmm.htm
Robinson,Alan. Stern, Sam. (1997). Corporate Creativity: It’s Not What
You Expect. Innovative Leader, 6(10).
Robinson, Alan. , Stern, Sam. (1997). Corporate Creativity. San
The Delphi Group (n.d.). Individual Alignment. Retrieved April
16, 2009 from The Delphi Group, Web site:
http://www.thedelphigroup.com/alignment_i.html
Wikipedia (n.d.). Serendipity. Retrieved April 15, 2009 from
Wikipedia, Web site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serendipity
Teresa M. Amabile, Sigal G. Barsade, Jennifer S. Mueller, Barry M. Staw
(2005). Affect and Creativity at Work. Administrative Science
Quarterly, 50(3), 367-403.
Paulus, P. B. (2003). Group Creativity: Innovation through Collaboration.
University Press.