Introduction to Creativity

Definition

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

Preparation
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

Domain Relevant Skills
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

Conflict
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

Positive Affect
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

Francisco, CA: Berrett-Koehler.

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. New York: Oxford

University Press.

About Us

This blog was created as a group project for MGT-403 at Pennsylvania College of Technology.

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.