Culture Management and Creativity

Many concepts in the fields of managing creativity are very much applicable to culture management in general. The same concepts that foster creativity and innovation also maximise human capital potential, increase productivity, reduce costs and maintain competitive advantage etc. Some of the many commonalities between culture and creativity management follow.

a) A culture of psychological safety and freedom. A culture that limits experience, information and expression and allows relatively few members to contribute to decision-making is not taking advantage of the immense pool of available talent. Just as idea-generating sessions are conducted in environments that limit judgement, in order to elicit the contribution of all participants, so that philosophy should be extended throughout the organisation permanently.

b) Motivation is more important than natural ability. This is similar to possessing high intelligence ? one must be motivated to apply it and improve it. Human capital is optimised when participants have high intrinsic motivation and i) synergistic extrinsic motivators are present to facilitate the task and ii) non-synergistic facilitators are minimised. Further, specific motivators such as i) gap between ideal and real self, ii) degree of enjoyability, iii) degree of challenge, iv) feasibility, v) degree of self-determination, vi) recognition, vii) material reward, viii) time pressures, ix) project numbers and complexity and x) competition versus collaboration etc need to be measured and monitored.

c) Team structures. The group structure affects individual productivity. Individuals working alone, when motivated, have high output levels, but suffer from path dependency, parochialism and a lack of intellectual cross-pollination. Pairs reduce some of these tendencies and as groups get larger, negatives begin to outweigh the positives ? group think, status differentials and deference, politicking and the restriction of information are just some examples.

d) Competency and tacit knowledge mix. Without a varied tacit knowledge and competency mix and a collaborative approach, a number of things happen: i) groups significantly under-perform and ii) the gap between individuals increases. Competitive advantage is lost in the group, team, department and eventually the organisational.

These and other topics are covered in depth in the MBA dissertation on Managing Creativity & Innovation, which can be purchased at http://www.managing-creativity.com

You are free to reproduce this article as long as the author's name, web address and link to MBA dissertation is retained.

Kal Bishop MBA
Kal is a management consultant based in London, UK. He has consulted in the visual media and software industries and for clients such as Toshiba and Transport for London. He has led improv, creativity and innovation workshops, exhibited artwork in San Francisco, Los Angeles and London and written a number of screenplays. He is a passionate traveller.

In The News:

---

Improving Your Inter-Company Communications At No Cost

It's all very well having a flashy (and expensive) advertising... Read More

Well-Defined Processes ? How to Create

Interested in learning how to reduce development time, save money... Read More

Five Steps to Better Employee Management

Hiring employees is a huge responsibility. Before hiring anyone, be... Read More

Action Learning: Its More Than OJT

For centuries companies have used on-the-job training (OJT). OJT works... Read More

1000 Managers Turned Their Plans Into Energy!

I bet you can't tell me how leadership training and... Read More

Using Outlook to Count Responses

Here's a productivity tip that will save you a lot... Read More

Is A Bad Attitude Permanent

Today there is great weight put on a person's attitude.... Read More

How Your Feelings and Those of Your Employees Can Make The Difference

How we feel is really more important than what we... Read More

The New Five Truths of Employee Motivation

Motivation is a term that is so widely used, yet... Read More

How to Leverage Your Strengths for Peak Performance

Ask almost any business leader how to most effectively develop... Read More

The Power of the Contract in Performance Management

An essential step in managing the performance of salespeople is... Read More

Take This Into Consideration Before You Write Your Mission Statement

What principles should a company keep in mind when developing... Read More

Optimizing Your Cash Flow With Proper Accounts Receivable Management

Businesses miss on growth opportunities and even close their doors... Read More

The Truth About Performance Reviews

Now that it is January, many of you are putting... Read More

Employee Motivation - Access Their Unique Talents

Your people are invaluable to you. They are the lifeblood... Read More

The New Economy

This technological revolution has organization, efficiency and productivity requirements well... Read More

Manage or Lead ? Why the Difference Matters and What to Do About That Difference

Many books have been written about managing people, and an... Read More

Understanding Every Aspect of Your Organization

GET TO KNOW YOUR ORGANIZATION: If you don't understand an... Read More

You?re Hired, Now Go Home: Managing Workers at a Distance

Telecommuting or virtual work opens up a wider net of... Read More

Human Resource Communication Pays Off

Human Resource Communications and Corporate Communications ? are they one... Read More

How Managers Can Turn Failures Into Successes

Although there are real, external reasons for managerial difficulty ?... Read More

A Checklist for Organized Executives

I could begin this article by providing a checklist of... Read More

Employee Surveys: a Strategic Tool for Positive Change

Do you want to measure your workers' level of satisfaction?... Read More

Managing Client Relationships

Managing Client Relationships: Even the best run organizations occasionally run... Read More

ISO 9001 What Records Does My Business Need To Keep?

Which documents must I keep for ISO 9001?In addition to... Read More

How You Can Learn to be a Better Manager

When you first take over a department, expectations are usually... Read More

Biometrics and ?Return On Investment?

At this time of tight budgets, the mantra of business... Read More

Are Your Meetings Smart?

Soon after I finished a brief seminar on how to... Read More

It?s Not All About Cheese: The Missing Component in Employee Development (Part 2)

In part one of this article I told you about... Read More

Why Your Company Needs An E-Mail Policy

Everyone at the office thought that using the company e-mail... Read More

Innovation Management ? Emotion, Habit, and Culture can be Hard to Change!

Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More

Spotlight on Productivity: How to Overcome E-Mail Overload

Do you ever feel overwhelmed by e-mail? Have you ever... Read More

Dealing with Marginal Performers: The Therapeutic Approach

--PREPARATION: The purpose of the therapeutic approach is to spark... Read More