Материал: Management-and-Organization-Behavior

Lesson – 28 : Creativity And Innovation

Objectives

After reading this lesson, you should be able to:

ӹӹKnow The Process Of Creativity And Its Importance In Developing New Products;

ӹӹUnderstand The Role Of Innovation In The Modern Organizations; And

ӹӹInfuse Entrepreneurial Spirit In The Organization That You Are Working For.

Lesson Outline

ӹӹCreativity And Innovation

ӹӹProcess Of Creativity

ӹӹOrganisational Creativity And Innovation

ӹӹThe Climate For Organisational Creativity

ӹӹEntrepreneurship

ӹӹEntrepreneurship Vs Managership

ӹӹReview Questions

The growth and survival of the business in the dynamic environment as of today depends upon the development of new products. Organizations must be always in the lookout for new opportunities and exploiting them by creating new products and services. Therefore, it is needless to say that new product development holds the key for the survival of an organization. New products do not come about on their own. They are the result of the ingenuity of creativity people in the organization. As such, it is obvious that new product development is the function of organizational creativity. In other words, it depends upon how creative an organization is in respect of new ideas. It may be understood any organization can be as creative as its people. Having understood the importance of creativity in the organizational context, let us understand the meaning and process of creativity.

Creativity

Creativity, in general, may be defined as an “escape from mental stuckness”. In the organizational context, it may be viewed as new insights which points to better ways of dealing with reality. It involves a departure from conventional thinking to non-conventional thinking. It entails establishment of a relationship between the hitherto unrelated things, ideas or concepts. A close examination of many products enables us to understand how apparently

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unrelated things are related to produce a new product. The ubiquitous wet grinder found in many of the kitchens may be cited as a best example where a relationship is established between the electric motor and the conventional stone used in the Indian homes for grinding purposes since times immemorial. Similar is the case with the electric bulb and the lens that are combined to develop the overhead projector used in the classrooms. The same logic holds good for many products that we see around.

Creativity and Innovation

Though, at times creativity and innovation are used interchangeably, it is appropriate to know that both are different. While creativity is the generation of a new idea, innovation is the translation of such an idea into a product, service or method of production. In Lawrence B.

Mohr’s Woods, creativity implies “bringing something new into being while innovation implies bringing something new into use”. According to Rosabeth Kanter, “Innovation is the generation, acceptance and implementation of new ideas, processes, products or services”.

Such a distinction is necessary because the skills required to generate new ideas (creativity) are not the same as those required to make the ideas take the shape of products or services. Since both creativity and innovation are two different functions, organizations need people good at both the functions. Further, creativity alone does not contribute for organizational effectiveness unless the creative ideas can in some way be used or implemented. A new idea, however good it is, must be capable of implementation and must actually be implemented for the organization to benefit from it.

The Creativity Process

Creative people, in general, are few and far between in any society. Many products and services that we take for granted these days are the result of their creative thinking. It was J.P.Guildford, a noted psychologist who coined

the phrases ‘divergent’ and ‘convergent’ to describe different thinking styles in the early 1950s. Accordingly, Convergent thinking is the sort of thinking most of us are trained to do. Divergent thinking is quite different from convergent thinking. It is intuitive thinking and is quite different from convergent thinking. It is intuitive thinking useful to deal with problems permitting several possible solutions where novel, unexpected answers emerge.

Physiologically, our brain has two distinct hemispheres: one on the left side, and the other on the right side. Psychologists have long back established that these two halves have totally different jobs. The function of the left side of the brain is linear thought processthe type of thinking involved when you solve a mathematical problem. The right side of the brain acts or behaves in a different way. Its functions are connected with imagery, and with intuition or ‘gut-feel’.

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There is an obvious parallel between convergence/divergence and the left brain/right brain model. In other words, convergent thinking takes place in the left brain while, divergent thinking in the right brain. Having understood the two spheres of the human brain, let us acquaint with the process of creativity:

Idea generation: The individual selects a problem to work on or more likely become aware that a problem or need exists. This is the starting point for the new product development indeed. This refers to the awareness about the ‘gaps’ in the market.

Preparation: The individual becomes obsessed with the idea/ problem, recalling and collecting information that seems relevant and dreaming up hypothesis without evaluating them. Openness to experience, tolerance for ambiguity and willingness and courage to redefine the existing concepts, beliefs are the important psychological attributes required at the stage.

Incubation: After assembling the available information, the individual relaxes and the subconscious mind becomes active. In this not much understood but crucial step, the individual often appears to be idle or day dreaming, but the subconscious is in fact trying to arrange the facts into a pattern. Psychological freedom and safety are important at this stage.

Illumination: This is something which we experience quite often. Often, when least expected – while eating, falling asleep or walkingthe new integrative idea will flash into the individual’s mind. Such insights must be recorded quickly, because the conscious mind may forget them in the course of other activities.

Verification and Application: The individual sets out to prove by logic or experiment that the idea can solve the problem and can be implemented. Tenacity may be required at this point. It is at this state the individual switches over to the logical, analytical or convergent thinking. The practical implications are examined what is known as feasibility assessmentboth technical and economic for commercialization of the idea/concept. This is also known as assessing the scalability.

Organizational Creativity and Innovation

Just as individuals differ in their ability to translate their creative talents into results, organizations also differ in their ability to translate the talents of their members into new products, processes or services. To make the organization creative, managers need to know the steps involved in the creativity process presented above and take appropriate initiatives to encourage the process.

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Climate for Organisational Creativity

Creativity is best nurtured in a permissive climate which encourages the exploration of new ideas and new ways of doing things. The following aspects, if practiced, would contribute to fostering creativity in organization.

Accept change: Organisation members must believe that change will benefit them and the organization. Some resistance to change is found in many organizations for fear of losing position, learning new skills, etc. Such a resistance to change has to be overcome by clarifying the need and urgency for change. The adage that routine drives out the non-routine has to be revisited and must be seen the other way.

Encourage new ideas: Managers in the organizations, from top to the down must make it clear in word and deed that they welcome new approaches. To encourage creativity, managers must listen to their subordinates ideas and suggestions/ways of doing things. They must have an open mind.

Permit more interaction: A permissive, creative climate can be fostered if individuals have the opportunity to interact with other members of the group and other groups in the organization. Such interaction encourages the exchange of useful information, the free flow of ideas, and fresh perspectives on problems.

Tolerate failure: Inspite of the best efforts and intentions, failure is not uncommon. Tolerance for failure needs to be imbibed. Failure has to be understood as a learning experience.

Freedom to achieve: For the mind to explore new ideas there has to be abundant freedom of thought and action.Organisation members must be properly guided towards achievement. A supportive climate will help gain control over the time and money invested in creative behavior.

Offer recognition: Creative individuals are motivated to work hard on tasks that interest them. They must be rewarded for the tasks well done. By offering recognition in such tangible forms as salary increase, recognition, the message gets conveyed that creative behavior is valued and rewarded.

Factors Hamper Innovation

Rosabeth Kanter has developed a list of ten types of attitudes that stifle creative and innovative attempts or disposition of the people in the organization. Such attitudes will have a dampening effect on organizational creativity and innovation. An understanding of the following points may help you avoid getting into the trap.

-- Viewing any new idea from below with suspicionbecause it is new, and because it is from below.

-- Insisting that people who need our approval to act first go through

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several other levels of management to get their signatures.

-- Asking departments or individuals to challenge and criticize each other’s proposals.

-- Expressing criticism freely and withholding praise where it is due. (Keeping the people on their toes). Creating a fear psychosis among people that they can be fired at any time.

-- Treating identification of problems as signs of failure in order to discourage people from letting you know when something in their area is not working.

-- Controlling everything carefully. Make sure people count anything that can be counted frequently.

-- Making decisions to reorganize or changing the policies in secret, and springing them on people unexpectedly.

-- Making sure that requests for information are fully justified, and making doubly sure that it is not given out to managers freely.

-- Assigning to lower-level managers, in the name of delegation and participation, responsibility for figuring out how to cutback, layoff, move people around, or otherwise implementing the threats you have thrown around.

-- And above all, never forget that you the higher - ups, already know everything important about this business.

Entrepreneurship

It has now been fully recognized all over the word that entrepreneurship is the critical input for the economic development. Entrepreneurs are the people who identify new opportunities and exploit them. In the process, they contribute immensely for the growth of any nation by providing goods and services. Basically, entrepreneur sees a need and then brings together the manpower, materials, and capital required to meet that need. It involves the

shifting of resources from ‘low productivity’ areas to ‘high productivity’ areas. Needless to say that in the absence of entrepreneurship, which acts as a catalyst agent, resources would remain simply unexploited and noting worthwhile happens in any economic system.

Entrepreneurship vs. Managership

Entrepreneurship involves initiating changes. Doing things in an innovative way. It refers to creation of a new organization. Management, on the other hand, refers to the ongoing coordination of the production process, which can be visualized as a continued combing of the factors of production. It involves managing an existing business. Consequent to the liberalization polices pursued by the government, Indian industry is exposed to stiff, sometimes, even cut-throat competition, not only from other enterprises within the country but also from outside. As a result, the axiomatic truth

‘survival of the fittest’ has become the reality in the Indian corporate sector too. Failure of managements to respond appropriately to changing realities would cost them dearly. In the wake of profound changes in the various segments

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