CREATIVITY AND PROBLEM SOLVING IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF ORGANIZATIONAL INNOVATION
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The document discusses the importance of creativity and innovation in organizations, presenting a model for enhancing creativity through cognitive processes and a structured problem-solving approach. It outlines essential steps for fostering an innovative culture, including leadership commitment and strategic integration of innovation initiatives. The proposed model aims to create a culture of innovation by systematically addressing organizational challenges and leveraging creative problem-solving techniques.
CREATIVITY AND PROBLEM SOLVING IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF ORGANIZATIONAL INNOVATION
- 1. R. Pellissier Department of Business Management, University of South Africa. F. Sousa President, Apgico, INUAF, Loulé, Portugal.
- 2. CONTENTS • Setting the scene • Research objectives • Proposed model Creativity • Applications Organizational CPS innovation
- 3. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES AND DESIGN 3 • Development of a system to enhance creativity in organizations • Conceptual modeling • Verification
- 4. INNOVATION Definition: ‘ .. the intentional introduction and application within a role, group or organization of ideas, processes, products or procedures, new to the relevant unit of adoption, designed to significantly benefit the individual, the group, organization or wider society’. West and Farr (1990:109) The implementation of innovation depends on: •Creativity and entrepreneurship; •Technology as knowledge through human activity; and •Knowledge obtained through processes or systems.
- 5. CREATIVITY & INNOVATION Creativity ‘ ..a process that results in novelty which is accepted as useful, tenable, or satisfying by a significant group of others at some point in time’ (Stein, 1994) Innovation ‘ ..the intentional introduction and application within a role, group or organization of ideas, processes, products or procedures, new to the relevant unit of adoption, designed to significantly benefit the individual, the group, organization or wider society’ (West and Farr, 1990) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Creativity ‘ .. cognitive and emotional processes taking place at the individual level’ (Sousa, 2007) Innovation ‘The processes of implementation, relying on organizational communication and power.’ ‘ .. a social, spatially embedded, interactive learning process that cannot be understood independently of its institutional and cultural context .’(Cooke, Heidenreich, & Braczyk, 2004; Lundvall, 1992; Freeman, 1998).
- 6. CREATIVITY AND INNOVATION Product, process, service innovation Organizational innovation architectural radical Systems linkages incremental modular Components/core concepts Creativity Entrepreneurship Innovation Creative discovery. Seize opportunity. Commercial exploitation Individual activity Group activity Redefine leadership, processes, systems, culture, meaning, organisation. Organizational activity 6
- 7. BUILDING BLOCKS AND STEPS Building blocks for innovation: • Formally integrate innovation into the strategic management agenda (thus innovation is managed, tracked and measured as a core element of the organisation’s growth); • Create conditions that allow dynamic innovation networks to emerge and flourish and • Take explicit steps to foster a culture of innovation by valuing ideas and collectively overseeing risk. (Barsh, Capozzi and Davidson, 2008) Steps to advance innovation: • Identify the type of innovation that can drive growth and strategic objectives; • Add innovation to the formal agenda at regular leadership meetings; • Set performance metrics and targets for innovation and • Turn selected managers into innovation leaders.
- 8. CPS PROCESS Cognitive training method for the development of critical and creative thinking abilities, represented in the mental skills of data conceptualizing, analysis, synthesis and evaluation, as well as in the process of gathering information through direct observation, experimentation or reflection. Allows for the training of leadership and team work skills. Uses a series of tools and structures with ill defined problems, the latter of which do not have a single possible solution, or problems that have not produced satisfactory solutions using other problem-solving methods. Steps: problem finding, fact finding, problem definition, solution finding and decision implementation. Each of these steps has two moments: •Divergent -the group tries to find the maximum possible number of alternatives; •Convergent - only one alternative (or just a few) is selected. The process continues until a system of organizational innovation is developed. Other central aspects of organizational innovation (management control measures, knowledge management, organizational communication and culture, and employee commitment) will be addressed in this cycle, for instance the outcomes of the change process that will establish (if successful), a different culture in the organization. If successful, the model will allow for the creation of a culture of innovation within the organization, including more and more of its constituents, as more development projects become profitable innovations (Basadur & Patton, 1993).
- 9. CREATIVITY AND PROBLEM SOLVING Creativity as innovation • As the product of that communication process, creativity appears connected to what is perceived as new and useful by someone other than its originator, or as the putting to use of an idea (Kanter, 1983), in the domains of production, adoption, implementation, diffusion, or commercialisation of creations (Kaufmann, 1993; Spence, 1994). Problem solving • Creativity relates to problem definition. • Innovation relates to decision implementation requires a series of problem definitions, in order to carry out a decision or an idea, thereby making it difficult to separate these concepts at an organizational level. • There is no difference between organizational creativity and innovation (Basadur , 1998) Innovation: Creativity: Decision Problem definition implementation
- 10. Management MODEL FOR ORGANIZATION- requirements WIDE INNOVATION Problem finding Identification of existing theories in use Project implementation Perceptual maps of creative leaders METRICS COMMITMENT Problem identification COMUNICATION Managers and KNOWLEDGE creative individuals CULTURE team up Project teams Problem solving
- 11. MODEL Management (PERFORMANCE, KNOWLEDGE, COMMITMENT, requirements CULTURE, COMMUNICATION ) CPS1 - Outer CPS2i - Inner Identification of existing theories in use Innovation (Product/Process) Problem finding Solution implementation Perceptual maps of creative leaders Formation of project team & CPS training Problem solving
- 12. The Outer Level (CPS1) Step I – Problem Finding - is aimed at identifying the CPS existent problems in the organization. The first action consists in a pre-consulting with the administration, aiming at gaining its involvement, so that the main problems may be identified. Next comes the organizational diagnosis, in order to assess the existent management support to a creative climate in each organizational unit. The next action is interviewing creative managers and drawing their perceptual maps, to provide the administration with a deeper understanding of the identified problems. Finally, the designation of a The Inner Level (CPS2) first creative team (managers and employees), to initiate the CPS procedures. Step II – Problem Solving - is the implementation of the Step I – CPS Procedures - following Min Basadur’s CPS methodology with the creative team. It consists problem solving approach: These consist of three distinct of an initial action of training in CPS procedures, phases – problem definition, problem solving and followed by the necessary work sessions, from problem identification until the definition of an solution implementation, and eight actions: problem action plan, within the framework defined by the finding, fact finding, problem definition, solution finding, administration. solution evaluation, action planning, gaining acceptance Step III – Solution Implementation - is the application of and taking action. the action plan, made by other people than the CPS team, to produce a specific innovation project. In this stage more personnel is included into the Step II – Project Implementation - The project team will process, giving way to the training of further teams implement the innovation plan drawn out of the decision in CPS, in order to develop and maintain innovation chosen together with the administration, thus providing sub-projects. opportunities to establish further project teams. This Step IV – Model Evaluation – Solution implementation will way, a system of transformation of the individual and proceed with the development of management control measures, to evaluate the implications of team creativity into organizational innovation can be each innovation project in the company’s established. performance. Organizational culture and employee commitment towards innovation will be subjected to pre and post-assessment, using the organizational climate survey and the creative leaders’ questionnaire. Also, the improvement in organizational communication and knowledge will be appreciated by qualitative evaluation, interviewing the same leaders that were interviewed in the first step, after a defined period of project development.
- 13. MODEL REQUIREMENTS 13 • Top management commitment • Innovation culture • Relying on the organization’s talented people • Project teams follow a creative problem solving approach
- 14. IMPLEMENTATION CPS process Data conceptualizing, analysis, synthesis and evaluation, gathering information through direct observation, experimentation or reflection. Problem finding, Fact finding, Problem definition, Solution finding and Decision implementation. Each of these steps has two moments: 11.Divergent, in which the group tries to find the maximum possible number of alternatives; 12.Convergent, in which only one alternative (or just a few) is selected. The process continues until a system of organizational innovation is developed.
- 15. ORGANIZATIONAL DIAGNOSIS Empenho no trabalho Ambiente divertido Abertura a ideias Conflito e poder al ci er g om in C ket s e ar õ M laç nto a e st m In e a o a n ça s Pl c ofe n t on e s C am m nto Departamento ab e e Ac lag am ce ion Te vis ro ra Ap utu tr Es 2,5 2,0 1,5 1,0 ,5 0,0 Mean
- 17. CONCLUSION As the creative problem solving tools have already demonstrated their usefulness in finding solutions and helping organizations to improve, what remains to be proved is the value of selecting and organizing creative people in an organization, by giving them time, space, knowledge and the opportunity to team up and direct their individual creativity to the organizational problems. The process of developing organizational creativity is complex and not a linear one, with ups and downs, which can only give rise to a culture of innovation with the management’s total commitment. Future research will allow for testing of the model, in its wide complexity, and will provide new insights into the process of organizational creativity.