Reed Smith Stabile Starnes Thornton Williamson

Steps In The Creative Process  Defined as the production of novel and useful ideas  Creative thinking enables leaders to contribute novel insights that can open up new opportunities or alternatives for the group or the organization.  5 steps

Steps In The Creative Process Step 1 Opportunity or problem recognition Step 2 Immersion Step 3 Incubation Step 4 Insight Step 5 Verification and application

Characteristics of Creative Leaders  Knowledge- “provides the building blocks for generating and combining ideas.”  Cognitive Abilities- “general intelligence and abstract reasoning.”  “enthusiastic about puzzling problems”  Personality- “positive self image without being blindly self confident.”  Can deal with criticism well  Passion for the task and the experience of flow-  The Componential Theory of individual creativity- “creativity takes place when three components join together: expertise, creative-thinking skill, and task motivation.”

Traditional Thinking  Traditional thinking prevents innovating thinking from happening.  Traditional thinking imposes on the subordinates that there is no other way of accomplishing a goal.

Over Coming Traditional Thinking  It is the job of the leader in the organization to break down ridged thinking  It is also the role of the leader to allow his subordinates to break out of their own personal boundaries

Ways to Increase Creativity  Systematically collecting fresh ideas  Brainstorming  “Pet-Peeve” method  “Kitchen for the Mind” technique

Establishing a Culture for Creative Thinking  Establishing a climate for creative thinking is a requirement for effective leadership.  A climate for creativity can be divided into two ways 1). Leadership and managerial practices for enhancing creativity 2). Methods for managing creative workers

Enhancing Creative Problem Solving  Practicing creativity-enhancing exercises  Staying alert to opportunities  Maintaining an enthusiastic attitude

Enhancing Creative Problem Solving  Maintaining and using a systematic place for recording your ideas  Playing the roles of explorer, artist, judge, and lawyer  Engaging in appropriate physical exercise

Leadership Practices for Enhancing Creativity  Hire creative people from the outside and identify creative people from within  Intellectual challenge  Freedom to choose the method  Ample supply of the right resources  Effective design of work groups  Supervisory encouragement  Organizational support

Methods of Managing Creative Workers  Give creative people tools and resources that allow their work to stand out  Give creative people flexibility and a minimum amount of structure  Give gentle feedback when turning down an idea  Employ creative people to manage and evaluate creative workers

Additional Leadership Practices That Enhance Innovation  All leadership and management practices that enhance creative problem solving also enhance innovation  There are eight leadership initiatives that enhance innovation

Leadership Initiatives 1-4  Continually Pursue Innovation  Company leaders should stay alert to innovative possibilities  Important because new technology can make an industry obsolete or endanger it  Take Risks and encourage risk taking  It is necessary to gamble intelligently and selectively even in times of hardship  Emphasize Collaboration among employees  Most innovations originate from groups of people working together  Acquire Innovative Companies  In order to shorten the innovation process, companies must acquire smaller companies that have the innovation they need

Leadership Initiatives 5-8  Avoid Innovation For Its Own Sake  Leaders need to exercise good judgement  Innovation just for innovation is not always valuable  Loose-tight Leadership Enhances Creativity And Innovation  Leaders need to allow enough space for new ideas to surface  the tightness should be applied when choosing the new idea  Integrate Development and Production  Innovation may suffer when product development and production people are separated  More communication and input is emphasized when integrated  Recognize The Hidden Opportunities When Products And Ideas Flop  The key is to recognize the new possibilities that emerge from the failure