Business Innovation ? Organizational Culture

Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation whilst innovation can be defined as idea selection, development and commercialisation.

There are other useful definitions in this field, for example, creativity can be defined as consisting of a number of ideas, a number of diverse ideas and a number of novel ideas.

There are distinct processes that enhance problem identification and idea generation and, similarly, distinct processes that enhance idea selection, development and commercialisation. Whilst there is no sure fire route to commercial success, these processes improve the probability that good ideas will be generated and selected and that investment in developing and commercialising those ideas will not be wasted.

Organizational Culture

As idea generation is a cognitive activity, it follows that certain environments will inhibit that activity (and expression of) whilst others will foster it.

Optimum creativity and innovation occurs in a culture that includes:

a) Psychological safety. Where the individual has unconditioned worth. Where it is recognised that the individual is capable of producing without his or her value based on having to produce.

b) Psychological freedom. Where the individual is free to express without that expression being evaluated.

c) Empathy. Where an individual is understood from their point of view and perception.

d) Where ideas are accepted and advanced. That the recognition of the output of the individual is the reward.

e) Where leaders have an understanding of the psychology of expression and counter blocks.

These and other topics are covered in depth in the MBA dissertation on Managing Creativity & Innovation, which can be purchased (along with a Creativity and Innovation DIY Audit, Good Idea Generator Software and Power Point Presentation) from http://www.managing-creativity.com/

You can also receive a regular, free newsletter by entering your email address at this site.

You are free to reproduce this article as long as no changes are made and the author's name and site URL are retained.

Kal Bishop MBA, 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. He can be reached on http://www.managing-creativity.com/

In The News:

Yahoo! News: Top Stories

Palestinian demonstrators use sling-shots to hurl stones at Israeli soldiers during a demonstration against Israel's military operation in Gaza, in the West Bank village of Bilin, near Ramallah,Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009. Israel resumed its Gaza offensive Wednesday after a three-hour lull to allow delivery of humanitarian aid, bombing heavily around suspected smuggling tunnels near the border with Egypt. Despite the heavy fighting, strides appeared to be being made on the diplomatic front with the U.S. throwing its weight behind a deal being brokered by France and Egypt. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)AP - The U.N. Security Council called for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza, but an intense bombardment of missiles from Israeli jets and helicopters early Friday and a barrage of Hamas rockets indicated there may be no quick end to the fighting.



Rep. Jack Franks (D-Woodstock) votes to recommend the impeachment of Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich to the House during an Illinois House Impeachment Committee hearing Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009, in Springfield, Ill. The committee voted unanimously to recommend impeachment putting the matter before the full house.  (AP Photo/Seth Perlman)AP - Gov. Rod Blagojevich faces almost certain impeachment by the Illinois House, a historic step that would trigger a trial to determine whether the Democratic governor should be tossed out of office.



In this Monday, Dec. 29, 2008 file image provided by Greenpeace, coal ash slurry left behind in a containment pond near the Tennessee Valley Authority's Kingston Fossil Plant is shown  in Harriman, Tenn., after the dyke at left broke Dec. 22, 2008. Millions of tons of toxic coal ash is piling up in power plant ponds in 32 states, a practice the federal government has long recognized as a risk to human health and the environment but has left unregulated. (AP Photo/Greeenpeace, Wade Payne)AP - Millions of tons of toxic coal ash is piling up in power plant ponds in 32 states, a practice the federal government has long recognized as a risk to human health and the environment but has left unregulated.



Vice President Dick Cheney pauses during an interview with the Associated Press at the White House in Washington Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds)AP - Vice President Dick Cheney, warning against impulsive U.S. action in Iraq, says that whether the struggling nation backslides into a cycle of violence partly depends on how President-elect Barack Obama decides to pull out American forces.



In this Dec. 5, 2006 file photo, Leon Panetta, then a member of the Iraq Study Group, walks into a Washington hotel.    (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf, File)AP - President-elect Barack Obama is completing his national security team by announcing his unusual choices for CIA director and a national intelligence director who may face tough Senate confirmation questioning over how he confronted the Indonesian military when civilian massacres were occurring in East Timor.



Florida's Tim Tebow (15) throws a pass over Oklahoma's Auston English (33) during the third quarter of the BCS Championship NCAA college football game in Miami, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)AP - The game defied expectations. Tim Tebow fulfilled them. He rescued No. 1 Florida, running through and throwing over No. 2 Oklahoma for a 24-14 victory Thursday night that gave the Gators their second BCS championship in three years.



A man walks past an electric market board in central Tokyo, Friday, Jan. 9, 2008. Japanese shares edged down Friday in lackluster trade as investors turned cautious ahead of U.S. jobs data that's likely to point to a deepening recession in the world's largest economy. The benchmark Nikkei 225 stock average lost 39.62 points, or 0.5 percent, to close 8,836.80. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara)AP - Major Asian stock markets fell Friday amid more corporate gloom and worries that a key U.S. jobs report could show recession in the world's largest economy is deepening.



President-elect Barack Obama speaks about the economy at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va.,  Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)AP - President-elect Barack Obama implored Congress on Thursday to "act boldly and act now" to fix an economy growing perilously weaker. Democratic and Republican lawmakers complained about his tax policies, letting Obama know they intend to place their own stamp on the economic recovery effort.



A sign instructs job seekers at the California Employment Development Department in Sunnyvale, Calif., Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2009. The country lost nearly 2 million jobs through November and more bad news is expected this week when the government releases data on weekly jobless claims and December unemployment. No matter how bad those numbers are, and economists expect at least another 500,000 jobs were lost last month, the pain is stretching into 2009.  (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)AP - Trying to survive a deepening recession, employers are cutting their work forces to the bone, leaving more Americans unemployed and with dim prospects of finding a new job any time soon.



Freida Pinto backstage with the best picture award for 'Slumdog Millionaire' at the 14th Annual Critics' Choice Awards on Thursday Jan. 8, 2009 in Santa Monica, Calif. (AP Photo/Dan Steinberg)AP - The critics have spoken, and "Slumdog Millionaire" is their final answer.



Jaclyn Holt (R) fills out an application form at a job fair organized by the New Hampshire Employment Security agency in Salem, New Hampshire December 17, 2008. (Brian Snyder/Reuters)Reuters - U.S. employers probably cut the most jobs in at least 34 years last month as the global economic crisis gathered pace and moves by policy makers took time to filter through to struggling companies.



A Palestinian boy looks at the al-Noor mosque destroyed after an Israeli air strike in Gaza January 8, 2009. (Mohammed Salem/Reuters)Reuters - Israel pushed ahead with its two-week-old offensive in the Gaza Strip, ignoring a U.N. Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire.



Reuters - A report being released on Friday alleges that the U.S. Treasury has failed to reveal its strategy for stabilizing the financial system, not answered questions asked by a government watchdog, and has done nothing to help struggling homeowners, the Wall Street Journal said.

A man works near a pressure gauge at a district heating plant in Skopje January 8, 2009. (Ognen Teofilovski/Reuters)Reuters - Europe sought a swift restoration of gas supplies on Friday after striking a deal with Moscow on monitoring gas shipments via Ukraine that have been halted by a pricing dispute with Kiev.



People taking the Long Island Foreclosure Tour arrive at a foreclosed home for sale in New Hyde Park, New York in this May 17, 2008 file photo. Citigroup could soon agree to principles that would let troubled borrowers save their homes through bankruptcy, sources familiar with the talks said on Thursday, while industry groups are easing their opposition to the plan. (Shannon Stapleton/Reuters)Reuters - Financial giant Citigroup Inc will support a proposal in Congress to rewrite U.S. bankruptcy law to help troubled mortgage borrowers avoid foreclosure, Chief Executive Vikram Pandit said on Thursday.



Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich gestures as he announces former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris as his choice to fill the vacant U.S. Senate seat of President-elect Barack Obama during a news conference in Chicago, Illinois December 30, 2008. (Frank Polich/Reuters)Reuters - A legislative committee on Thursday recommended the impeachment of Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, citing widespread abuse of power including allegations he tried to sell the U.S. Senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama.



Timothy Geithner (R), pictured in Chicago, November 24, 2008. (Jeff Haynes/Reuters)Reuters - President-elect Barack Obama's economic team is urgently overhauling the $700 billion financial rescue package to broaden its scope beyond Wall Street, The Washington Post reported on Friday.



Usama al-Kini, Al Qaeda's operations chief in Pakistan, is pictured in this undated FBI Most Wanted photograph. Al-Kini, also known as Fahid Mohammed Ally Msalam, and a top aide are believed to be dead, a U.S. counterterrorism official said on January 8, 2009, in what appeared to be the latest results of a campaign targeting the militant group's leadership. Operations chief al-Kini was thought responsible for attacks, including the bombing of a Marriott hotel in Islamabad that killed 55 people in September, and an unsuccessful attempt to kill former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, who was later assassinated in a separate attack, the official said. (FBI/Handout/Reuters)Reuters - Al Qaeda's operations chief in Pakistan and a top aide are believed to be dead, a U.S. counterterrorism official said on Thursday, in what appeared to be the latest results of a campaign targeting the militant group's leadership.



An Israeli army tank takes position on a hill at the border between Israel and the northern Gaza Strip on January 8, 2009. Israel was under intense pressure Friday to end its two-week-old offensive in the Gaza Strip after the UN Security Council called for an immediate ceasefire as the death toll from the war rose past 760.(AFP/David Buimovitch)AFP - Israel carried out new deadly air raids on the Gaza Strip on Friday as the UN Security Council called for an immediate ceasefire to end the two-week-old conflict in the Palestinian enclave.



A man carries firewood in the suburbs of Sofia, Bulgaria. European states deprived of Russian gas amid freezing weather were Friday hoping for a resumption of deliveries after the European Union claimed a breakthrough in the crisis between Moscow and Kiev.(AFP/Dimitar Dilkoff)AFP - European states deprived of Russian gas amid freezing weather were Friday hoping for a resumption of deliveries after the European Union claimed a breakthrough in the crisis between Moscow and Kiev.




A Man and His Razor

It is vain to do with more what can be done with... Read More

Questions To Ask Employees You Want To Retain

Times of cost cutting and downsizing has dramatically impacted the way employees... Read More

Crisis Management Essentials - How to Communicate Effectively During a Crisis, Emergency or Disaster

A crisis, emergency or disaster can happen at anytime and anywhere.Just ask... Read More

How to do SWOT Analysis for your Business

SWOT analysis is needed for all business to understand how to improve... Read More

Dont Let Your Measurements Mislead You

Don't Let Your Measurements Mislead You There aren't... Read More

Bringing Ideas to Life: Seven Principles for Pulling Together

You're so excited you're practically bouncing off the walls. This idea-your best... Read More

3 Innovation Keys - Do Your Innovative Efforts Need More Power?

Recently, I attended a webinar with nearly 400 other Chief Learning Officers... Read More

Birds of a Feather May Be Turkeys

Birds of a Feather May Be TurkeysBy Gene Griessman, PhD Birds... Read More

Innovation Management ? the power of decision makers

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

The Boss Didn?t Understand Why His Staff Wasn?t Reading His Mind

Many people believe that everyone sees the world exactly the same way... Read More

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

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

Top 10 Things Every Business Should Provide for Every Worker - Including the Boss!

Doing business and meeting the needs of workers is increasingly complex. Employees... Read More

Focus Leads To Nonprofit Success: Is Your Organization Rowing or Drifting

Picture yourself standing on the bank of a river watching a rowing... Read More

Employee Performance - If You Want the Best, Get Personal!

This is a story about a man and three dogs.I walk a... Read More

Build Your Business (On A Shoestring): Hire a College Intern

Starting up a new venture or business can be one of the... Read More

Issue Management Methodology for Tracking Project Issues

1. What is an Issue?An issue is an incident, circumstance, problem or... Read More

What One Thing?

A few weeks ago I asked my readers what the most important... Read More

Making a Decision to Outsource: Driving Factors

Most executives view offshore outsourcing most of all as a source of... Read More

Instantly Uncover Your Corporate Culture

Best Definition of "Corporate Culture"If you ask 10 people to define "organizational... Read More

Quality Staffing: Stop Placing the Wrong People in the Wrong Jobs

You can possibly teach a turkey to climb a tree ? but... Read More

What are Your Best Practices?

Best Practices StudiesThese studies can be defined as inquiries into the skills... Read More

Innovation Management ? Good Leadership

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

Creativity and Innovation Management - Core Competencies and Competitive Advantage

Following is a brief definition of core competencies and competitive advantage and... Read More

Change Management

"It is not the strongest species that survives, nor the most intelligent,... Read More

Performance Management - Getting The Most Out of Your Employees

Managing for Best PerformanceIn it's simplest form, performance management is a common... Read More

The Retailers Calendar

The Julian calendar we use to pass the time every day, every... Read More

How To Manage A Difficult Employee

Having to manage a difficult employee is never fun and can be... Read More

Performance Appraisal Scenarios: Improve Your Communication

IMPROVING COMMUNICATION DURING THE PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL: If the employee has trouble getting... Read More

More Computer Consulting 101 Hiring Tips (Part 2 of 2)

Does your company need to retain the services of a competent computer... Read More

Got A Meeting Planned? Ask This Question

Meetings ? they are a fact of our business lives. And while... Read More

Recruitment - Do You Know What Youre Looking For?

The time will come when you'll need to interview someone to join... Read More

What to do When You receive a Bad Check

As a small business operator, personal checks may be one method to... Read More

Change Behaviors, Change Performance

Every organization is looking for the holy grail of performance enhancement, that... Read More

Hows Your Company RQ (Reputation Quotient)?

In light of recent corporate scandals, from Enron and Global Crossing to... Read More

Medical Collection. How Organized is Your Office?

At one time or another, all of us have experienced the frustration... Read More

Tales from the Corporate Frontlines: The Best Incentives are Free

This article relates to the Recognition competency, commonly evaluated in employee satisfaction... Read More

How To Jump Start Your Profits and Keep Your Profits Rolling

There are so many ways to jump start your prifits and keep... Read More

Innovation Management: The Time Factor

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

New Leadership For A New War

Military analysts call this "asymmetrical" war (as if war has a terrible... Read More

Align The Enterprise & Make Beautiful Music Together

Q: Why is a great business like a great marching band?A: The... Read More

Sharing the Reins: 10 Reasons To Sell Your Company To Your Employees

In 1987 I sold my business, South Mountain Company, to my employees... Read More

Better Manager Skills - How to Learn

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

Cheat Sheet; Understanding The MSDS and Your Obligations In The Workplace To Employees

MSDS SHEETSMSDS stands for Material Safety Data Sheets. MSDS sheets contain nine... Read More

The 5 Obsessions of a Passionate Employee

A recent report entitled "How Google Grows?and Grows?and Grows" stated that the... Read More

How to Help Your Company Become a World Class Company

Most people think real change in an organization occurs as a result... Read More

One Thing You Cant Hide

One of the most important of all motivators at work is consideration.... Read More

Employers - Protect Yourself from Custody Battles that Hold Your Company Hostage

Child custody? How'd that get to be an employer's concern?When an employee... Read More