Creativity in business is not always an easy thing to do. For instance, there may be different types of creativity according to the type of problem or challenge or process.
Which ever way we look at it, the need for creativity remains as an important requirement in today’s fast-paced culture and online world. For businesses, benefits include becoming more efficient and effective in times of major change. For individuals and teams, positive benefits include motivation, happiness and personal and group development.
To help stimulate creative ideas you can use the following method adapted from the Rhode’s 4P model of creativity: Who is creative? How can we be creative? What can we create? Where can we create?
1. People: Who is creative?
Creativity can be focused on one or more people to develop mental skills and flexibility of thinking to help give the business new ideas, new products and new ways of thinking to gain competitive advantage. This is no longer seen as a special individual ability or of a gifted few, but a universal skill which can be developed by everyone in the business.
2. Processes: How can we be creative
This model relates to two types of creative processes: Firstly, creativity is a mental process, inside of minds changing the way you can think in business: and secondly, a broader process occurring in the wider social environment emphasising the acceptance of new ideas and trends in a particular customer market.
3. Product: What can we create?
This is the most common type of creativity which involves the creation of novel and valuable product offers (goods and/or services) during the creative process.
4. Place: Where can we be creative?
The actual environment for creativity to take place is crucial to the creative process. Which means the right location, whether in-house or at an outside venue, should be set up without and interruptions or distractions and the right equipment and resources to foster involvement, imagination and innovation.
Although some business people are critical of creativity, suggesting that it could prolong decision making. However, contrasting data now show that the decline in many traditional businesses comes from a lack of creativity thinking to the changes the current economy and a movement online to the internet and social platforms. Avoiding creativity could be making people and businesses less efficient and effective to tackle business challenges requiring different and unique solutions.
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