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Creativity in Organizations

© Ella Marin

Creativity has been defined as "the ability to produce ideas that are both novel and valuable" (Myers, 1992). It is a vital trait for any successful organization. Lack of creativity leads to stagnation, which leaves a corporation vulnerable to its competitors. Robbins (2000) explains that:

"Successful organizations must foster innovation... Victory will go to those organizations that maintain their flexibility, continually improve their quality, and [have] a constant stream of innovative products and services."

This applies to a nonprofit organization just as much as it does to any other business. Volunteer managers are often called to add a creative touch to a program, and volunteers themselves may need to use creative problem solving for some project. If creativity is rarely called for in your organization, maybe now is the time to infuse some change. Sure, the old ways might be good, but that doesn't mean there are better ways!

Everyone is creative to some extent, though it is more developed in some people than others. But there are some things you can do to boost your mental abilities and tackle a problem without fear.

The Ideal Process
Bransford and Stein (1993) offer the IDEAL (Identify, Define, Explore, Act, Look) method to problem solving. First, identify the problem, then define it. If there are too many issues or goals, or if one problem is too unwieldy Rees (1991) recommends breaking it down and then prioritizing the subsections.

The next step is to explore alternatives. There are many ways to do this, but a common one is by brainstorming. Jot down as many possibilities as you can, without censorship, and only explore each one's worthiness later. Rees suggests establishing objective and measurable criteria, using both essential (needed) and desirable (wanted) guidelines, and then deciding on the solution that fits best.

Once a solution has been chosen, make a plan of implementation. Act on the plan that has been chosen. It does you and the organization no good if you come up with a great plan unless someone does something about it. Remember to Act! I've seen too many good ideas die in the boardroom (or even in the lunch room) because of inactivity.

Finally, look at, or evaluate, the effects. Is the solution working the way you thought it would? Why or why not? Remember to compare how things were before and how they appear after the solution.

If you need more tips to help get those work-related juices flowing, take a visit to the Creativity Tool Kit.

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