There’s nothing more exciting for an organization than having a breakthrough product that delights customers, creates new connections in the market, and provides value for shareholders.
For example, the excitement around early iPhone releases changed not only Apple as an organization but also the world. It’s no wonder why leaders seek innovation and creativity.
- A global CEO survey by IBM highlighted that 60% of CEOs consider creativity the most important leadership quality, over integrity and global thinking.
- The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) reported that companies that prioritize innovation generate higher revenue (up to 45% of their total income) from new products and services.
- Adobe’s “State of Create” report stated that 78 percent of respondents said that businesses that invest in creativity are more likely to see an increase in employee productivity.
Challenges to creativity
Everyone wants more innovation and creativity, so it might seem odd that organizations need help bringing sparks of ingenuity into every business area. There are a variety of reasons.
Organizations become risk-averse over time. Many organizations are inherently risk-averse, preferring to use proven methods and strategies to protect assets. This risk aversion can stifle creative ideas and innovation, often involving risk, venturing into uncharted and unpredictable territory.
Lack of support through failure. Creativity involves trial and error; failures are more frequent than blockbuster success. Organizations that penalize failure, whether overt or surreptitiously, create environments where employees are afraid to take creative risks or propose new ideas.
Overemphasis on short-term results. Companies focused on short-term gains may neglect the investment in time and resources required to nurture creative projects, which often do not yield immediate results. Creativity is rarely linear.
Insufficient autonomy. Creativity thrives in environments where individuals can freely explore ideas and work independently. Excessive micromanagement and strict adherence to routines can dampen creative thinking.
Lack of recognition and reward. Employees might not feel compelled to go beyond their routine tasks without proper incentives to motivate creative efforts. Recognition and rewards for creative achievements are crucial for encouraging innovation.
Poor communication. A lack of open communication channels between team members and leadership can hinder the sharing of creative ideas. Employees who feel their suggestions are not heard or valued may be less inclined to contribute creatively.
Inflexible organizational structure. Rigid hierarchical structures can limit the flow of information and ideas within an organization, constraining creativity to specific levels or roles.
Lack of training and personal development. Organizations that fail to invest in continuous learning opportunities for their employees may fall behind in adopting innovative practices and technologies that could inspire creative solutions.
Resistance to change. In some cases, there may be a deep-seated resistance to change within the organization, stemming from a preference for maintaining the status quo over exploring new approaches.
How to improve organizational structures to foster more creativity
If you want to bring more creativity and innovation to your teams, you need to shift your mindset and leadership. Your teams may already have begun to solidify their risk aversion and perfectionism, fearing making a single mistake. It will take encouragement to break patterns and routines. Leadership must take the first step. Here’s how to bring more creativity into your team’s culture.
Be bold and lead by example
The leadership of a creatively inspired team is distinctly unconventional. If you want your team to act creatively and break from routines, break from your own. Take risks, make mistakes, and transparently exhibit the behavior you’d like your team to take. They’ll learn from your example.
Understand the creative process
Creativity is not linear. It involves exploration, experimentation, and a lot of trial and error. As a leader, understanding and respecting the creative process is crucial. Allow your team the time and space to explore. You cannot dictate or rush creativity, and pressure often stifles innovation. Encourage a culture where time spent brainstorming and iterating is valued as much as the end product.
Foster an environment of trust and open communication
Trust is the cornerstone of any successful team but is especially vital in creative environments. Your team members need to feel safe sharing their ideas, no matter how outlandish or unpolished they may seem. Establish an atmosphere where feedback is constructive and delivered in a way that promotes growth and improvement. Encourage open communication, ensuring that all team members, regardless of their role or seniority, feel their voices matter.
Encourage risk-taking and embrace failure
Innovation is inherently risky. Stepping into the unknown without predictable results can be frightening. Encourage your team to take calculated risks in pursuit of creative solutions. Equally important is creating an environment where leadership values the lessons learned from failure. When a project doesn’t go as planned, focus on the lessons learned rather than the outcome. This approach fosters resilience and a willingness to innovate without fear of failure.
Provide clear goals and autonomy
While creativity thrives on freedom, it also requires direction. Provide clear, concise goals and let your team know what success looks like for each project. Once you set objectives, give your team the autonomy to reach those goals in their own way. Avoid micromanaging, which can stifle creativity and undermine trust. Instead, be available to support and guide your team when needed, but trust them to make the day-to-day decisions.
Recognize and reward creativity
Recognition goes a long way in motivating creativity, but you must understand how your team members are motivated. Celebrate successes and the creative efforts that don’t necessarily result in a finished product. Recognizing the creative process encourages ongoing creativity and innovation. Public recognition or opportunities for professional development can be even more motivating.
If you’re encouraging innovation in an Achiever, for example, publicly recognize their successes, even if you only celebrate their creative process. Achievers are driven to outcomes and results, and failure can demotivate them. Encourage a broader view of the organization’s objectives and tie the learning achieved from a failed project to larger goals.
Promote collaboration
Creative solutions often come from combining different perspectives. Encourage collaboration within your team and with other departments or external partners.
In open-source software, collaboration and contribution often spur innovation by bringing together incredibly diverse business needs, use cases, and perspectives. A comprehensive view of the market brings diverse viewpoints to creating solutions to market needs.
If your team has a Relator on board, consider yourself lucky. These brilliant individuals are suited to ensure that collaboration happens seamlessly, bringing new perspectives and innovative ideas together. Task them to ensure collaboration, and their skills will ensure successful cross-pollination of ideas.
Invest in continuous learning
New ideas and inspiration come from fresh perspectives. Allow your team to take time to explore new ideas, listen to innovative podcasts, or take training courses that help them expand their horizons. Innovation will often come from ideas never considered before, so encourage and invest in your team’s ability to learn new things within and beyond your industry.
Improvisation
The “Yes, And…” method comes from improvisational theater and is a powerful tool for enhancing creativity within organizations. By accepting and building upon the ideas of others (“Yes”) and then adding one’s own contributions (“And”), this approach fosters an environment of open collaboration and iterative thinking.
Team members must actively listen, embrace each other’s contributions without judgment, and evolve ideas collectively. This methodology breaks down the barriers to creative thinking and cultivates a culture of mutual respect and support.
Creative constraints
Imposing certain constraints on problem-solving processes can boost creativity by forcing teams to think more innovatively within set boundaries. Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss is an excellent example of creative constraints.
His editor challenged Dr. Seuss to write a compelling children’s book using only 50 different words. This constraint led to the creation of Green Eggs and Ham. The limitation on the number of words forced Dr. Seuss to be exceptionally creative with his use of language, resulting in a simple yet profoundly engaging story that has become iconic.
Similar constraints could be applied in organizational settings, such as product development, marketing campaigns, or operational processes, to encourage innovative thinking and solutions.
Creative workspaces
Workspaces that stimulate creativity or remote work-from-anywhere options can spur innovation. A change of environment can change perspectives. Going for midday walks can help expand viewpoints.
Open spaces for collaboration, quiet areas for reflection, and stimulating visuals in office environments can inspire creative thinking.
Motivate for creativity
Motivating your people to perform at their peak is especially vital in creative work. An employee uninspired to think creatively about a problem is unlikely to develop an innovative solution.
However, to fully motivate creative thinking, you must understand how your people are motivated. Motivation Code, of course, can help. Based on decades of research into motivational science, this assessment uncovers the driving forces behind your team.
As they learn more about themselves, they find more opportunities to step into their empowerment, which leads to more creativity.
When you as a leader better understand your people, you can communicate with them in ways where you inspire greater innovation, creativity, and personal growth.
Creativity applies to everything
When you’re ready to discover how to motivate your people better to find creative solutions to not only your organization’s problems but also the world’s problems, Motivation Code can help. If your team is searching for innovative products or solutions to organizational roadblocks, uncovering your team’s MCode can be a stepping stone to empowered teams finding creative solutions. Reach out to our team to learn more or try Motivation Code yourself to learn more.
How Motivation Code Helps Organizations