Being a Creative GroupModule 3

David A. JarvisSalve Regina UniversityMGT567 Creative Problem SolvingOctober 6-7, 20-21 2012

Individuals vs. teams

The myth of the “lone genius” Individuals tends to get caught up with

their ideas – and can’t adapt Teams can provide greater momentum Teams can focus on multiple projects

concurrently

What do they all share in common?

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Creative groups are a sum of diverse competencies, insight and energy

1. Foster creative friction

2. Protect against groupthink

3. Provide more opportunity

SOURCE: Managing Creativity and Innovation, HBR

The paradoxical characteristics of creative groups

beginner’s mind experience

freedom discipline

play professionalism

improvisation planning

SOURCE: Managing Creativity and Innovation, HBR

Building creative teams

SOURCE: How to Kill a Team’s Creativity, HBR

Functional diversity

• Improves the number of ideas• Could create information overload• May create difficulties solving problems

Social cohesion

• Foster candid debate• Sense of belonging to the team –

“superordinate identity”

Management involvement

• Needed to encourage and support the process

• Provide organizational resources• Monitoring increasing motivation

Building creative teams

Should have a clear goal A strong purpose, personality and passion Need a serious deadline Dedicated to achieving an end result Empowered to connect Irreverent and nonhierarchical Well rounded and respectful of diversity

“Groups shouldn’t be the result of inertia”SOURCE: The Art of Innovation

Building creative teams – gaps

Intellectual perspectives that complement – but don’t duplicate

A balance of expertise and personal characteristics

People who can work across functional boundaries

Look for skills that the team lacks Explore non-traditional hiring

channels Add a customer or outside

professional to the group

SOURCE: Managing Creativity and Innovation, HBR

Building creative teams

SOURCE: The Art of Innovation

Perform Meet Give ShareTrust

Right mix Co-locatedSense of

belonging

Mission or purpose

Passionate Irreverent Empowered Connected

Overcoming adversity

Shared experience

Fundamentals

Qualities

Composition

Challenge

8 crazy characters for teams

The visionary The troubleshooter

The iconoclast The pulse taker

The craftsman The technologist

The entrepreneur The cross-skilled

SOURCE: The Art of Innovation

Rules for creative conflict

Respect Commitment to active listening

Right to disagree Obligation to challenge assumptions

Opportunity to speak Conflicting views help us learn

Ideas and assumptions can be attacked, individuals can not Calculated risk is good

Failures should be acknowledged and learned from Playful attitudes are welcome

Success is celebrated as a groupSOURCE: Managing Creativity and Innovation, HBR

Handling creative conflict

Step 1 Step 2 Step 3

Create a climate Facilitate the discussion

Move towards closure

• People need to be willing to discuss different issues

• Freely point out the “elephant in the room”

• Acknowledge the issue

• Refer to the rules• Encourage

conversation• Keep it impersonal

• Discuss what can be done

• Make concrete suggestions for improvement

• Bring in a facilitator?

SOURCE: Managing Creativity and Innovation, HBR

Time pressure and creativity – are you…

…on an expedition …on a mission

…on autopilot …on a treadmillSOURCE: Managing Creativity and Innovation, HBR

Time pressure and creativity

SOURCE: Managing Creativity and Innovation, HBR

• Oriented towards generating ideas rather than identifying problems

• Collaborate more with one person than a group

• Can focus on one activity because they are protected

• Doing important work, positively challenged

• Equally oriented between generating ideas and identifying problems

• Receive little encouragement from management

• More group meetings and discussions

• Engagement is less collaborative overall

• Feel distracted• Involved with many different

activities• Don’t feel the work is important• Feel more pressed for time

than if they were on a mission

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Time pressure

Low High

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SOURCESBOOKS Arthur, Cropley. Creativity in Education and Learning. Routledge, 2001. ISBN-10: 0749434473 Kelley, Tom, Jonathan Littman, and Tom Peters. The Art of Innovation: Lessons in Creativity from IDEO, America's

Leading Design Firm. Crown Business, 2001. ISBN-10: 0385499841 Lehrer, Jonah. Imagine: How Creativity Works. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2012. Leonard-Barton, Dorothy and Walter C. Swap. When Sparks Fly: Harnessing the Power of Group Creativity. Harvard

Business Review Press, 2005. ISBN-10: 1591397936 Managing Creativity and Innovation (Harvard Business Essentials). Harvard Business Review Press, 2003. ISBN-10:

1591391121 Puccio, Gerald, Marie Mance and Mary C. Murdock. Creative Leadership - Skills That Drive Change. 2nd ed. Sage

Publications, 2011. ISBN-10: 1412977576 Treffinger, Donald, Scott Isaksen, and Brian Stead-Doval. Creative Problem Solving: An Introduction. 4th ed. Prufrock

Press, 2006. ISBN-10: 1593631871

ARTICLES “Developing Creative and Critical Thinkers”, Col. Charles D. Allen, U.S. Army, Ret. and Col. Stephen J. Gerras, Ph.D.,

U.S. Army, Ret., Military Review, Nov-Dec 2009 “Sparking creativity in teams: An executive’s guide”, Marla M. Capozzi, Renée Dye, and Amy Howe, McKinsey

Quarterly, April 2011 “How Pixar Fosters Collective Creativity”, Ed Catmull, Harvard Business Review, Sept 2008 “Inside Cisco’s Search for the Next Big Idea”, Guido Joret, Harvard Business Review, Sept 2009 “How to Kill Creativity”, Teresa M. Amabile, Harvard Business Review, Sept-Oct 1998 “Cultivating organizational creativity in an age of complexity” (IBM study, 2011) “Defining Systematic Creativity” (LEGO Learning Institute, 2009) “Accelerate!”, John P. Kotter, Harvard Business Review, Nov 2012 “What Doesn't Motivate Creativity Can Kill It”, Teresa Amabile and Steve Kramer, Harvard Business Review Blog

Network, April 25, 2012 “KIDS Vision: Imagining Possible Futures for Technology”, Latitude Studios