SHR044-6

Mobilising Creativity and Innovation

Business School 1
Unit coordinator:
Dr Pauline Loewenberger (UoB)
Prof Venkoba Rao (Majan College)
 Ice Breaker Question

• Why are individuals not creative?

• What is the impact on individuals, team,
organizations and society in general?
 Creativity and Innovation
Creativity Innovation
Idea Generation Idea Implementation
Diversity of Ideas Variety of products, services and
processes
Problem Solving/ Opportunity finding Solutions for new/modified products,
services and processes
 Mobilising creativity and innovation

Cognitive perspectives on creativity:

Agenda 1:
• Problem Solving
• Opportunity finding
Problem/Opportunity

• Problem/Opportunity
– Present state
– Goal state
– Operators/Restrictors
• Well-defined problems
– Known
• Ill-defined / Open-ended problems
– Unknown/missing
 Problem

• What is a Problem?
• What are the characteristics of a Problem?
 Problem

Structured Problem
• Logical Thinking

Unstructured Problem
• Creative Thinking
 Problem
• There must be a knowledge that problem exists
• The existence of gap- costs
• Problem is dynamic-shifts in present or goal
• Problem is perceptual
• Motivation to decrease the gap-sphere of influence
• Ability to measure the gap-criteria to measure
• The abilities and resources required to close the gap-
time, information, money.- group and individual
techniques.
• Problem Solving is multi stage process-convergence
and divergence
Problem/Opportunity

• Types of Problems:
• Structured Problems- Algorithms
• Semi-structured problems- Heuristics
• Ill-structured / Open-ended problems- CPS
• Using structured problem solving techniques
with ill-structured problems/opportunities
Individual Blocks to Creative Thinking Skills?
 Activity 1
General Problem:
• A small country was ruled from a strong fortress by a
dictator. The general from the attacking army wanted to
capture the fortress. There are many roads that leads to the
fortress through the villages but all roads leading to the
fortress had been laced with mines which can withstand the
load of few people but not the entire army. If the mines
blow up it will destroy the villages and kill people.

• The idea of capturing the fortress seemed impossible.

• Can you solve the problem?

 Activity 2
Radiation Problem:
• Suppose you are a doctor and faced with a patient who has
malignant cancer. The tumor must be destroyed or else the
patient would die. There is a kind of a ray that can destroy
the tumor if the ray reached it with high intensity. With
lower intensity the rays cannot destroy the tumor. But at
high intensities the rays would also destroy the healthy
tissues.

• Treating this patient seems impossible.

• Can you solve the problem?

 Activity 1+2
• Using analogy in problem solving

• How can you use the information in the general problem to

solve the radiation problem?

• Is there an analogous relationship between the two

problems?
 Activity 1+2
• Using analogy in problem solving:

General Doctor
Fortress Tumor
Army Rays
Entire army High intensity rays
????? ?????
 Activity 1+2+3
Fire in Oil well in Saudi Arabia:
• A blazing inferno was consuming huge amounts of oil
everyday in SA. Red Adair, an expert was called in. He
examined the problem and found that the fire was so
intense that it can be extinguished only if large amounts of
fire redundant foam was put at the base of the fire. There
was enough foam but no hose was large enough to reach
the base of the fire.

• It seems that the entire oil well would be destroyed.

• How would you solve the problem?

• Does it remind you of something?
 Think
• Does spontaneous analogical transfer occur in reality?

• Can you think of such an instance at your work?

• Were there any obstacles to this transfer?

• What does research say?

• Limited- (Thomson and Genter 2003)
• Negligible (Weisberg 2006)
 Reflections
• Creativity versus expertise
Creativity Expertise

Thinking outside the box Thinking based on past

experience

Evolve new concepts, products May not require creativity

Talent Practice

Not domain specific Domain specific

Productive Reproductive
Experience more blocks
to individual creative
thinking skills ……
 First and Second stage
thinking

Consider a football tournament with

545 teams in a simple knock-out
format. Each game is played through
to a result - extra time then penalties if
required. How many games are played
through to and including the final?
Nine dots problem

  

  

  
False assumptions

• Rules

• Non-rules (assumptions) that block creative thinking

 Blocks to creative thinking
• Identifying the wrong problem
• Judging ideas too quickly
• Stopping with the first good idea
• Failing to get the support of others
• Failing to challenge assumptions

Proctor (2014:29)
 Individual blocks
• Why do people have difficulty in challenging assumptions and
thinking creatively?
• Creative thinking does not come naturally to most people
• Individual blocks to creativity
• (Arnold 1962)
• Perceptual
• Cultural
• Emotional
• Jones (1987)
• Strategic blocks
• Value
• Perceptual
• Self-image
 Individual Blocks to Creativity
• Perceptual blocks:
prevent a true, relevant picture of the outside world.
• Cultural block:
which result from influences of society.
• Emotional block:
fear, anxiety and jealousy
• Strategic block
inflexibility in thinking.
• Value block
influenced by personal values
• Self-image block
fear of failure, timidity in expressing ideas, etc.
 Reflection
Question of the day
s
• How can we overcome these individual
blocks to creativity?

• Are there any methods or techniques

available?
Books from the reading list for this unit

Proctor, T. (2019). Creative Problem Solving

for Managers (4e). London, Routledge

Van Gundy, A. B. (1981) Techniques of

Structured Problem Solving. Von Nostrand
Reinhold: New York.
Creative Problem Solving Process
(Osborne-Parnes)

1. Mess Finding: search for challenges or opportunities

2. Data finding: gather information

3. Problem Finding: provocative statement suited to idea

finding

4. Idea Finding: generate as many ideas as possible

5. Solution finding: select clear evaluation criteria

6. Acceptance finding: social validation and implementation

Activity 4:
Practising Structured Techniques to develop
creative thinking skills
Techniques for structured problem solving
For example: Classical Brainstorming technique

Principles:
1. Deferred judgement
2. Quantity breeds quality

Rules:
3. No criticism
4. Freewheeling is welcomed
5. Quantity is wanted
6. Combination and improvement are sought
Stage 4: Classical Brainstorming:
Applying the rules

Groups of 5-6

Alternative uses for paperclips?

 Group CPS facilitation
• Focus on these stages which are most difficult

• Using structured techniques within Osborne-Parnes framework

• Stage 3 Problem finding (problem redefinition) – One technique

– E.g. Boundary examination, 5W’s and H, Repeated Why?

• Stage 4 Idea Finding (Generating ideas) – One technique

• E.g. Classical brainstorming, Brainwriting Pool, Lotus Blossom,

synectics, analogy etc etc
• See Proctor for lots of other techniques
• Ideas are raw materials to be developed .... NOT solutions
 Stage 3: Problem redefinition
Structured technique: Five W’s and H
• State the problem using the format: In what ways might ...... (IWWM)

• Write down separate lists of Who? What? Where? When? Why? And
How? Questions relevant to the problem.


• Withhold all judgment 


• Examine the responses 

• Use them as stimuli to generate more provocative problem statements

• Select the redefinition that captures the problem to be resolved

 Redefining the problem (Stage 3):
Providing more provocative problem definitions

Structured Technique: Boundary examination (De Bono)

• Initial statement of the problem

• Underline key words

• Examine each key word for hidden assumptions

• Can the problem definition be improved?

  

  

  
 Stage 4: Idea Generation
Ideas are raw materials to be developed .... NOT solutions

Structured Technique: Brainwriting 635

One of the earliest brain writing methods devised it takes around 30 minutes (6 rounds
of 5 minutes) and should generate 108 ideas. This technique does not require skilled
facilitation.
1. Six people sit around a table each with a sheet of paper and a pen
2. The group leader describes the problem to be worked on
3. Each person writes down three ideas in five minutes on the paper in front of
them.
4. After the first round, these ideas may either be new ideas or development of
others.
5. Participants then pass their papers to the person on their right, the second person
on their right or some other pre-arranged pattern
6. Steps 3-5 are repeated until the papers return to their originators whenthegroup
leader collects the papers

7. The ideas are then sorted and 
developed. 

 Stage 4: Idea Generation
Ideas are raw materials to be developed .... NOT solutions

• Structured technique: Brainwriting Pool

Ideas are listed on sheets of paper shared periodically via a central pool. There is no turn taking mechanism
and participants work at their own speed. The central pool is anonymous. Though an organizer is necessary
the technique does not call for skilled facilitation.

1. 5-8 participants sit around a table each with a pen and paper (Post-its are useful)
2. Group leader presents the problem to the group and writes the problem where
everyone can see it. Group discussion makes sure that all clearly understand the
problem.
3. Each person writes 4 ideas on their piece of paper and place it face down in the centre
of the table
4. Participants then take a sheet from the pool and add ideas or comments
5. They then return that sheet to the pool face down and take another, and add further
ideas to the new sheet
6. At any point, if they prefer, a participant can start a new sheet and add it to the p  l
oo
  

  
• Structured Technique: Lotus Blossom
This technique starts with the central problem or idea and expands themes until there are several
different entry points. The petals, or themes, around the core of the blossom are figuratively peeled
back one at time, revealing a key component or sub-theme. This approach is pursued in ever-
widening circles until the theme is comprehensively explored. The cluster of themes and sub-
themes that are developed provide several different possibilities. The basic steps are as follows:

1. Draw a Lotus Blossom diagram and write the problem/idea in the centre
2. Write the significant components or themes of your topics in the circles
surrounding the centre. The optimal number is 6-8.
3. Use the ideas as the central themes for the surrounding lotus blossom
petals or boxes. So the idea or application in circle/box A now becomes
the central theme for generating new ideas or applications
4. Continue until the lotus blossom is completed
 Example
Lotus
Blossom
Grid

Or you could
try to draw
free hand on
the white
board!
 Creative problem solving (CPS)
and workplace applications

 Puccio et al. (2006)

 Employee attitude towards creativity and CPS
in particular
 Employee behavior
 Group effects
 Activity 5
 Think of creative problem solving
oopportunities in your organization
 How does it occur?
 Would you encourage creative problem solving
in your organization?
 How?
 CPS and workplace
Applications
Studies from Basadur et al. (2000)
Attitude-
Changes in attitude after CPS training
• Preference for active divergence
• Preference for avoiding premature
convergence
 CPS and workplace
Applications
Behavior
Changes in Employee behavior after CPS training
• Ideation fluency
• Accuracy in evaluating original ideas
• Improved problem finding performance
• Using ideas to solve problems
 CPS and workplace
Applications
Impact on Groups
Changes in attitude after CPS training
• Quality of proposed quality statement
• Generating more ideas
• Trust, cooperation and creative solutions
Core text:
BS1 Essential Readings
Proctor, T. (2019) Creative Problem Solving for Managers: Developing skills for
decision making and innovation 4e. Abingdon: Routledge. Chapters 6-12 Structured
techniques
Access the Reading list for this unit
Digitised chapters :
• Van Gundy: Guidelines for using the techniques
• Hurson: Monkey minds, gator brains, elephants’ tethers
Journal Articles:
• Amabile: The dynamic componential model of creativity and innovations in
organisations
• Amabile: Assessing the work environment for creativity
• Isaksen The climate for transformation: Lessons for leaders
Independent reading
• Selective further readings