Antecedents of organisational creativity: a multi-level approach.
Gupta, Ritu ; Banerjee, Pratyush
Introduction
Creative ideas can be used for problem resolution, process
improvements and the development of new services and/ or products.
Creativity may be defined as 'the formation of novel, appropriate
and useful ideas by individuals or small groups' (see DiLileo,
Houghton 2006). Woodman et al. (1993) defined creativity at
organisational level as 'the creation of a valuable, useful new
product, service, idea, procedure, or process by individuals working
together in a complex social system'. The theory of organisational
creativity suggests that when a working environment facilitates idea
generation, knowledge sharing and creative problem solving, individuals
in that environment are more likely to generate creative ideas that
involve unique concepts or new applications of existing concepts (see
Woodman et al. 1993).
Researchers also suggest that individual creativity is essential
for organisational innovation (see Amabile 1988; Woodman et al. 1993),
which in turn is imperative for long-term organisational survival and
success (see DiLileo, Houghton 2006). In order to enhance the chances of
longterm survival, organisations should focus on supporting individual
creativity in the workplace (see Amabile 1988; Woodman et al. 1993).
Executive creativity not only contributes to corporate differentiation
and innovation, it also helps create an environment, which encourages
creative contribution from others (see Ford 1996). Researchers have time
and again provided comprehensive reviews of creativity in the past. For
example, a review by Van Der Panne and colleagues (2001) on success and
failure of innovation, implications of creativity in classroom setting
(see Petrowski 2000) and an integrated review on creativity,
intelligence and personality by Batey and Furnham (2006). In the context
of organisational creativity, Andriopoulos has published a comprehensive
literature review in 2001 taking only organisational level variables,
and Klijn and Tomic (2010) contributed another review on organisational
creativity from psychological perspective taking only individual level
factors. However, no prior review has tried to identify and integrate
the factors at individual, group and firm level which may affect
organisational creativity. In past five years, no new review on
creativity has been published to the best of the researchers'
knowledge. In that aspect, this review provides insights from recent
papers published in the domain of organisational creativity which can
enhance our understanding of the processes involved behind development
and sustenance of organisational creativity. Hence, we decided to
conduct this literature review and provide a comprehensive insight to
this issue.
For the purpose of this literature review, articles were searched
from online databases EBSCO, JSTOR, Science Direct, PROQUEST and others.
The key words "organisational", "occupational",
"employee", "managerial", "work",
"corporate" were typed with one or more of the following
keywords "creativity", "creative", "creative
potential", "innovative", "innovation" for the
current review. Studies addressing different antecedent factors which
are related to the construct of creativity at the individual, group and
organisational level form the core of this review. In addition, studies
providing insight about how to measure organisational creativity are
also included in this review.
1. Creativity and innovation: a distinction
Creativity and innovation work together in order to give an
organisation competitive advantage. However, there is a clear
distinction between the two. While creativity is the generation of novel
and original ideas (see DiLileo, Houghton 2006), innovation is the
implementation of the same in the work settings (see West 2002). There
are different stages of innovation implementation, namely, the
initiation stage, implementation stage, adaptation stage and
stabilisation stage. Creativity forms an essential component of the
first stage of innovation, i.e., the initiation stage (see West 2002).
Researchers now have empirical evidence that creativity may be an
essential component of imaginative capability (see Liang, Chia 2014).
1.1. Antecedents of organisational creativity
Previous researchers have pointed out several organisational
factors, which act as a catalyst of fostering organisational creativity.
Woodman and others (1993) developed an interactive model of
organisational creativity in their study. The authors identified the
factors influencing organisational creativity at three different
levels-individual, group and organisational level. For each level, the
authors listed down the possible antecedents and facilitators of
individual, group and organisational creativity.
-Individual level antecedents of organisational creativity. Four
salient antecedents of individual creativity have been identified by
Woodman and colleagues (1993) in their study. These are--personality,
cognitive style, intrinsic motivation and domain knowledge. By creative
personality is meant the continuous thirst for curiosity, attraction
towards complex and abstract matters and a capability to think in an out
of the box non-conventional manner.
Woodman and colleagues (1993) have suggested that the personality
of an individual has a strong influence on individual creativity.
However, it is difficult for organisations to have a customised model to
imbibe creativity in an individual's personality as it is a
trait-based approach. In an empirical study, Aguilar-Alonso (1996) tried
to correlate several components of creativity such as originality and
fluency with personality dimensions like big five personality traits.
Where, extroversion and psychoticism were found to have positive
influence on the creative productivity of individuals. Other studies
have validated the impact of personality variables on creative idea
generation such as a study by Furnham and colleagues (2008) on influence
of "Big Five" personality traits and hypomania on creativity
and by Fisher and associates (2004) who investigated the impact of
positive schizotypal personality (a nature of individuals to come up
with unusual thoughts and ideas) on the cognitive behaviour of
individuals and how this makes them more creative. Therefore, from an
organisation's context, employees with creatively inclined
personalities should be considered as essential for fostering
organisational creativity.
Cognitive styles and abilities also play an important role in
shaping individual creativity. Abilities like fluency of thoughts,
divergent thinking and emotional cognition have been found to be
effective in creative idea generation. Howard-Jones and Murray (2003)
conducted a series of experiments to examine the idea generation process
of individuals. The results showed that individuals with higher fluency
of thought and imagination were able to produce ideas over a
considerable longer period and came up with more solutions. Those who
were quickly out of any further ideas were further indulged into the
problem by giving advice on changing their perspective for the problem.
The researchers concluded that fluency is a prerequisite for creative
idea generation and it can be increased by giving proper guidance on how
to think out of the box.
In 2005, Amabile and colleagues conducted an experiment to
investigate the relationship between positive affect and creative
behaviour. Their results showed that there exists a positive linear
relationship between positive affect and individual creativity. Another
significant cognitive factor, which affects employee creativity, is a
trait called creative self-efficacy (see Farmer et al. 2003; Chiravuri,
Ambrose 2007; Benham 2008), the belief in the individual to come up with
novel ideas. From organisational perspective, these factors should be
considered as essential antecedents of organisational creativity.
Domain specific knowledge has been considered a chief criterion for
creativity. Rietzschel and colleagues (2007) examined this relationship
empirically on 93 psychology students of the University of Amsterdam.
They subjected one group to prior information related to a brainstorming
topic and did not disclose any information to the other group. It was
found that the group, which received prior knowledge about the topic
related to the brainstorming, came up with higher quality of ideas.
Intrinsic motivation is another vital antecedent, which spurs
creativity in individuals (see Amabile 1998; Dewett 2007; Eisenberger,
Shanock 2003). Further, this relationship is mediated by an
individuals' willingness to take more risks (see Dewett 2007).
Finally, self-determination is also an individual level factors which
influences creativity (see Sheldon 1995).
-Group factors influencing creativity. Organisations are composed
of groups of individuals who come together to work towards a common,
shared objective. Therefore, in the organisational context, the
creativity of the group is of greater concern. Researchers who have
studied the different antecedents of group creativity have proposed the
following factors: group cohesiveness, group composition, and group
structure (see Woodman et al. 1993) as major antecedents of group
creativity. Studies examining the impact of various antecedent factors
on group creativity have justified the impact of group characteristics
on team creativity (see Paulus, Yang 2000; Moore 2000; West 2002).
Groups with high inter-group cohesions, leadership and diversity
stimulate higher creativity among the group members. Garfield and
colleagues (2001) suggest that individual differences such as
personality and type of creativity stimulating technique affect creative
idea generation at group level, and idea generation is enhanced with
exposure to other group members' creative inputs.
Moore (2000) examined the impact of group cohesion and group
leadership on the creativity of small teams and individuals working
alone. The author varied group cohesion, leadership and knowledge about
a particular subject related to a particular task to see the impact on
the group's creative performance. The study shows that high group
cohesion and the presence of an able leader are necessary for groups to
be highly creative.
At a macro level, Goncalo and Staw (2006) studied the impact of
national culture on group creativity. The authors investigated how
individualism, a cultural trait among nations, influences the creativity
of group members. The authors have argued that, it has been
traditionally accepted that collectivism brings in-group cohesion and
thereby increases its creativity, whereas individualism may also be
beneficial for group creativity as it brings a sense of uniqueness. This
will help in developing divergent modes of thinking among group members,
which will in turn, increase creative output.
Other factors which have been found to affect group creativity
include ethnic diversity in group composition (see McLeod et al. 1996),
social inhibition (see Paulus, Yang 2000) and group cognition (see
Hargadon 1999). At an individual level of analysis, Bechtoldt et al.
(2012) explored impact of individual self-construal and collectivistic
value on creative idea generation in groups and found that groups with
collectivistic value orientation generated more ideas than groups with
individualistic value orientation. In another study, Pearsall and
colleagues (2008) made an attempt to examine effect of demographic
factors such as gender diversity on team creativity. Results showed that
if group members advocate gender faultiness (perception of difference in
competence based on gender of group member), then it may lead to
emotional conflict and tension among the group members, this in turn
hampers group creativity.
A study by Wiltermuth (2009) suggested that if group members are
buoyed by dominance complementarities, then creative idea generation is
reduced in the group. This was supported by Kaplan and colleagues (2009)
and Bolinger et al. (2009). Interestingly, Nemeth et al. (2004) have
identified conflict as a positive factor behind group creativity arguing
that healthy difference of opinion among group members can foster better
idea generation. Certain antecedents which facilitate group creativity
are beyond monitoring by management such as individual personality and
cultural values, on the other hand, there are certain factors which can
be controlled by managers to ensure some level of standardisation in
group creativity performance. For instance, team and group leaders
should monitor the following factors while monitoring the creative
climate within groups-there should not be too much dominance complex
among group members; the group members should conform to rather than
differ in their ideas; identify who should play the glue role; group
members should not advocate gender faultlines; ensure a healthy conflict
of opinion exists among team-members
-Organisational factors influencing creativity. Organisation
specific factors include organisational culture (see McLean 2005),
policies (see Kenny, Reedy 2007), leadership and resource allocation
capacity, which are important determinants of overall organisational
creativity. Organisational culture plays a vital role in fostering
organisational creativity in that it injects a shared belief among the
organisational members about the importance of having a creative culture
(see Woodman et al. 1993).
Chatman et al. (1998) have examined the influence of organisational
culture and demographic factors on creative work outcomes. The authors
hypothesised that employees coming from different demographic
backgrounds are less likely to interact with each other frequently. The
degree of interaction will further be influenced by the type of culture
prevalent in the organisation. Thus, in an individualistic organisation,
interaction will be much less than in an organisation nurturing
collectivist culture. Results obtained at the end of the experiment
showed that the extent to which organisational members work in an
interactive manner is a function of the organisation's culture and
the demographic heterogeneity of the organisation.
Sundgren et al. (2005) analysed the impact of information sharing
on organisational culture and intrinsic motivation of employees, which
in turn helps in the fostering of a creative work climate. Results
indicate that information sharing has a positive influence on the
organisational culture and the latter mediates the relationship between
information sharing and organisational creativity. However, intrinsic
motivation of employees was not found to have any significant impact on
this relationship.
Murdock et al. (1993) tried to find the impact of creativity
training on the performance. The experiment explored that creativity
training can facilitate development of creativity among trainees.
Therefore, organisations implementing such training will be able to
derive more creative output from their employees. Scott et al. (2004),
attest the findings of Murdock et al. (1993). They conducted a
quantitative meta-analysis of training programs effect on creativity. It
was concluded that well-designed creativity training programs have a
positive influence on performance. They examined several factors like
course content, delivery method, amongst others to see the relative
effectiveness of training programs on creativity. They also found that
more successful programs focused on development of cognitive skills and
the heuristics involved in skill application, using realistic exercises
appropriate.
The impact of leadership style on the creative efforts of employees
has been documented by several researchers (see Oldham, Cummings 1996;
Tierney et al. 1999). Here, Oldham and Cummings (1996) indicated that
employee creativity was highest when they had appropriate creativity
related personality characteristics, worked on complex jobs and when
they were under non-controlling supervision. Tierney and others (1999)
extended the single domain approach of the relationship between
creativity and leadership in their study by examining a multi domain,
interactionist creativity model of employee characteristics, leader
characteristics and leader member exchange (LMX). The results indicated
that when employees enj oy creativity-related tasks, their level of
creative output is high. It also appears that when employees work with
supervisors who possess a similar intrinsic motivational orientation,
creative performance is enhanced. The results also indicated that high
LMX leaders would tend to support the employees chosen area of
performance as opposed to forcing performance in a particular realm, say
creative work. This suggests that benevolent leadership style may not
always foster employee creativity.
Group creativity has also been found to be influenced by leadership
(see Moore 2000). Leadership can play a key role in channelising the
creative potential of followers (see Deci, Ryan 1987). In particular,
supervision that is supportive of employees is expected to enhance
creative achievement; supervision that is controlling or limiting is
expected to diminish creative performance (see Deci et al. 1989). When
supervisors are supportive, they show concern for employees'
feelings and needs, encourage them to voice their own concerns, provide
positive, chiefly informational feedback, and facilitate employee skill
development. These actions on the part of a supervisor are expected to
promote employees' feelings of self-determination and personal
initiative at work, which should then boost levels of interest in work
activities and enhance creative achievement.
In a qualitative enquiry, Hender and Higgs (2004) used focus
groups, repertory grid technique and critical incident technique
interviews. They identified the following personality characteristics of
a creative manager: open, driven, energetic, unorthodox and different,
experimenting, have self-confidence, and are visionary, calm and
optimistic and able to tackle conflict. They suggested that creative
managers are intelligent, and have the ability to think outside the box
and generate ideas and are problem solvers. A very important finding of
their study was that creative managers were found to create a creative
work environment, thus driving the creativity in others as well.
Creative managers were found to develop other people's ideas.
Shin and Zhou (2003) tested the moderating effect of employee
conservation, a personal value about tradition, conformity and security,
on the relationship between transformational leadership and employee
creativity. They also found supporting data regarding the mediating
effect of intrinsic motivation on the relationship between
transformational leadership and conservation. Thus, from the above
literature review, it may be implied that creativity is a
multidimensional concept.
Sundgren et al. (2005) posited a model of organisational creativity
which helped in understanding the influences of information sharing,
learning culture, motivation, and networking on creative climate. They
found information sharing, learning culture, intrinsic motivation, and
extrinsic motivation to be significantly related to perceived creative
climate.
Gong et al. (2009), in their investigation, explored the
relationship between employee creativity and job performance at a firm.
They found that employees' creativity relates positively to
supervisory ratings of their job performance and to their sales. Also,
an employee learning orientation and transformational leadership predict
employee creativity where leaders have followers. Finally, an employee
learning orientation and transformational leadership relate to employee
creativity through their influence on employee creative self-efficacy.
Gumusluoglu and Ilsev (2009) propose a model positing the impact of
transformational leadership both on followers' creativity at the
individual level and on innovation at the organisational level.
Followers' intrinsic motivation, psychological empowerment, and
perception of support for innovation mediate this effect. At the
organisational level, transformational leadership positively relates to
organisational innovation. Also, individual level creativity influences
innovation at the organisational level. The hypotheses formulated were
found to be significant in regression analysis, transformational
leadership effects on creativity at both individual and organisational
levels. This relationship is found to be mediated by psychological
empowerment. Also, Herrmann and Felfe, 2013, validated these findings in
their study. In addition, they demonstrated that personal and task
characteristics such as initiative taking attitude moderated the
relationship between transformational leadership and creativity.
Among other organisational level variables, Shalley et al. (2000)
examined the impact of organisational environmental factors on employee
creativity and its subsequent impact on employee satisfaction and
intention to leave. Shalley and colleagues (2000) conducted structured
telephonic interviews in 1993 in USA to get information on employee
creativity, organisational factors, satisfaction and intention to leave.
The authors hypothesised that high job complexity and supportive
supervision will enhance employee creativity and increase job
satisfaction. The results suggested that if jobs are high on creative
demands, it may be desirable for managers both to design work
environments appropriately and to continually monitor them to ensure an
optimal match for creativity exists.
Hunter et al. (2007) conducted a meta-analysis, exploring the
moderating variables in the relationship between climate and creativity.
Dimensions such as support and autonomy were found to be effective
predictors of creative performance; it is true for high pressure,
turbulent and competitive environment. As suggested by previous
literature it was found that climate dimensions provide sizable
relationships with measures of creativity. Handzic and Chaimungkalanont
(2004) found that socialisation among employees, whether formal or
informal, has a significant positive relationship with creativity.
Zhou and George (2001) explore the conditions in which job
dissatisfaction leads to creativity. They found that continuance
commitment would lead the unsatisfied employees to stay with the
organisation and increase their potential to be creative. Also,
dissatisfied employees with high continuance commitment would be more
creative if they found support and help from co-workers. Finally,
perceived organisational support also led to creativity.
Regarding organisational strategies to facilitate innovation,
studies have been conducted to examine the impact of rewards and risk
strategies on organisational creativity (see Eisenberger, Shanock 2003;
Dewett 2007). Cook (1998) focuses on the strategic view of creativity
leading to competitive advantage for a company. The study shows the
importance of context for ideas and how their implementation is crucial
for innovative products and services.
Zhou and associates (2005) have shown that organisational
strategies are important drivers of organisational creativity. Results
showed that various facets of strategic orientation have important
linkage with organisational creativity. Scott et al. (2004), conducted a
quantitative meta-analysis of training programs effect on creativity.
They concluded that well-designed creativity training programs have a
positive influence on performance. They examined several factors like
course content, delivery method, amongst others to see the relative
effectiveness of training programs on creativity. They also found that
more successful programs focused on development of cognitive skills and
the heuristics involved in skill application, using realistic exercises
appropriate.
Similar results were confirmed in the study by Kenny and Reedy
(2007) when they analysed the impact of mission statements on innovative
practices. The findings of the study suggest that communicating the
objectives of the mission statement to the employees of the organisation
is crucial if such policies will impact firm performance. This implies
that probability of creative outcomes may be higher when leadership is
democratic and collaborative, organisational structure is organic rather
than mechanistic, and groups are composed of individuals drawn from
diverse fields or functional backgrounds (see Woodman et al. 1993).
Wong and Pang (2003) explores the job-related motivators to
creativity as perceived by managers and supervisors in the hotel
industry. They used in-depth interviews to identify specific motivators.
They identified five factors which are based on employees'
perception of level of importance, they are: training and development,
support and motivation from the top, open policy, recognition, and
autonomy and flexibility.
In a different study, Baer and Oldham (2006) examined relationship
between creativity of individuals and creative time pressure at work.
They hypothesise that there might be a curvilinear relationship between
creative time pressure and creativity opposed to the linear relationship
suggested by previous research. The results imply that relationship
between time pressure-creativity of employees with high score on
openness to experience have an inverted U-shaped while they continuously
receive support for creativity.
A recent study by O'Connor and colleagues (2013) suggests an
influence of beliefs among individuals about the malleable nature of
creativity and the impact of such beliefs on creative problem-solving
and prior creative achievements. Barrett and colleagues (2014) have
however argued that it is not spirituality, but rather the intensity of
adversity and collaboration among peers at workplace which stimulates
creativity.
2. Discussion
From the above literature review, it can be suggested that
creativity is a multidimensional construct and it is the combined effort
of can have a major impact on the creative potential of employees. There
is as much story behind the curtains as much it is on stage. In
addition, there is no single dimension, rather a conglomeration of
different factors, which is necessary to bring out the creative best
among the employees. Future research can concentrate on developing an
effective creativity development framework to make employees creativity
oriented.
In an attempt to address such a purpose, a model of creativity
development mechanism is proposed here. The various antecedents of
organisational creativity have been clubbed into three separate
variables, namely individual factors, group level factors and
organisational factors. The Individual level factors are personality
traits of employees, domain specific knowledge, intrinsic motivation,
affect, thought fluency and imagination. At Group level group cohesion,
social inhibition, cognitive interference, self-construal,
collectivistic value orientation, gender diversity, idea exposure, glue
role and healthy inter-group conflict. Finally, Organisational Level
factors are supervisor support, leader member exchange, manager's
creative personality, organisational culture and climate, level of
information sharing, creativity training, organisational policies, job
motivators, degree of corporate socialisation and creative time
pressure.
The above factors can be incorporated into a multi-level model of
organisational creativity, which has been proposed below (Fig. 1). As is
evident from the literature, very few studies have attempted to link the
above individual level factors with firm-level creative output. From the
organisation's point of view, having employees in their ranks who
possess the specific traits of a creative individual can be an added USP
(unique selling point) for them, especially if the corporate strategy of
the firm relies heavily on innovation and R & D. Hence,
incorporating psychometric evaluations of such personality traits and
individual values in the recruitment and selection procedure itself
(such as MBTI etc.) can ensure that the firm is able to attract true
creative talent for their manpower requirement.
At the group level, firms need to be even more diligent in
maintaining a proper atmosphere for idea generation to foster creativity
within work groups. As this review indicates, several factors which play
a major role in either fostering or hampering group creativity requires
strict monitoring by the group/team leaders, or by the department's
top management. For instance, the team/group leaders in today's
global business networks need to ensure that the group composition is
diverse in terms of knowledge, skills, gender and even ethnicity. Such
diversity needs to be reciprocated with the right level of aggression
and appreciation between the group members. Management should promote a
culture of social networking so that members feel at ease to discuss
with each other. Dominance complementarity can also create group tension
among group members and team leaders should prevent such complexes to
develop among group members during the early stages of group formation
itself. Certain factors such as cultural values are difficult to monitor
in the context of groups since such values manifest at national level.
At the organisational level, firms need to take care to develop and
nurture a creative culture and climate. Such development should have its
roots in the corporate philosophies of the firms in the form of
mission-vision statements. The managers should develop a trusting
relationship with their subordinates through leader-member exchange.
Prop er training modules should be designed to foster organisational
creativity. This should complement the individual and group factors
discussed above. Employees involved in creative projects should be given
sufficient time to generate creative output failing which they may be
subj ect to creative time pressure.
2.1. Research propositions
The literature review help ed in identifying the factors which are
critical antecedents of organisational creativity. A theoretical model
representing all these factors at appropriate levels of analysis has
been proposed (see Fig. 1). The proposed model is similar to the
Interactionist model developed by Woodman et al. (1993), though it
retains some aspect of Amabile's (1998) Componential theory of
creativity by including the training related factors. The proposed model
here is more related to the Componential-Interaction model as proposed
by Eder and Sawyer (2008) which suggests that creativity is an outcome
of the interaction between various components which make a person
creative. The proposed model can be used to evaluate specifically
designed training programs for enhancing creativity. Some of the most
widely practiced creativity enhancement programs are Creative Problem
Solving (see Osborn 1957), Productive Thinking Program (see Covington et
al. 1974), Purdue Creative Thinking Program (see Feldhusen et al. 1970),
and The Cognitive Research Trust (see de Bono 1976). Using the above
model as an evaluation framework, creativity trainers can identify the
level of effectiveness of their training programs.
2.2. Measuring the effectiveness of the model
At the individual level, the factors, which have been identified as
antecedents of organisational creativity, are cognitive thinking styles
(positive affect, self-construal etc.), personality, intrinsic
motivation and domain knowledge.
Cognitive styles may be measured using The Electronic Event
Sampling Methodology developed by Amabile et al. (2005). Personality
measures can be measured by Cattell's 16 personality factors (see
Cattell et al. 1957) or the Big Five Inventory (see John, Srivastava
1999). Intrinsic motivation may be measured using the Work Preference
Inventory (see Amabile et al. 1996). Domain specific knowledge may be
measured using both direct and indirect measures. The direct measure
involves applying intelligence tests, while the indirect method involves
looking into the educational background of an individual (see Dilileo,
Houghton 2006). The important group factors influencing creativity are
group cohesion, leadership style and group diversity. Group cohesion can
be measured using the Group Environment Questionnaire by Carron and
others (1985). Leadership may be measured using the Multi Factor
Leadership Questionnaire (see Shin, Zhou 2003). Organisational level
factors such as Organisational climate for creativity can be measured
using the 10 item Creative Climate Questionnaire (see Ekvall 1996) or
the Situational Outlook Questionnaire (see Isaksen et al. 2001). Using
the above standard measures, trainers can effectively analyse the level
of presence of each of the antecedent factors in an organisational
environment.
[FIGURE 1 OMITTED]
The outcome variables of interest in the above model can be
measured using standard metrics to measure individual, group and
organisational creative outcomes. Individual creative outcomes may be
measured in terms of total number of new products or processes developed
over a stipulated period of time (see Pirola-Merlo, Mann 2004).
Individual creative outcome can further be reflected through the total
number of patents filed by individual employees within a given time
period. Such outcomes can further be rated on the basis of novelty,
usefulness and innovativeness. Group creative outcomes also include the
parameters such as novelty, ingenuity and effectiveness of any product
or process developed by a group. Additionally, some researchers have
identified divergent thinking as a major yardstick for measuring group
creative output (see Pirola-Merlo, Mann 2004; Goncalo, Staw 2006). At
the organisational level, a very comprehensive model that is in practice
to measure creativity is the High Performance Business model developed
by the consultancy firm Arthur D. Little, Inc. (see Collins, Smith
1999).
The High Performance Business model can help organisations to
measure creative and innovative output at the strategic, process,
resource and culture level through lagging, real-time, leading and
learning indicators of creative performance. An example of the various
indicators at various levels of measurement is provided in Table 1.
Through these propositions it is being postulated that if
organisations wish to measure the creative output of the firms they may
consider the factors recommended in the model and the process of
measuring the constructs has also been described. This study affirms the
fact that creative performance of an organisation should be measured at
three different levels individual, group and organisational. The current
literature review demonstrates the importance of the various antecedent
factors which trigger individual, group and organisational creativity.
Hence, practitioners are advised to consider all these factors while
measuring creative output.
doi:10.3846/btp.2016.624
Received 25 February 2015; accepted 15 October 2015
Disclosure statement
Authors do or not have any competing financial, professional, or
personal interests from other parties.
References
Aguilar-Alonso, A. 1996. Personality and creativity, Personality
and Individual Difference 21(6): 959-969.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8869(96)00162-6
Amabile, T. M. 1988. A model of creativity and innovation in
organisations, Research in Organisational Behaviour 10: 123-167.
Amabile, T. M.; Conti, R.; Coon, H.; Lazenby, J.; Herron, M. 1996.
Assessing the work environment for creativity, Academy of Management
Journal 39(5): 1154-1184. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/256995
Amabile, T. M. 1998. How to kill creativity, Harvard Business
Review 76(5): 76-87.
Amabile, T. M.; Barsade, S. G.; Mueller, J. S.; Staw, B. M. 2005.
Affect and creativity at work, Administrative Science Quarterly 50(3):
367-403. http://dx.doi.org/10.2189/asqu.2005.50.3.367
Andriopoulos, C. 2001. Determinants of organisational creativity: a
literature review, Management Decision 39(10): 834-840.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/00251740110402328
Baer, M.; Oldham, G. R. 2006. The curvilinear relation between
experienced creative time pressure and creativity: moderating effects of
openness to experience and support for creativity, Journal of Applied
Psychology 91(4): 963-970. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.91.4.963
Barrett, J. D.; Vessey, W. B.; Griffith, J. A.; Mracek, D.;
Mumford, M. D. 2014. Predicting scientific creativity: the role of
adversity, collaborations, and work strategies, Creativity Research
Journal 26(1): 39-52. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2014.873660
Batey, M.; Furnham, A. 2006. Creativity, intelligence and
personality: a critical review of scattered literature, Genetic, Social
and General Psychology Monographs 132(4): 355-429.
http://dx.doi.org/10.3200/MONO.132.4.355-430
Bechtoldt, M. N.; Choi, H. S.; Nijstad, B. A. 2012. Individuals in
mind, mates by heart: individualistic self-construal and collective
value orientation as predictors of group creativity, Journal of
Experimental and Social Psychology 48(4): 838-844.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2012.02.014
Benham, H. C. 2008. An empirical exploration of software
development quality, Issues in Information Systems 9(2): 267-271.
Bolinger, A. R.; Bonner, B. L.; Okhuysen, G. A. 2009. Sticking
together: the glue role and group creativity. Creativity in groups, in
E. A. Mannix, M. A. Neale, J. A. Goncalo (Eds.). Research on Managing
Groups and Teams, Vol. 12. Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 267-289.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/s1534-0856(2009)0000012013
Carron, A. V.; Brawley, L. R.; Widmeyer, W. N. 1985. The
development of an instrument to measure cohesion in sport teams: the
Group Environment Questionnaire, Journal of Sport Psychology 7: 244-266.
Cattell, R. B.; Marshall, M. B.; Georgiades, S. 1957. Personality
and motivation: Structure and measurement, Journal of Personality
Disorders 19(1): 53-67.
Chatman, J. A.; Polzer, J. T.; Barsade, S. G.; Neale, M. A. 1998.
Being different yet feeling similar: the influence of demographic
composition and organisational culture on work processes and outcomes,
Administrative Science Quarterly 43(4): 749-780.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/2393615
Chiravuri, A.; Ambrose, P. J. 2007. Exploring the role of
self-efficacy, playfulness, and creative self-efficacy in information
systems development, Issues in Information Systems 8(2): 200-206.
Collins, J.; Smith, D. 1999. Innovation metrics: a framework to
accelerate growth [online], [cited 14 April 2015]. Available from
Internet: http://www.adlittle.de/uploads/tx_extprism/1999_q2_11-17.pdf
Cook, P. 1998. The creativity advantage-is your organisation the
leader of the pack?, Industrial and Commercial Training 30(5): 179-184.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/00197859810225652
Covington, M. V.; Crutchfield, R. R.; Davies, L. B.; Olton, R. M.
1974. The productive thinking program: a course in learning to think. CE
Merrill.
De Bono, E. 1976. Teaching thinking. London: Penguin Books.
Deci, E. L.; Ryan, R. M. 1987. The support of autonomy and the
control of behaviour, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 53:
1024-1037. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.53.6.1024
Deci, E. L.; Connell, J. P.; Ryan, R. M. 1989. Self-determination
in a work organisation, Journal of Applied Psychology 74: 580-590.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.74.4.580
Dewett, T. 2007. Linking intrinsic motivation, risk taking, and
employee creativity in an R&D environment, R&D Management 37(3):
197-208.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9310.2007.00469.x
DiLileo, T. C.; Houghton, J. D. 2006. Maximizing organisational
leadership capacity for the future: toward a model of selfleadership,
innovation and creativity, Journal of Managerial Psychology 21(4):
319-337. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/02683940610663114
Eder, P.; Sawyer, J. 2008. The power to be creative at work:
examining the componential model of employee creativity, 2008, in The
Eastern Academy of Management Annual Conference in Washington, DC
[online], [cited February 2015]. Available from Internet:
http://www.center4oe.com/articles/
Employee%20Creativity%20Conference%20Paper.pdf
Eisenberger, R.; Shanock, L. 2003. Rewards, intrinsic motivation,
and creativity: a case study of conceptual and methodological isolation,
Creativity Research Journal 15: 121-130.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2003.9651404
Ekvall, G. 1996. Organisational climate for creativity and
innovation, European Journal of Work and Organisational Psychology 5(1):
105-123. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13594329608414845
Farmer, S. M.; Tierney, P.; Kung-Mcintyre, K. 2003. Employee
creativity in Taiwan: an application of role identity theory, Academy of
Management Journal 46(5): 618-630. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/30040653
Feldhusen, J. F.; Treffinger, D. J.; Bahlke, S. J. 1970. Developing
creative thinking: the Purdue Creativity Program, The Journal of
Creative Behavior 4(2): 85-90.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/j.2162-6057.1970.tb00847.x
Ford, C. M. 1996. A theory of individual creative action in
multiple social domains, Academy of Management Review 21(4): 1112-1142.
Fisher, J. E.; Mohanty, A.; Herrington, J. D.; Koven, N. S.;
Miller, G. A.; Heller, W. 2004. Neuropsychological evidence for
dimensional schizotypy: implications for creativity and psychopathology,
Journal of Research in Personality 38(1): 24-31.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2003.09.014
Furnham, A.; Batey, M.; Anand, K.; Manfield, J. 2008. Personality,
hypomania, intelligence and creativity, Personality and Individual
Differences 44: 1060-1069. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016Zj.paid.2007.10.035
Garfield, M. J.; Taylor, N. J.; Dennis, A. R.; Satzinger, J. W.
2001. Research report: modifying paradigms--individual differences,
creativity techniques, and exposure to ideas in group idea generation,
Information Systems Research 12(3): 322-333.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/isre.12.3.322.9710
Goncalo, J. A.; Staw, B. M. 2006. Individualism-collectivism and
group creativity, Organisational Behaviour and Human Decision Processes
100(1): 96-109. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2005.11.003
Gong, Y.; Huang, J. C.; Farh, J. L. 2009. Employee learning
orientation, transformational leadership, and employee creativity: the
mediating role of employee creative self-efficacy, Academy of Management
Journal 52(4): 765-778. http://dx.doi.org/10.5465/AMJ.2009.43670890
Gumusluoglu, L.; Ilsev, A. 2009. Transformational leadership,
creativity, and organisational innovation, Journal of Business Research
62(4): 461-473. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2007.07.032
Handzic, M.; Chaimungkalanont, M. 2004. Enhancing organisational
creativity through socialization, Electronic Journal of Knowledge
Managemen 2(1): 57-64.
Hargadon, A. B. 1999. Group cognition and creativity in
organisations, Research on Managing Groups and Teams 2: 137-155.
Hender, J.; Higgs, M. 2004. The characteristics of the creative
manager, Journal of General Management 29(4): 1-20.
Herrmann, D.; Felfe, J. 2013. Moderators of the relationship
between leadership style and employee creativity: the role of task
novelty and personal initiative, Creativity Research Journal 25:
172-181. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2013.783743
Howard-Jones, P. A.; Murray, S. 2003. Ideational productivity,
focus of attention and context, Creativity Research Journal 15(2/3):
153-166. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2003.9651409
Hunter, S. T.; Bedell, K. E.; Mumford, M. D. 2007. Climate for
creativity: a quantitative review, Creativity Research Journal 19(1):
69-90. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10400410709336883
Isaksen, S. G.; Lauer, K. J.; Ekvall, G.; Britz, A. 2001.
Perceptions of the best and worst climates for creativity: preliminary
validation evidence for the Situational Outlook Questionnaire,
Creativity Research Journal 13(2): 171-184.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/S15326934CRJ1302_5
John, O. P.; Srivastava, S. 1999. The Big-Five trait taxonomy:
history, measurement, and theoretical perspectives, in L. A. Pervin, O.
P. John (Eds.). Handbook of personality: theory and research, Vol. 2.
New York: Guilford Press, 102-138.
Kaplan, S.; Brooks-Shesler, L.; King, E.B.; Zaccaro, S. 2009.
Thinking inside the box: how conformity promotes creativity and
innovation. Creativity in Groups, in E. A. Mannix,
M. A. Neale, J. A. Goncalo (Eds.). Research on Managing Groups and
Teams, Vol. 12. Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 229-265.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/s1534-0856(2009)0000012012
Kenny, B.; Reedy, E. 2007. The impact of organisational culture
factors on innovation levels in SMEs: an empirical investigation, Irish
Journal of Management 27(2): 119-142.
Klijn, M.; Tomic, W. 2010. A review of creativity within
organisations from a psychological perspective, Journal of Management
Development 29(4): 322-343. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/02621711011039141
Liang, C.; Chia, T. L. 2014. Reliability, validity, and factor
structure of the imaginative capability scale, Creativity Research
Journal 26(1): 106-114. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2014.873671
McLean, L. D. 2005. Organisational culture's influence on
creativity and innovation: a review of the literature and implications
for human resource development, Advances in Developing Human Resources
7(2): 226-246. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1523422305274528
McLeod, P. L.; Lobel, S. A.; Cox, T. H. 1996. Ethnic diversity and
creativity in small groups, Small Group Research 27(2): 248-264.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1046496496272003
Moore, R. M. 2000. Creativity of small groups and of persons
working alone, The Journal of Social Psychology 140(1): 142-143.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00224540009600452
Murdock, M. C.; Isaksen, S. G.; Lauer, K. J. 1993. Creativity
training and the stability and internal consistency of the Kirton
Adaption-Innovation Inventory, Psychological Reports 72(3c): 1123-1130.
http://dx.doi.org/10.2466/pr0.1993.72.3c.1123
Nemeth, C. J.; Personnaz, B.; Personnaz, M.; Goncalo, J. A. 2004.
The liberating role of conflict in group creativity: a study in two
countries, European Journal of Social Psychology 34: 365 -374.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.210
O'Connor, A. J.; Nemeth, C. J.; Akutsu, S. 2013. Consequences
of beliefs about the malleability of creativity, Creativity Research
Journal 25(2): 155-162. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10400419.2013.783739
Oldham, G. R.; Cummings, A. 1996. Employee creativity: personal and
contextual factors at work, Academy of Management Journal 39(3):
607-634. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/256657
Osborn, A. F. 1957. Applied Imagination: principles and procedures
of creative problem-solving. Revised ed. New York: Charles
Scribner's Sons.
Paulus, P. B.; Yang, H. C. 2000. Idea generation in groups: a basis
for creativity in organisations, Organisational Behaviour and Human
Decision Processes 82(1): 76-87.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1006/obhd.2000.2888
Pearsall, M. J.; Ellis, A. P.; Evans, J. M. 2008. Unlocking the
effects of gender faultlines on team creativity: is activation the key?,
Journal of Applied Psychology 93(1): 225-234.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.93.L225
Petrowski, M. J. 2000. Creativity research: implications for
teaching, learning and thinking, Reference Services Review 28(4):
304-312. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/00907320010359623
Pirola-Merlo, A.; Mann, L. 2004. The relationship between
individual creativity and team creativity: aggregating across people and
time, Journal of Organizational Behavior 25: 235-257.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/job.240
Rietzschel, E. F.; Nijstad, B. A.; Stroebe, W. 2007. Relative
accessibility of domain knowledge and creativity: the effects of
knowledge activation on the quantity and originality of generated ideas,
Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 43(6): 933-946.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2006.10.014
Shalley, C. E.; Gilson, L. L.; Blum, T. C. 2000. Matching
creativity requirements and the work environment: effects on
satisfaction and intentions to leave, Academy of Management Journal
43(2): 215-223. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1556378
Scott, G.; Leritz, L. E.; Mumford, M. D. 2004. The effectiveness of
creativity training: a quantitative review, Creativity Research Journal
16(4): 361-388. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10400410409534549
Sheldon, K. M. 1995. Creativity and self-determination in
personality, Creativity Research Journal 8(1): 25-36.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s15326934crj0801_3
Shin, S. J.; Zhou, J. 2003. Transformational leadership,
conservation, and creativity: evidence from Korea, Academy of Management
Journal 46(6): 703-714. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/30040662
Sundgren, M.; Dimenas, E.; Gustafsson, J. E.; Selart, M. 2005.
Drivers of organisational creativity: a path model of creative climate
in pharmaceutical R&D, R&D Management 35(4): 359-374.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9310.2005.00395.x
Tierney, P.; Farmer, S. M.; Graen, G. B. 1999. An examination of
leadership and employee creativity: the relevance of traits and
relationships, Personnel Psychology 52(3): 591-620.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.1999.tb00173.x
Van Der Panne, G.; Van Beers, C.; Kleinknecht, A. 2001. Success and
failure of innovation: a literature review, International Journal of
Innovation Management 7(3): 1-30.
West, M. A. 2002. Sparkling fountains or stagnant ponds: an
integrative model of creativity and innovation implementation in work
groups, Journal of Applied Psychology 51(3): 355-387.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1464-0597.00951
Wiltermuth, S. S. 2009. Dominance complimentarity and group
creativity. creativity in groups, in E. A. Mannix, M. A. Neale, J. A.
Goncalo (Eds.). Research on Managing Groups and Teams, Vol. 12. Emerald
Group Publishing Limited, 57-85.
Wong, S.; Pang, L. 2003. Motivators to creativity in the hotel
industry--perspectives of managers and supervisors, Tourism Management
24(5): 551-559. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0261-5177(03)00004-9
Woodman, R. W.; Sawyer, J. E.; Griffin, R. W. 1993. Toward a theory
of organisational creativity, Academy of Management Review 18(2):
293-321.
Zhou, J.; George, J. M. 2001. When job dissatisfaction leads to
creativity: encouraging the expression of voice, Academy of Management
Journal 44(4): 682-696. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/3069410
Zhou, K. Z.; Kin, C.; Tse, D. K. 2005. The effects of strategic
orientations on technology-and market-based breakthrough innovations,
Journal of Marketing 69(2): 42-60.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.69.2.42.60756
Ritu GUPTA is Assistant Professor in the Department of Human
Resource and Soft Skill at IFHE University, Hyderabad, India. She
completed her PhD in 2014 in organizational behavior studying
interpersonal relationship between manager and employees. She has
published research papers in journals of international repute and has
presented papers in international conferences. She was a visiting
scholar at Oklahoma State University from September 2011 to June 2012.
Her research interests include time perspective, change management,
retirement, employee engagement and qualitative research methodology.
Pratyush BANERJEE is Assistant Professor at IBS Business School,
IFHE University, Hyderabad, India. He has a PhD in Human Resource
Management from ICFAI University Dehradun. He has interest in the fields
of cognitive psychology and qualitative research methodologies. He has
published research articles in journals of international repute and has
presented several papers at various international conferences.
Ritu Gupta [1], Pratyush Banerjee [2]
OB & HRM Department, IBS Hyderabad, IFHE University,
Shankarpally Road, Hyderabad--501203, Telangana, India E-mails:
[email protected] (corresponding author);
[email protected]
Caption: Fig. 1. A multilevel framework of antecedents for
organisational creative output
Table 1. The Arthur D. Little Innovation Metrics (adapted from:
Collins, Smith 1999)
Lagging Real-time Leading Learning
indicators indicators indicators indicators
Strategies Gross NPV of
contribution idea
of new portfolio
products
Processes Milestones Take up
completed rate of
in time new
processes
Resources External
alliances
being
pursued
Culture Staff Innovation Level of
turnover climate inquiry
rate