Fostering creativity in the workplace, is it viable?

For many creativity may seem a bit of an elusive concept, more of an extravagant pastime than something you are asked of at work. The Oxford dictionary defines it as “The use of imagination or original ideas to create something; inventiveness.” Pondering the subject in terms of work I think Dictionary.com provides a more encompassing definition as “The ability to transcend traditional ideas, rules, patterns,relationships, or the like, and to create meaningful new ideas, forms, methods, interpretations, etc.; originality, progressiveness, or imagination.”

There has, over the years, been growing interest and research into creativity as scientists and industry recognise its importance, intricacies and ramifications across diverse applications from psychology to engineering and even economics. In business, the increasing need to come up with new ideas and unique solutions to new problems has led to the recognition of creative thinking and creative problem solving skills, as highly valuable to continued growth in today’s business climate. It has widely become accepted as the raw ingredient to business innovation.

The ability to harness creativity at work provides the capability for organisations to generate unique methods, intellectual property, and processes, ultimately providing them with a competitive advantage.