Dear reader,
I decided that it is time to define "innovation" and "creativity" and give you the point of view that the Creative Platform has on those two words. I am going to copy/paste the definitions I used in my own Master Thesis. For my Master Thesis I made a one-day workshop for the regional development of Davos and Klosters, Switzerland from a tourism point of view, based on the Creative Platform. If you would like to read more about my Master Thesis, there will be an article about it next week.
First off, for those of you, who have no idea what the Creative Platform is, I want to make a small introduction: the Platform is a workshop for creating innovative solutions to any kind of problems by using knowledge database. Let me simplify this for you: imagine that you have a problem with your company, you are stuck on one place and you can't seem to make any progress. It doesn't matter what the problem is. You might not even know that you have a problem. But you come to me and ask for help. What I will do is a workshop through which you and your company will come up with a solution. This workshop uses creative processes, which on the Creative Platform are defined as being creative and this creativity is implemented through series of steps, tasks and subtasks. In such a workshop the employees of your company will be the participants and you will be the facilitator of the event. Furthermore on the topic, you can discover in my next articles or on my website (stated below).
Second, here are the definitions I mentioned above from my Master thesis:
There are many different definitions on creativity. Some state that creativity is: about generating new and useful idea, and designing new and meaningful life (Shiu, 2014). Others think creativity is: the interaction among aptitude, process, and environment by which an individual or group produces a perceptible product that is both novel and useful as defined within social context (Plucker, Beghetto, & Dow, 2004). From the research of Plucker, Beghetto, & Dow (2004) creativity has two key components: uniquness (originality, newness, novelty) and usefulness (meaningfulness, fit, task appropriateness). Creativity is often understood as a process of variation and selection in which it is important to generate a variety of ideas and then selectively retain those that are most promising (Shalley, Hitt, & Zhou, 2015). According to Business Insider (2013) creativity: is about unleashing the potential of the mind to conceive new ideas. Those concepts could manifest themselves in any number of ways, but most often, they become something we can see, hear, smell, touch, or taste (Marshall, 2013).
With regard to developing or identifying a new idea, creativity involves the generation of ideas that are both novel and useful (Shalley, Hitt, & Zhou, 2015, pp. 1-14). As such, creativity is a precursor of both innovation and entrepreneurship.
However, amongst the literature there is a notion of difference between creativity and entrepreneurship. M. Fritsch (2011, pp. 1-10), defines entrepreneurship as: a regional event, because region-specific characteristics influence not only the level of new business formation, but also the type of new business that is created, for example innovative, knowledge-intensive, or high-growth start-ups. The researcher states that the level of development can vary from country to country or region to region. Furthermore, entrepreneurship refers to the application of creative ideas to new business ventures, which can include the creation of new markets, new products and services, and new firms (Shalley, Hitt, & Zhou, 2015).
The next term mentioned is innovation. Although we commonly refer to creativity as idea generation and to innovation as the implementation of ideas, in reality creativity and innovation are not as clearly independent from each other as our disciplinary traditions seem to suggest (Shalley, Hitt, & Zhou, 2015). Innovation may start from using new knowledge or reusing and combining existing knowledge (Anderson, Potočnik, & & Zhou, 2014, pp. 1297-1333). Which is also said for creativity.
As illustrated from my Literature Review section of my Master thesis - creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship are linked and you cannot define where one ends and the other begins. Furthemore, I want to give you the definitions that the Creative Platform uses. Innovation is not even mentioned in the PhD work of prof. Christian Byrge, however, creativity is defined as unlimited application of knowledge. It is tightly connected to confidence, concentration, knowledge application and motivation. The Platform uses those four areas of concern and implements them through series of tasks. In order for the creativity to occur and those tasks to be completed, the Platform invokes rules that must be followed. If those rules are not enforced among the participants, there is a chance that the Creative Platform will not work.
You might ask: how are the participants following the rules and how can you ensure that the workshop will be successful? Simple! For a workshop on the Creative Platform there are three types of participants – a moderator, who facilitates the entire event; process guides responsible for each group; and the participants, who will solve the problem at hand. The moderator’s job is to state the rules at the beginning of the workshop. Then it is the job of the process guides of each group to invoke those rules.
It seems a bit harsh, but let me state the rules for you, so you are not getting confused:
1. All watches and electronic devices are removed by the process guides
2. Drinks and food are not allowed in the group rooms
3. Nobody except the facilitator can come into a group room
4. Anything that is not related to the task at hand should not be on the working table
5. If a participant needs any sort of a break, they can have one alone
6. No judgement is allowed
7. There are no restrictions that can constrain the creativity process
8. Speaking your mind is encouraged
9. Make as many mistakes as possible and use them constructively
10. Say yes to everything
The first 5 rules are stated by the moderator at the beginning of the workshop. The rest, as well as the first 5, are enforced by the process guides through small subtasks that lead the participants into the environment, which those rules are meant to form.
How is this connected to creativity? Let me quote the author, whose work will become my profession – prof. Christian Byrge (one of the creators of the platform): through the creative process humans develop their ability to be themselves - thus freeing their commitment and ability to participate with all their knowledge, without restrictions of academic, social or cultural character (Byrge, 2011). Furthermore, the basic element of a creative process on The Creative Platform is the idea. An idea is a unique situation-specific representation of the combined knowledge database - and the process is to develop ideas on ideas on ideas until the solution, in the form of a product, project, procedure, an appointment, idea concept, a technical understanding or course of action, is a reality (Byrge, 2011).
I think I am going to stop here. I hope I peaked your interest and you want to know more, so don’t hesitate to contact me.
For further information, you can visit my website:
Thank you for reading my article!
Cheers from me!
References:
Shiu, E. (2014). Creativity Research. Routledge.
Plucker, J., Beghetto, R., & Dow, G. (2004). Why isn't creativity more important to educational psychologists? Potentials, pitfalls, and future directions in creativity research. Educational Psychologist, 83 - 96.
Shalley, C. E., Hitt, M. A., & Zhou, J. (2015). Introduction: Integrating Creativity, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship to Enhance the Organization's Capability to Navigate in the New Competitive Landscape. In C. E. Shalley, M. A. Hitt, & J. Zhou, The Oxford Handbook of Creativity, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (First Edition ed., pp. 1-14). Oxford University Press.
Marshall, D. (2013). There's A Critical Difference Between Creativity And Innovation. Retrieved from Business Insider: http://www.businessinsider.com/difference-between-creativity-and-innovation-2013-4?IR=T
Fritsch, M. (2011). The role of new business in regional development: introduction and overview. In M. Fritsch, Handbook of Research on Entrepreneurship and Regional Development: National and Regional Perspectives (pp. 1 - 10). Edward Elgar.
Anderson, N., Potočnik, K., & & Zhou, J. (2014). Innovation and Creativity in Organizations: A State-of-the-Science Review and Prospective Commentary. Journal of Management, 1297-1333.
Byrge, C. (2011). Conceptualisation of Creativity Practices through Action Research: The case of the Creative Platform at Aalborg University. Department of Development and Planning, Aalborg University.