Creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship, have been recognized as important contributors to a nation’s economic growth. These three terminologies are chronologically interrelated and it is very important to look in to them to get their full picture.
Creativity is the ability to come up with new idea and to identify new and different ways of looking at a problem and opportunities.
It is a process of assembling ideas by recombining elements already known but wrongly assumed to be unrelated to each other. This definition has several key elements that are worth considering:
Thus, creativity is the development of ideas about products, practices, services, or procedures that are novel and potentially useful to the organization.
Step2: Immersion: the individual concentrates on the problem and becomes immersed in it. He or she will recall and collect information that seems relevant, dreaming up alternatives without refining or evaluating them.
Step 3: Incubation: the person keeps the assembled information in mind for a while. He or she does not appear to be working on the problem actively; however, the subconscious mind is still engaged. While the information is simmering it is being arranged into meaningful new patterns.
Step 4: Insight: the problem-conquering solution flashes into the person’s mind at an unexpected time, such as on the verge of sleep, during a shower, or while running. Insight is also called the Aha! Experience.
Step 5: Verification and Application: the individual sets out to prove that the creative solution has merit. Verification procedures include gathering supporting evidence, using logical persuasion, and experimenting with new ideas.
There are four distinct types of innovation, these are as follows:
1. Creativity
Creativity is defined as the tendency to generate or recognize ideas, alternatives, or possibilities that may be useful in solving problems, communicating with others, and entertaining ourselves and others.Creativity is the ability to come up with new idea and to identify new and different ways of looking at a problem and opportunities.
It is a process of assembling ideas by recombining elements already known but wrongly assumed to be unrelated to each other. This definition has several key elements that are worth considering:
- Process: creativity is a process (implying among other things, that it is more like a skill than an attitude, and that you can get better at it with practice)
- Ideas: creativity results in ideas that have potential value.
- Recombining: the creative process is one of putting things together in unexpected ways.
Thus, creativity is the development of ideas about products, practices, services, or procedures that are novel and potentially useful to the organization.
Steps in the Creative Process
Step1: Opportunity or problem Recognition: A person discovers that a new opportunity exists or a problem needs resolution.Step2: Immersion: the individual concentrates on the problem and becomes immersed in it. He or she will recall and collect information that seems relevant, dreaming up alternatives without refining or evaluating them.
Step 3: Incubation: the person keeps the assembled information in mind for a while. He or she does not appear to be working on the problem actively; however, the subconscious mind is still engaged. While the information is simmering it is being arranged into meaningful new patterns.
Step 4: Insight: the problem-conquering solution flashes into the person’s mind at an unexpected time, such as on the verge of sleep, during a shower, or while running. Insight is also called the Aha! Experience.
Step 5: Verification and Application: the individual sets out to prove that the creative solution has merit. Verification procedures include gathering supporting evidence, using logical persuasion, and experimenting with new ideas.
Barriers to Creativity
Be aware that there are numerous barriers to creativity, including:- searching for the one ‘right’ answer
- focusing on being logical
- blindly following the rules
- constantly being practical
- viewing play as frivolous
- becoming overly specialized
- avoiding ambiguity
- fearing looking foolish
- fearing mistakes and failure
- believing that ‘I’m not creative
2. Innovation
Innovation lies at the heart of the entrepreneurial process and is a means to the exploitation of opportunity. It is the implementation of new idea at the individual, group or organizational level. Innovation is a process of intentional change made to rate value by meeting opportunity and seeking advantage.There are four distinct types of innovation, these are as follows:
- Invention - described as the creation of a new product, service or process
- Extension - the expansion of a product, service or process
- Duplication - defined as replication of an already existing product, service or process
- Synthesis - the combination of existing concepts and factors into a new formulation
The Innovation Process
- Analytical planning: carefully identifying the product or service features, design as well as the resources that will be needed.
- Resources organization: obtaining the required resources, materials, technology, human or capital resource.
- Implementation: applying the resources in order to accomplish the plans
- 4Commercial application: the provision of values to customers, reward employees and satisfy the stakeholders.
Areas of Innovation
The following are some of the major areas in which valuable innovation might be made.
A. New product: A new product can be developed through new or existing technology. The new product may offer a radically new way of doing something or it may simply be an improvement on an existing item. The new product must offer the customer an advantage if it is to be successful.
B. New Services: A service is an act which is offered to undertake a particular task or solve a particular problem.
C. New Production Techniques: Innovation can be made in the way in which a product is to be manufactured. A new production technique should allow the end user to obtain the product at a lower cost, or a product of higher quality or better service in the supply of the product.
D. New Way of Delivering the Product or Service to the Customer: Customer can only use product/service they can access. A common innovation is to take a more direct routine by cutting out distributors or middlemen.
E. New Operating Practices: As with innovations in the production of physical products, innovation in service delivery must address customers need and offer them improved benefits, for example easier access to the service, a higher quality service, a more consistent service, a faster or less time consuming service etc.
F. New Means of Informing the Customer about the Product: People will only use a product or service if they know about it. Demand will not exist if the offering is not properly promoted to them. Promotion consists of two parts; a message what is said and a means – the route by which that message is delivered.
G. New Means of Managing Relationship within the Organization: Any organization has a wide variety of communication channels running through it. The performance of the organization will depend to a great extent on the effectiveness of its internal communication channels. These communication channels are guided by the organization’s structure.
H. New Ways of Managing Relationships between Organizations: Organizations sit in a complex web of relationships to each other. The way they communicate and relate to each other is very important.
1.7.3 From Creativity to Entrepreneurship Creativity is the ability to develop new ideas and to discover new ways of looking at problems and opportunities. Innovation is the ability to apply creative solution to those problems and opportunities in order to enhance people’s lives or to enrich society.
Comments
Post a Comment