2010, Dr. Gordon C.

Bruner II

THE ROLE OF CREATIVITY IN PROMOTION

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

INTRODUCTION
Description
Creativity

in promotion has to do with the proposal, development, and implementation of new and better solutions to promotion problems. Creativity is not desirable everywhere in an organization. But, it is very important in promotion.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

INTRODUCTION
What
The

Makes an Organization Creative?

people in the organization The organization and management of the people The relationship between the organization and the outside environment

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

THE PEOPLE
One

way to have creative promotion efforts is to staff the department with creative individuals.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

THE PEOPLE
Characteristics
Conceptual

of creative people

fluency. Highly creative people can generate a large number of ideas rapidly. Conceptual flexibility. They have the ability to "shift gears" easily and to change their frame of reference or approach quickly.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

THE PEOPLE
Originality.

They have a tendency to give unusual answers to questions, responses to situations, and interpretations to events. Independent.
Don't care much for group standards, Self-sufficient and self-disciplined, See themselves as different from others, May feel lonely and apart, with a "mission" that separates them from "average" people.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

THE PEOPLE
Mentally

playful. They seem to be more willing to express personal impulses and may have a better sense of humor and a richer "fantasy life." Observant. They seem to have a great personal reservoir of information based up things they've read, watched, heard, or experienced which they draw upon.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

THE PEOPLE
Motivation.

Tend to have a greater interest in the problem and its solution. Will work harder and longer in the absence of external pressures or rewards.

Orientation.

They are more likely to change jobs to pursue their interests rather than to change interests to further their career.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

MANAGING CREATIVITY
Some
Has

Characteristics of Creative Organizations

suggestion systems Releases idea generating units from other responsibilities Encourages contact with outside sources

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

MANAGING CREATIVITY
Some

Characteristics (cont...)

Includes

nonspecialists and unusual types of people Allows eccentricity and employees to "have fun" Supports risk taking and provides a secure environment for creativity to occur

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

MANAGING CREATIVITY

Costs of Creativity
To

support creativity is risky.

Usually the greater the potential payoff, the lower the probability of it happening.

It

takes away resources that could improve short-term productivity and attainment of short-term goals. It is more difficult to manage.
Creative people aren't as obedient, loyal, and predictable. Being more open to change, the organizations has a less certain future.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

MANAGING CREATIVITY
Evaluating
Knowing

Creativity

that ones work will be evaluated by another person tends to reduce creativity. But, evaluation is necessary when choosing between alternatives or gauging progress towards a goal.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

MANAGING CREATIVITY
Evaluating

Creativity (cont):

Once an assignment is delegated to a person/group, the manager should not interfere during the creative process. When the solutions have been formulated, however, they must be brought to the manager for evaluation before execution. To evaluate the creative efforts the promotion manager should utilize criteria that were clearly stated to the creative team in the first place.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

MANAGING CREATIVITY
Some

suggested criteria for evaluating creative efforts:

relevance: does it appear the approach will meet the stated objective(s)? originality: is the idea novel, fresh, unexpected, and/or unusual or is it common, obvious, and/or copied? ethics: is the approach legal, truthful, and tasteful?

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ORGANIZATION AND ITS ENVIRONMENT

Creativity
in

seems more likely to flourish in the following situations:

social systems that favor change. in new companies rather than old. in small companies rather than big. in industries with a lot of competition rather than a little. in firms run by creative people.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

STIMULATING CREATIVITY
Enhancing
Define

Personal Creativity

the problem as simply as possible.

Make sure you aren't suggesting a solution in the definition.

Creative Process

Immersion gathering info that is both directly and indirectly related to the problem. Read, watch, travel, and take notes. Digestion thinking about the information.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

STIMULATING CREATIVITY

Enhancing Personal Creativity (cont):

A

Creative Process
Incubation putting the problem out of your conscious mind. Engage in those activities and at those times when you know from experience you are the most creative. Don't hesitate to use meditation, daydreaming, or intuition to generate ideas. Suspend critical thinking and evaluation. These have their place but are incompatible with the creative process.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

STIMULATING CREATIVITY

Enhancing Personal Creativity (cont):

A

Creative Process
Illumination

the birth of the idea Eureka!

List potential solutions to the problem. Take off in any direction you want, amass as many ideas as you can, and don't spend too much time on any one idea. No idea should be rejected at this stage.

Verification shape the idea for practical usage.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

STIMULATING CREATIVITY
Stimulating Creativity Brainstorming:

in Groups

Quantity of ideas is the goal. Usually only 5 to 10 people are involved at a time. There is a need for a team moderator to define the problem, provide information, enforce rules. Criticism is ruled out. Combination and improvement on ideas is okay. Don't forget to record the ideas so they can be critically evaluated later.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

STIMULATING CREATIVITY

Stimulating Creativity in Groups

Morphological

Analysis is a creative problem solving technique that attempts to examine all possible combinations of key variables related to the solution.

The steps involved are:

Explicitly formulate the problem. Identify key variables and the values they can have. List all possible combinations of variable values. Examine the feasibility of all combinations. Select the best combinations to develop further.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

SUMMARY & CONCLUSIONS

Creativity

is a very important factor in effective promotional efforts. To be successful in their promotions organizations need to hire creative people and provide them with an environment that supports and nourishes creativity.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

SUMMARY & CONCLUSIONS

The

fine line between desirable and undesirable creativity:

To

be most creative individuals should only be under the constraints of their own goals rather than those of an organization. People are likely to be less creative when they are worried about achieving the company's various goals as well as their own.

2010, Dr. Gordon C. Bruner II

SUMMARY & CONCLUSIONS

The

fine line (cont):

Yet,

creations will be less useful to the organization if they are not so constrained. What is needed is creativity given certain objectives. So, it is important to look for people who are creative and have interests that are similar to objectives of the organization.