This volume brings together empirical and conceptual papers that go beyond questions of idea generation to account for the dynamics of idea development, judgement, and dissemination – processes which are at the heart of organizing for innovation.

This volume brings together empirical and conceptual papers that go beyond questions of idea generation to account for the dynamics of idea development, judgement, and dissemination – processes which are at the heart of organizing for innovation.

Reignite your creative-thinking skills to produce innovative solutions Organizational Creativity: A Practical Guide for Innovators and Entrepreneurs by Gerard J. Puccio, John F. Cabra, and Nathan Schwagler, is a compelling new text designed to transform the reader into a creative thinker and leader. Arguing that creativity is an essential skill that must be developed, the authors take a highly practical approach, providing strategies, tools, and cases to help readers hone their creative abilities. Whether students are preparing to become entrepreneurs or to work in an established firm, this text will help them survive and thrive in an era of innovation and change.

Creativity is a defining feature of contemporary work life. Who has not taken part in brainstorming sessions, read glossy pamphlets about innovation and creativity as important cornerstones of a new business strategy, or been made aware of the importance of creative skills for one ́s career? But what does it mean to be creative in and as an organization? Organizing Creativity provides an answer to this question. The book builds on the premise that creativity is essentially about ideas. Every organization is dependent on valuable ideas for solving everyday problems as well as inventing new processes, products or services. The main argument of the book is that an analysis of organizational creativity should always account for the interdependency of context, process and practice. Based on cultural and processual perspectives, it highlights the implications of context, process and practice for different aspects of the creative process: generating, evaluating and facilitating ideas. Furthermore, it reflects on how dominant notions of creativity in the economy and society prevent transformative changes and suggests a radical transformative approach to organizing creativity as an alternative. To support and illustrate its argument, Organizing Creativity draws on abundant empirical examples, case illustrations and seminal research from Sociology, Social Psychology and Organization Studies. It provides us with a multi-dimensional perspective and will both further our understanding of and spark critical reflection on the complex interplay of the organizational, social and cultural contexts, processes and practices of organizing creativity.

Innovation is the major driving force in organisations today. With the rise of truly global markets and the intensifying competition for customers, employees and other critical resources, the ability to continuously develop successful innovative products, services, processes and strategies is essential. While creativity is the starting point for any kind of innovation, design is the process through which a creative idea or concept is translated into reality. Managing Innovation, Design and Creativity, 2nd Edition brings these three strands together in a discussion built around a collection of up-to-date case studies.

The Innovation Journey presents the results of a major longitudinal study that examined the process of innovation from concept to implementation of new technologies, products, processes, and administrative arrangements. Its findings call into question most of the explanations of the innovation process that have been proposed in the past. The Minnesota Innovation Research Program, on which this book is based, involved over 30 researchers who undertook longitudinal studies that tracked the development of 14 diverse innovations in real time and in their natural field settings. Studying its results, the authors find that the innovation journey is neither sequential and orderly, nor is it a matter of random trial and error; rather it is best characterized as a nonlinear dynamic system. The system consists of a cycle of divergent and convergent activities that may be repeated over time and at different organizational levels if enabling and constraining conditions are present. This divergent-convergent cycle is found to be the underlying dynamic that explains the development of corporate cultures for innovation, learning among innovation team members, leadership behaviors of top managers or investors, building relationships and joint ventures with other organizations, and developing an industrial infrastructure for innovation. Resource investments and organizational structure enable this innovation cycle, while external institutional rules and internal focus draw the boundaries of the journey. The authors conclude with advice for innovation managers and entrepreneurs: learn to "go with the flow," because while they can learn to maneuver through the innovation journey, they cannot control its flow.

Creativity for Innovation Management is a rigorous yet applied guide which illustrates what creativity is, why it matters, and how it can be developed at both individual and group levels. Unlike many technique-oriented books, this book will combine theory and practice, drawing on the latest research in psychology, organizational behaviour, innovation and entrepreneurship. This exciting new text outlines the necessary skills and competences for innovative and creative processes. It provides opportunities to explore these and also to develop them via a wide variety of activities linked to relevant tools and techniques, as well as a range of case studies. By working through key competence areas at personal and then team levels, students then have an opportunity to practice and enhance these skills. This will be complemented by online resources which will provide students with access to key tools and techniques plus activities to help develop their creativity. This textbook is ideal for students of innovation, management and entrepreneurship, as well as professionals in those industries that want to excel by developing and applying their own creativity at work.