creativity and innovation group think and mindset

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H.A.M.H

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Page 1: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

H.A.M.H

Page 2: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Mental Blockages to creativity by Tony

Proctor

Groupthink and Mindset

Resistance to change

Page 3: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

The blocks are essentially of two varieties :

individual and organizational.

Page 4: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Some barriers limit an individual`s creative

output and are related to the people

themselves. On the other hand there are

those that emanate from the environment in

which people operate.

Many researchers have attempted to address

the phenomenon of barriers to creativity.

Page 5: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Perceptual blocks : prevent a person

receiving a true, relevant picture of the

outside world.

Cultural blocks : result from influences of

society.

Emotional blocks : fear, anxiety & jealousy.

Page 6: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Strategic blocks : One right answer approaches, inflexibility of thinking.

Value blocks : Over-generalized rigidity influenced by personal values.

Perceptual blocks : Over-narrow focus of attention and interest.

Self – image blocks : Poor effectiveness through fear of failure, timidity in expressing ideas, etc.

Page 7: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Emphasis on managerial control : can stifle

creativity since autonomy and a degree of

freedom are critical ingredients of creative

thinking.

Short range thinking : tendency to give

priority to quick returns with financially

measurable results.

Analysis paralysis : over analyzed idea and

time is lost along with any competitive

advantage.

Page 8: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Rigid hierarchical structures : requires a

responsive organizational structure; not a

characteristic for most organizations.

Tendency to look for big project: likely to

generate a big payoff, rather than a number

of smaller projects with small to medium

payoffs.

Market Versus Technology driven product

planning : tends to be an overemphasis on

market research, in line with the marketing

orientation adopted by many companies.

Page 9: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Pressure to achieve and do more with less

resources

R & D departments are often penalized for

cutting costs. The more the department

saves one year, the less it has to play with

the next. Paradoxically, the more companies

have to cut back on expenditure, the more

creative they must become.

Lack of a systematic approach to innovation:

lack of real ideas about how to innovate.

The belief that some people are creative and

others are not.

Page 10: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset
Page 11: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

How to distinguish between groupthink and

mindset?

How can they be barriers to creativity?

Page 12: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

• A phenomenon that occurs when the desire for group

consensus overrides people's common sense desire to

present alternatives, critique a position, or express an

unpopular opinion.(Irving Janis)

• A tendency in a cohesive group to seek agreement about

an issue at the expense of realistically appraising the

situation. (M.Bartol & C.Martin)

Page 13: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

A condition where an individual is over

sensitised to some part of the information

available at the expense of other parts.

(Tony Proctor)

A set of beliefs or way of thinking that

determines somebody’s behavior and

outlook. (Clayton Shold)

Page 14: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Carol Dweck (Stanford University

Psychologist) argues that there are two

fundamental mindsets:

Fixed Mindset,

Growth Mindset

Page 15: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Fixed mindset: a belief that talents and

abilities cannot be improved through any

means.

Growth mindset: a belief that intelligence,

talents, and abilities can be developed over

time.

Page 16: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Fixed Mindset Growth Mindset

Challenges Avoid Challenges Embrace challenges

Obstacle Give up easily Persist in the face of set

backs

Effort See effort as fruitless or

worse

See effort as the path to

mastery

Criticism Ignore useful negative

feedback

Learn from criticism

Success of others Fell threatened by the

success of others

Find the lesson and

inspiration in the success

of others

Result They may plateau early and

achieve less than their full

potential

They reach ever-higher

level of achievement

Page 17: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Mindset Groupthink

Irrational Rational

Examining alternatives

(past experience) Examining few alternatives

Seeking the expert opinion Not seeking expert opinion

Page 18: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Groupthink

Group Cohesive Group Don’t have

contingency

Plan

Possibly of

Failure(high)

Groupthink Poor Decision Lack of

Creativity

Page 19: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Mindset

Searching Previous

Experience

Fixed Mindset -Unencounter

problem

-Over regard to

logical thinking

Generate

Idea(New idea)

Growth

Mindset

Page 20: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Fixed

Mindset Can’t solve

the problem

Barrier to

creativity

Growth

Mindset Solve the

problem Creative

Mindset

Page 21: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

What strategies can be undertaken to avoid

groupthink ?

Page 22: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

If your job requires you to work in groups, you are

potentially affected by groupthink on an ongoing basis.

Groupthink may result in lost productivity, reduced

morale and motivation, and growing inability to reach

even routine decisions successfully.

Page 23: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Here are the symptoms of groupthink briefly explained :

1. Illusion of invulnerability: the group are incapable of being wrong.

2. Rationalization : the group’s end justifies the means.

3. Inherent morality: the group feel what they are doing is best for everyone.

4. Stereotypical thinking: the group employs preconceived notions in evaluating

information.

5. Mind guards: group members who take it upon themselves to protect the group from

information that contradicts prevailing opinion.

6. Pressure on dissenters: group members aggressively "go after" colleagues who disagree

with the general sentiments of the group.

7. Self-censorship: group members willingly refrain from voicing opposition to the

prevailing sentiments of the group.

8. Illusion of unanimity: the belief, within the group, that silence is an indication of

agreement.

Page 24: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Here are the strategies which can be undertaken to avoid groupthink :

1.Open climate -It has been found that the leader should practice what is

called an open leadership style – free discussion, non-judgmental attitudes, and

acceptance of divergent thinking, as opposed to closed leadership style

characterized by tightly-controlled discussion, highly-defensive posturing, and

lack of tolerance of divergent thinking in favor of convergent thinking.

2. Avoid the Isolation of the Group -Decision makers should be encouraged

to frame a decision problem in a variety of ways in order to investigate the

stability of preferences. It may be highly valuable to bring in outsiders to

provide critical reaction to the group’s assumptions. In this way, the group is

prevented from isolation with limited data and few choices.

3.Assign Members the Role of Critical Evaluator -The leader or group

facilitator should assign each group member the role of critical evaluator, giving

them the power to assail sacred cows and uncontested group assumptions. By

questioning even areas in which a particular group member may not have

special expertise, the group is forced to re-examine their own assumptions and

rationalizations.

Page 25: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

4. Avoid Being Too Directive -Perhaps the most important single step a leader can take is to

remove themselves from the leadership role itself by avoiding being too directive. The leader

can deliberately be absent from one or more key meetings or allow other group members to

facilitate a meeting in their presence. In this way, they can ensure that they will not exert undue

influence upon group members. Decision makers should be instructed not to evaluate decision

problems in terms of gains or losses from a neutral reference point. Instead, they should be

taught to formulate a decision problem in terms of final states or assets.

5. The group leader should avoid expressing their personal views too early in the decision-making

process.

6. The group leader should encourage group members to challenge and push each other for the

purpose of enhancing each others' critical thinking.

7. The group should utilize procedural strategies for reaching group decisions within a

"competitive" work environment:-

(i) Dialectical inquiry method: the group attempts to reach a decision by developing two

different recommendations, based on contrary assumptions, from the same data; then

subjecting those competing recommendations to in-depth, critical evaluation through a

debate between two advocate subgroups.

Page 26: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

(ii) Devil's advocacy method: the group attempts to reach a decision by

developing a recommendation and solid supporting argument for it; then

subjecting it to in-depth, critical evaluation by a designated advocate who

attempts to show why the recommendation should not be accepted.

8. Tell the group to develop multiple scenarios of events upon which they

are acting, and contingencies for each scenario.

9.Better brainstorming sessions

10.Calling a meeting after a decision consensus is reached in which all

group members are expected to critically review the decision before final

approval is given.

Page 27: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset
Page 28: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Even when top management gets an organization off to a good start, there are no guarantees that the organization’s initial success will continue.

Changes in structures, policies and procedures are constantly made in an organization to survive and remain competitive due to fierce domestic and foreign competition.

However, implementing those changes is not easy since new ideas are often resisted rather to be accepted.

Page 29: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset
Page 30: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Habit: people tend to be afraid of new ideas

since they have been accustomed to what

they are doing without the presence of any

changes.

Fear of the unknown: uncertainties arising

when change is present in organizations.

Resource Limitations

Page 31: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Threats to Power and Influence

Defensive Perception: a reflection of an

individual’s or organization’s wish to

maintain the status quo.

Saving face

Incongruent organizational systems

Incongruent team dynamics

Past contracts or agreements

Page 32: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset
Page 33: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset
Page 34: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Communication is the highest priority and

the first strategy required for any

organizational change. It reduces the

restraining forces by keeping employees

informed about what to expect from the

change effort. For example, customer

complaint letters are shown to employees.

This is done in order to induce the urgency of

change among the employees. Although

time-consuming and costly, communication

can potentially reduce fear of the unknown

and develop team norms that are more

consistent with the change effort.

Page 35: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset
Page 36: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Training is an important process in most

change initiatives because employees need

to learn new knowledge and skills. Some

training programs can also minimize

employee resistance caused by saving face,

because employees are actively involved in

the change process. For example, employees

learn how to work in teams as the company

adopts a team-based structure. However,

such training may be quite time-consuming

and potentially costly.

Page 37: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset
Page 38: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Involving employees in decision-making process

may create a psychological ownership of the

decision. Rather than viewing themselves as

agents of someone else’s decision, staff

members feel personally responsible for the

success of the decision. Employee involvement

also minimizes resistance to change by reducing

problems of saving face and fear of the

unknown. For example, company forms a task

force to recommend new customer service

practices which needs more employee

commitment. However, this strategy may lead to

conflict and poor decisions if employees’

interests are incompatible with organizational

needs. Besides, it is considered very time-

consuming to execute this strategy.

Page 39: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset
Page 40: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

For most people, organizational change is a stressful experience. It threatens self-esteem and creates uncertainty about the future. Communication, training, and employee involvement can reduce some of these stressors, but companies also need to introduce stress management practices to help employees cope with the changes. It minimizes resistance by removing some of the direct costs and fear of unknown associated with the change process. Stress also saps energy, so minimizing stress potentially increases employee motivation to support the change process. For example, employees attend sessions to discuss their worries about the change. Somehow, this strategy is found time-consuming and potentially expensive. Moreover, this strategy may not be always effective as some methods cannot reduce stress for all employees.

Page 41: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset
Page 42: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Organizational change is, in large measure, a political activity. People have vested interests and apply their power to ensure that the emerging conditions are consistent with their personal values and needs. Consequently, negotiation may be necessary for employees who will clearly lose out from the change activity. This negotiation offers certain benefits to offset some of the cost of the change. For example, employees agree to replace strict job categories with multiskilling in return for increased job security. This strategy may be found expensive, particularly if other employees want to negotiate their support. Also, it tends to produce compliance, but not commitment to the change.

Page 43: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Coercion is simply defined as the act of compelling by force of authority. Coercion might include dismissals of several members of an executive team who are unwilling or unable to change their existing mental models of the ideal organization. For example, company president tells managers to get on board and accept the change or leave. Dismissal is a radical form of organizational “unlearning” because when executives leave, they take knowledge of the organization’s past routines, potentially opening up opportunities for new practices to take hold. At the same time, we should keep in mind that coercion is a risky strategy because survivors (employees who are not fired) may have less trust in corporate leaders and engage in more political tactics to protect their own job security. Generally, various forms of coercion may change behavior through compliance, but they won’t develop commitment to the change effort.

Page 44: Creativity and Innovation Group Think and Mindset

Proctor, Tony (2005), Creativity Problem Solving

For Managers (2nd edition), New York: Routledge.

Neale, Margaret A. and Northcraft, Gregory B.

(1990), Organizational Behaviour: A Management

Challenge, Florida: Dryden Press.

Von Glinow, Mary Ann and McShane, Steven L.

(2003), Organizational Behaviour (2nd edition),

New York: McGraw-Hill.

Mullins, Laurie J. (2005), Management And

Organisational Behaviour (7th edition), London:

Pearson Education Limited.