Strategy Survival Guide

Strategy Survival Guide Version 2.1
Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit
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Strategy Skills > Managing People
Encouraging creativity
> in practice
Creative behaviour needs to be encouraged and nurtured. The team leader, or perhaps a creativity
champion with the team, should actively promote a creative environment and watch out for attitudes or
influences that might limit creativity. ?What If!, a creativity and innovation consultancy, have developed
‘Sticky Wisdom’ that defines six creative behaviours needed to stimulate the right environment for creative
problem solving. These behaviours are:
Freshness
“Problems cannot be solved
by thinking within the
framework in which they were
created” Einstein
New ideas come from new experiences.
The Thames Barrier was invented when it was realised that the valve system used in plumbing could work
for a river too; the iconic design of the London Underground map was stimulated by the way wiring diagrams
are displayed; and Velcro was created when its inventor noticed the way burrs stuck to his clothing.
Creativity does not necessarily have to be something completely new, but creative people have the ability to
see how something could work in an alternative situation. With this end in mind, they seek wider experiences
and new ways of thinking. ?What If! call this ‘Freshness’. Freshness can be found in simple ways, taking a
different route into work, by employing people with a range of backgrounds and skills, and by corporatelyarranged
visits to other organisations.
Greenhousing
“Analysis kills spontaneity. The
grain once ground into flour
springs and germinates no
more.” Henri Frederic Amiel
New ideas are delicate. Of course they have not
been thought through, they’re new! However, if you
pounce on an idea too quickly and subject it to
rigorous testing (for financial soundness, for
general feasibility etc) it will soon fall down.
Once destroyed, it is unlikely to be revisited again, and even worse, the person who had the idea is unlikely
to be keen to have another one. Synectics says:
Idea + build = 2 ideas
Idea + crush = 0 ideas
However, being analytical is the natural way to think in the Western world (see the section on Six Thinking
Hats). Making swift and critical judgements is what drives our success. However, such behaviours are an
anathema to creativity. Synectics has a list called ’17 ways to murder an idea’, they are:
Strategy Survival Guide – Strategy Skills
Page 56