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Creativity Don't
Kill Creativity in Your Company By Christine Corelli The
"Sales-Service Excellence" Expert I've
seen many managers inadvertently kill creativity in their employees either because
they are close-minded, or because of their frantic efforts just to get work done
by a deadline. Managers can learn to maximize creativity without killing it in
the process. One way to stimulate creativity is to give employees new and challenging
assignments, but not so difficult they feel overwhelmed. Be sure to give them
specific goals but do not dictate how they should be met. They will likely use
their creativity if you give them the freedom to decide how to climb a mountain.
This is an effective way to ignite the fire under some of the employees who are
average performers and turn them into Achievers as they will feel they are contributing
to the decision-making. If you are a manager
seeking new ideas and solutions to problems in your company or association, create
a task force of people from different departments to assist you. Let them set
up their meeting times, ground rules and agenda. Each person should be the "voice"
in their department. Be sure you include individuals with different areas of expertise
and thinking styles, as this diversity will stimulate discussion and help produce
innovative ideas. You'd be surprised to see the strategic ideas these task force
groups come up with. Just ask Harley-Davidson or ITW. They will tell you the key
to their success over the last ten years is due "Employee Involvement." High-performers
are attracted to organizations that have a high level of employee involvement,
where they can participate in idea-sharing and problem-solving sessions like those
we discussed in our chapter on creativity. Establish self-directed teams or task
forces to help in this area. Don't make the mistake of asking only your Achievers
to partake in these sessions. All your people need to feel they play a vital role
in your organization and should also have a voice in the decision-making process.
One of my clients, a CEO in the telecommunications
industry, uses an interesting technique for idea sharing. He has each of his executives
practice hands-on role reversal with three different employees once a month for
structured discussions. Here are their ground rules... -
They must leave their titles at the door.
- The
executives must ask questions and listen.
- Employees
must be open and assertive in their discussions. The reason for the success of
this practice is because it is ongoing and not a one-shot deal. It also stimulates
employees to continuously generate more and better ideas and creates an understanding
of each other's pressures.
When employees
offer suggestions and recommendations for solutions, the company needs to make
sure they ACT on those ideas. I believe it would be insincere to ask employees
to participate in decision-making and then ignore their input. If you determine
that you simply cannot act upon employees' suggestions, then honestly explain
why their ideas cannot be enacted upon. Whenever possible, find parts of their
solutions that are viable or elements that can be implemented in the future. Be
sure to praise your people for any ideas they offer to keep them creatively charged.
They need to know their efforts are appreciated. When you do, you'll be amazed
at how they will come forth with ideas that can help your company survive through
tough times, implement change, better serve your customer, and more. All of these
will help you to move into a better future.
Christine is best known as The "Sales-Service
Excellence" Expert, and the author of the popular books, Wake
Up and Smell the Competition and The
ART of Influencing Customers to BUY From YOU. As a keynote speaker,
conference speaker, and sales trainer she is superlative in her field. Her
impressive client list includes Fortune 100 corporations, prominent national associations
and literally hundreds of mid-sized and small businesses. To learn
more about Christine's books, keynotes, seminars or consulting, please contact:
Gene Leigh, Director of Marketing: gene@christinespeaks.com
or call us toll-free: (800) 417-9968 or (847) 581-9968 |
Copyright © 1997-2006 All Rights Reserved
CHRISTINE CORELLI & ASSOCIATES, INC. Your Key Resource
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