Four Steps to Unleash Creativity in the Workplace

Four Steps to Unleash Creativity in the WorkplaceFour Steps to Unleash Creativity in the WorkplaceFour Steps to Unleash Creativity in the Workplace Birla, author of Unleashing Creativity and neuerung Nine Lessons from Nature for Enterprise Growth and Career Success (John Wiley, 2013)After the release of my first book, FedEx Delivers How the Worlds Leading Shipping Company Keeps Innovating and Outperforming the Competition, I was interviewed by Bloomberg TV and asked a question thatpointed tothe necessity for unleashing creativity in the workplace.The question was, If someone were to arrive on earth from Mars and did not know anything about FedEx, whats the one thing youd tell him that was the key to FedEx becoming a global success story?Thats easy I said. Its the discretionary effort the creativity and commitment of employees at all levels of the organization.During my 22 years at FedEx, I saw first hand the generation and implementation of creative ideas at all levels of the organi zation. Since then, Ive been speaking about Leading for Innovation and Growth to executives all over the world. One question Im always askedis,How can I sustain enterprise growth in todays highly competitive global economy?Based on myexperience helping FedEx become a global icon and in my consulting work with companies, the answer continues to be,You must tap into your teams creativity.Your Customer Service Agents Creativity After FedEx offered a Saturday delivery option, customers would call on Fridays for scheduling a pick-up. The customer service representative on the phone would ask if the customer would like the shipment to be delivered Saturday for extra $10. This would inevitably create a lag while the customer checked to see whether the boss wanted the Saturday delivery option.A customer service agent suggested a new script that changed the question to a statement If youd like Saturday delivery, please mark the airway bill accordingly. There will be $10 surcharge. Otherwise it will be delivered Monday. The call was complete, and the wait time was eliminated.When you think of the number of calls FedEx receives every day, this change produced big cost savings. mora importantly, it created a much smoother customer experience.The Creativity of the FedEx Team in AustraliaAustralia was gearing up for the 2000 Summer Olympics. Traffic restrictions in the city were going to shut FedExs pickup and delivery operations down. There would be no parking on the streets during normal delivery hours.The FedEx team in Australia sent a questionnaire to customers that asked them if their geschftslebenes would be open. If so, the questionnaire asked how FedEx could serve their needs during the Olympics.The team devised a plan to have multiple couriers in one vehicle. FedEx delivery trucks would circle the area and the extra couriers would deliver the packages, while the trucks kept moving. FedEx customers were delighted.Generating Creativity in the Workplace Creativity is the process of generating ideas that will help the enterprise become mora competitive in the marketplace. Business creativity means generating ideas that improve customer experience, create new products, increase revenue/market share, and/or helps improve efficiency.The mind requires the following four conditions to engage in the creative thinking process. These four points are included in my new book, Unleashing Creativity and Innovation Nine Lessons from Nature for Enterprise Growth and Career Success.1) Dots Expand Knowledge Creativity is about connecting the dots. The more dots you have to work with, the more combinations available to help generate new ideas. Curiosity generates more knowledge (i.e., dots), which precedes creativity.Creative people always ask why and continuously question the assumptions behind the existing business models, product designs, and business processes. These assumptions may have been valid 5 or 10 years ago when the process or product was initially d esigned, but the world and technology have changed significantly since then.2) Imagination Connects the DotsImagination is the right brain asking what if by connecting dots in imaginative ways, as reflected by Einsteins quote, Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.The creative power of our imagination stirs the growing knowledge base (more dots) into action. Using their imagination, creative problem solvers explore what ifs before locking into how to.3) The Need for Creative Tension In order for the violin string to produce the right tone, it needs the right amount of stress. Too much tension and the string snaps lacking any tension it does not produce any music.Similarly the mind needs creative tension.Creative tension is the gap between where we are and where we want to be. The role of leaders is to set specific goals for improving business processes, cost structure, customer experience, and so on.The goal should stretc h far enough to require greater effort, but not so far as to be unattainable. This creates the required creative tension and gets the creative problem-solving journey started.4) Give Them Time to ThinkCreative problem-solving takes time to develop a raw creative idea and get it ready for implementation.If youre constantly running from one meeting to another, where is the time to think? Your busy calendar must reflect a balance between doing and scheduling some quiet time for thinking.Quarterly earnings are the score. Unique processes, value propositions, capabilities, customer experiences and market positioning all products of creative and innovative thinking determine the score.If you want to improve the score, you must cultivate these four conditions for developing and tapping into your teams creativity.Madan Birlas book, Unleashing Creativity and Innovation Nine Lessons from Nature for Enterprise Growth and Career Success, has just been released by John Wiley Sons.Author BioMa dan Birla is a veteran of the hard side of business. In his 22 years at FedEx, he was Managing Director of Long-Range Operations and Facilities Planning and Materials and Resource Planning before being named Managing Director in the companys Leadership Institute. For eight years as a member of the Long Range Planning Committee he worked closely with Fred Smith (Founder CEO) and the senior management team in developing and implementing innovative business growth strategies.He is a regular speaker in Executive Education programs at Northwesterns Kellogg Management Institute, Dartmouth Colleges Tuck School of Business, American Management Association, The Conference Board, and professional meetings including Society of menschenfreundlich Resource Management (SHRM) Global Human Resource Forums and at many other institutes of higher learning.Learn more about cultivating creativity in the workplaceEmpowering Employees Get Better Results from Almost Any TeamSmart Lessons in Management Tea m Building from the Birds and Bees How to Interview Recruiting Team Players