How Financial Crisis Has Affected Creativity and Innovation?

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to express my thanks to my advisor, for his suggestions, comments, patience and understanding. Very special thanks to my parents, my father, my mother, my brother and my sister who were continuously supporting me throughout my life and leaving me free in all my decisions. I would also like to thank my colleagues for his technical support whenever I needed. I would like to thank to Department, all the university managers, teachers and students with whom I have worked.

I certify that the work presented in the dissertation is my own unless referenced

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DECLARATION

I declare that the contents of this dissertation/thesis represent my own unaided work, and that the dissertation/thesis has not previously been submitted for academic assessment towards any qualification. I further declare that this work has not previously been presented in whole or part, for any other award, or published in whole or in part elsewhere, including this university. Furthermore, it represents my own opinions and not necessarily those of the University.

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ABSTRACT

The fastest-growing enterprises in the world share two common competitive characteristics which are innovation and creativity. Most of the world's leading businesses today could reach the level of a global enterprise thanks to innovation and creativity, whose importance has grown further in the aftermath of the recent global economic crisis. As the pace of innovation and creativity in businesses becomes faster than ever before, the competitive landscape within an industry often changes rapidly. The purpose of this research is to explore the concept of creativity and impact of financial crisis on creativity in business industry.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTII

DECLARATIONIII

ABSTRACTIV

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION1

Background of the Study1

Problem Statement2

Research Aims and Objectives2

Structure of the thesis3

Chapter I: Introduction3

Chapter II: Literature Review3

Chapter III: Methodology3

Chapter IV: Data analysis and Discussion4

Chapter V: Conclusion4

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW5

Creativity7

Organisational Creativity9

Declining Investments in Creativity10

Crisis of Creativity11

Fostering Creativity11

Innovation13

Innovation and Organisational Commitment14

Innovation and Trust15

Innovation and Self-Esteem15

Innovation and Learning16

Measuring Innovation16

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY18

Qualitative Research19

Quantitative Research19

Rational for Qualitative Study20

Search Technique20

Research Method21

Literature Search22

Additional Online searches22

Ethical Concerns23

Reliability/Dependability23

Validity25

CHAPTER 4: DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS27

Positive and Negative Effect of Creativity and Innovation27

Positive aspects of Creativity and Innovation27

Negative Creativity and Disruptive Innovation31

Apple Inc and Innovation and Creativity32

3M: Innovation through Open Doors and White Spaces35

The “15% rule”: 3M's White Space39

CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION41

Limitations of the Research Study41

REFERENCES43

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Businesses should include both creative management and management of creativity. The required abilities include a range of different intelligences and a high tolerance for ambiguity, contradictory ideas, and uncertainty (Amabile, Barsade, Mueller and Staw 2005, p. 367). Fostering creativity in requires businesses to be open to new ideas, to tolerate and expect a certain failure rate, allowing flexibility in setting goals and choosing projects on which to work (Amabile, Barsade, Mueller and Staw 2005, p. 367).

The current financial crisis, which had its roots in the US sub-prime market for housing loans, simmered throughout 2007 and most of 2008 before breaking out into a full-blown crisis with the filing of Lehman Brothers for bankruptcy in September 2008.

“Credit Crunch” or “Financial Crisis” can be stated as ...