Creative Problem Solving Leads to Organisational Innovation

The words “creative problem solving” have almost become more like buzzwords tossed around the workplace and never really landing anywhere. Everyone knows intuitively that creative problem solving can work, and it’s the “thing to do” in a participatory organisation, but exactly what does it mean and what benefits can be obtained?

Creative problem solving is a method of approaching change within the organisation. It usually involves a team approach, because people within the workplace are empowered to participate in the change process when looking for creative solutions. An effective organisation recognises that its own personnel often hold the keys to innovation within themselves and only need the right outlet to share their experience based ideas.

A Creative Change Agent

In other words, creative problem solving is a method of finding innovative approaches for problem resolution. The problem may be any of a number of situations or needs. For example, the problem may be stated in terms of the need to resolve interdepartmental conflict which is reducing efficiency. On the other hand, the problem may be a need for a product innovation in order to improve the company’s competitive standing within its industry.

No matter what the problem or need the business may be addressing, creative ideas and fresh approaches can often make the difference between a successful company and one that is unable to remain efficient and competitive. It also offers a way to introduce change into an organisation that minimises the normal fear that usually accompanies change. The creative problem solving process becomes a change agent that can turn resistance into action.

Seeing a Problem as an Opportunity

One of the most important features of the creative problem solving process is the fact it turns a problem into an opportunity to improve the organisation. Instead of just relying on traditional ideas or past practices to resolve a problem, the creative approach encourages people to participate in a dynamic setting which encourages new ideas and approaches.

The fact is that most organisations have the creative power within their own setting among the staff. The creative process brings together various people including managers, office personnel, line workers or supervisors, and many others. The people chosen to participate depends on the problem being solved.

The creative process follows a format which takes the group up to the moment when creative thinking is unleashed. In the initial stages, the process first accomplishes the following:

• Identifies the problem in traditional terms
• Establishes goals
• Empowers participants
• Develops criteria for choosing ideas
• Focuses on how to “sell” the creative idea

Popular creative problem solving strategies which have been developed include brainstorming, mind mapping, and even role or team game playing. In every situation, the goal is to empower people to feel comfortable enough to freely generate ideas without fear of criticism.

The Path of Creativity

In both brainstorming and mind mapping, ideas are suggested which may or may not seem reasonable on the surface. But no idea is eliminated and all ideas are welcomed. One idea is mapped or associated with another idea and a path of ideas leads to one or more creative solutions to a problem. The solution chosen depends on the criteria established at the beginning of the process.

In creative problem solving, organisational members are encouraged to participate and the process provides recognition to the people who are major contributors to the success of the business to date. It promotes teamwork, unity, creative approaches, and positive energy. However, possibly the most important success factor in creative problem solving is ensuring that time is dedicated regularly to the creativity process.

What Are Your Expectations?

Depending on how organised you are, that could be a difficult question to answer. Whether you have a work related project or task to complete, or are establishing working guidelines for your overall leadership role, you should have clear and well defined expectations of what you want to achieve before you begin.

This is especially necessary if the project involves teamwork. If the overall expectations of what needs to be achieved are not clearly defined, then the people involved may produce very different results, as they will all have different ideas about what is expected of them.

To this end, it helps immensely if a clear framework for your working relationship is laid out before the project begins. And the first step in this process is to take some time to make sure that your expectations are clear to yourself. Everyone should have a specific task and have the benefit of knowing not only what they are expected to do but also what are the parameters for their performance. Each person then operates as part of the whole, and it is only by everyone performing their own part that the project can be completed satisfactorily.

These expectations for team performance normally take two forms – operational and behavioural expectations. Under normal circumstances many operational expectations are dealt with in job descriptions, company poicy documents and the like. However behavioural expectations are much more subjective and as a reulst of this are harder to address.

Regular meetings at agreed points are also useful to determine if everyone is staying on track. Your expectations for the completion of a project should match the actual finished result as closely as possible and regular meetings help to steer you in the right direction.

There are many different opportunities to communicate your expectations – whether it be as part of the interview process to match a potential recruit to your team, at the start of a new project or when taking over a new position for example.

Remember that there are many great leaders, and all have an individual leadership style just as all artists have different artistic styles. However one of the major keys to really effective leadership is the clear understanding of your style by your team. By making your performance expectations clear to yourself, it allows you to effectively communicate them. This in turn allows your team members to work according to your expectations, which makes them confident and secure.

And one more thing – it is important to remember that you have to be a role model for the expectations you have of others!

Tips On How To Deliver Corrective Feedback

Correcting an employee’s work is never easy, especially if they are sensitive about their performance and don’t take kindly to criticism. When confronted with this situation, you should keep in mind the following tips:

• Schedule a meeting: Setting up a meeting is the best way to avoid embarrassment. Being able to talk with the employee in private allows you to ask questions about a project task, sales meeting, or other work responsibilities.

Talking about poor work performance in front of other employees is unprofessional and can make everyone in the office upset.

• Be polite when bringing up the issue: Always remain professional when bringing up work performance issues. While you can be firm, you should not intimidate employees in any way. By asking questions confirm with the team member where the problem or mistake lies and ask them for ideas on how to address the situation. Taking a step by step approach to corrective feedback can increase objectivity:

o Identify the specific situation or task that needs to be addressed
o Identify the performance that did not meet expectations
o Highlight the potential result of this inappropriate performance
o Identify the desired alternative performance
o Highlight the potential result of this desired performance

By remaining calm and objective, you can prevent employees from making the same mistake again.

• Schedule a follow-up meeting: In order to prevent an issue from occurring again, you should monitor the employee’s performance and schedule a follow-up meeting. If the issue has been corrected, let the employee know they have made improvements. If not, question the employee and find out why they continue to make the same mistakes.

• Assign additional training: If you believe the issue can be corrected, assign additional training or mentoring so the employee can develop the skills required to meet performance expectations. Many times, additional training is all an employee needs in order to get back on track.

Unfortunately, many managers and team leaders do not take the time to find out why an employee has made an error at the workplace. By talking with the employee and trying to find solutions, you will be showing your employees that you care about their work performance and that you want them to succeed. As a result, they are more apt to come to you for advice, assistance, and voice any concerns they may have.

Creating a positive work environment begins when managers learn how to bring up issues that need to be addressed in a professional manner. Additional training, mentoring, and support can prevent employees from making the same mistakes twice.

Become A Better Leader By Learning Time Management Skills

Because time is a valuable commodity in business and in life, knowing how to manage it effectively is an important way to get as much accomplished during the day as possible. If you are struggling to get all of your tasks completed, learning a few time management skills can help.

UTILIZING YOUR TIME

When people think of time management skills, they think of completely overhauling the way tasks are performed, the way meetings are conducted, and the amount of work it takes to make changes. But there are many ways to improve time management by implementing small, but effective changes. These changes may include:

• Setting personal time limits for reading email
• Reorganizing office supply areas so items can be found quickly and easily
• Cutting the amount of time everyone has to speak in a meeting
• Improving data storage

Changes like these can be made very easily. As long as everyone in the office is aware of the changes being made, everyone will benefit from them.

TIME MANAGEMENT TRAINING

If you do not know where to begin when it comes to making these changes, you can take a time management training course that can provide ideas, advice, and ways to save time using technology and common sense. Many people need advice when trying to manage their time. In a time management training course, you will find executives, managers, supervisors, office managers, and others who want to learn how to make themselves and their departments more productive.

In order to develop effective time management skills it is important for the leader to focus on:

• How to break up tasks into shorter activities
• How to create presentations that are creative, but short and to the point
• How to teach others about time management
• How to implement new policies that will help departments become more efficient
• The benefits of time management and what it can do for company profits and quality of the working environment for employees
• Goal setting and why it is important

Once you have learned a few techniques, you can take them back to the office and begin using them right away.

Tips On Becoming A Better Sales Department Leader

Successful sales department leaders understand the products they are selling and recruit only those who are able to sell benefits and features of the goods and services offered by a company. Sales is a competitive field that requires the ability to understand customer need quickly and be able to fill that need with the right products.

In order to become a better sales department leader, you should consider the following:

• Creating goals for the department
• Training others
• Measuring success
• Developing customer loyalty

By focusing on these areas, you will be able to create an environment where employees are productive and have a full understanding of goods and services offered so more sales can be made.

CREATING GOALS FOR THE DEPARTMENT

Creating realistic goals that everyone in the department is aware of is one way to help employees understand their role within a company. Departments that have goals are more productive because they need to meet these goals each quarter.

While goals can be adjusted, you should not make too many changes, or employees will lose faith in leadership decisions.

TRAINING OTHERS

The training that your company provides to customer service representatives and sales staff may need to be updated to include new technology, sales techniques, and quality of customer service. Offering additional training will also make employees feel more secure about their jobs and increase their productivity.

MEASURING SUCCESS

There are many items you should be measuring when trying to determine the strengths and weaknesses of your department. Common measurements include:

• Time it takes to make a sale
• The number of customers who ask for repeat business
• Number of customers who left
• Employee turnover
• Amount of sales

These measurements will allow you to make changes, implement additional training, and help you see how successful your department really is.

DEVELOPING CUSTOMER LOYALTY

When customers are loyal, they are more apt to pay for additional goods and services, recommend products to others, and pay their bill on time. When leading a sales department, you have to stress the importance of customer relations and how this can affect your business. Developing customer service training courses or sending employees to one will provide them with the skills needed to improve customer service and earn customer loyalty.

While these changes cannot be implemented overnight, your department will benefit from them in many ways.