Promote corporate creativity through arts

Creativity, once considered a much desired trait in arts and entertainment industry, is now of the one of the most sought out culture to develop in any industry. Companies spend millions of dollars to promote corporate culture of creativity by hiring external consultants. The importance of creativity in businesses can be judged from the following quotes of business visionaries.

"It's through curiosity and looking at opportunities in new ways that we've always mapped our path at Dell." – Michael Dell

"I've always been an optimist and I suppose that is rooted in my belief that the power of creativity and intelligence can make the world a better place." – Bill Gates

Leaders often place a value on "thinking out of the box." But if creativity is so important why do large and small companies find difficult to promote creativity and intelligence in their organization? One reason being organizational processes are intently designed to be routine chores with very less flexibility to deviate from the standard process. This helps organization to maintain the quality standard of their product or services. However, creativity requires chaotic and flexible environment.

As it is true with any trait, the development of creativity in any business setting should be approached with conscious effort and willingness to promote such environment. You need to create an atmosphere that fosters creativity. Many organizations have enclosed cubicles, bare walls, bland conference rooms, and semi-isolated employees. How can we expect people in this environment to think creatively for our organizations?

So what can companies do to improve this most critical element called creativity? It is amazing how much can be done with a relatively small investment.

Instead of commissioning lot of resources to understand the ways of promoting creativity at workplace, corporates can do much better with far lesser resources. One such example would be to replace standard corporate posters in conference rooms, hallways and offices with beautiful oil paintings. Another good way to create creative environment is to invest in a simple sound system that plays classical music. If this is inappropriate in some work zones, designate break rooms and conference rooms for music.

The ability to think creatively should not be the sole responsibility of the leader or CEO of the business. This function could be shared by all and by doing so increase the productivity of any company. The steps listed above are simple to take and require a relatively small investment. It's vitally important to enjoy this process and let your own creativity dictate the application of these steps.