CREATIVITY AND PROBLEM SOLVING

CHAPTER 4 Creativity is the ability to develop novel ideas that can be put into
action. Creativity leads to creative problem solving. Creative problem
solving is often a key element of effective management.
The manager frequently faces with a complex problem to solve for
which programmed decisions are not available. By searching for a new

Creativity and
alternative, the manager engages in creative behaviour. Good managers
are creative all the time. “They have to be to meet the confusing, fast-
changing processions of demands on the intelligence, adaptability, and

problem people-handling skill»

Another way of developing one’s managerial skills is, thus, to
improve one’s’ creativity. The techniques described in this chapter are

solving directly relevant.

The Stage of Creative Thought

Objectives:
1. Problem Finding. We spend time studying the situation. We
gather information and set about defining the problem
• To sensitize the students to the importance of
creativity
2. Concentration: this preparation work intensifies and – if it is as
• To identify characteristics of the left and right
important issue – we may spend much time working on it,
sides of the brain
reframing the problem, looking at it from different viewpoints,
• To describe a variety of techniques of creative
identifying a range of possible answers and trying out some in
problem solving
the new solutions.
• To give experience is different modes of thinking

3. Incubation: we relax our direct focus on the problem, and

spend some time away from the situation, usually thinking of
something else. These may be short periods of time when we
School of Business and
Management of Technology of BSU

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 are driving home from the office doing the washing or watching Figure 1. Presents an outline of the main differences between the
the television. hemispheres
4. Insight: during phase 3 our unconscious mind is still working on
the problem, and insights and solutions arise. Phase 4 is the Left hand side Right-hand side
“Aha’ moment – or what Archimedes called :Eureka”. Looks for cause and effect Looks at relationship
Processes information bit by bit Processes information all at once
5. Verification and Application: we check the solution.
Focuses on detail Looks at the whole

Deals in facts and figures Asks “why”

Whole Brain Thinking

Focuses on words to describe Uses pictures, imagery, colors

It is generally believed that the left side of the brain is the source of
Focuses on logic Thinks in lateral ways
most analytical, logical and rational thought. It performs the tasks
necessarily for well-reasoned arguments. The right side of the brain
Likes to order/put into sequence Is non-evaluative
grasps the work in a more intuitive, overall manner. It is the source of
impressionistic, creative thought. People with dominant right brains thrive
Evaluates/deals with rights and Focuses on emotions and feelings
on disorder and ambiguity.
wrongs
Current scientific thought indicated that any mental activity is
carried our by both sides of the brain simultaneously. The whole brain
thinking maximizes our thinking potential by encouraging both sides of the
Many techniques and approaches have been suggested for
brain to work together to achieve a common objective. Creativity is the
creative solutions to problems. Some of these are simply ways of kicking
result of both sides of the brain working in harmony. Highly creative
yourself into seeing something new, or in regarding something familiar in a
individual achieve synergy between the two sides of the brain.
new way. Here are a few of them:

Draw the problem:

Whether or not it is obviously a visual or spatial problem, try to
represent it in pictorial cartoon form. Be as uninhibited as you can. Then
consider possible solutions, or topics related to the problem, and draw
them.

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Be the problem, or part of it:
For example, imagine that you are the troublesome part of a
machine, or an object that got lost or broken, or a message that was
misunderstood. Think hard about what it would feel like, what could be
done, what would help.
Imagine something completely different:
Think of, imagine, anything – an object, an event, an idea. A
spider’s web, for instance, or a football match, or dissolving. Concentrate
on this in relation to the problem at hand. You may spot a link, or get a
fresh perspective that will help to solve the problem.
Invert the problem:
Turn the problem inside out or upside down, or reverse it. For
example, instead of putting a product into a package, consider putting a
package round a product; instead of protecting employees from an
industrial accident, protect the accident from the staff.
Turn the problem into an opportunity:
There is a corny saying ‘every problem is an opportunity’ but it is
often true.
Write a story:
Fictionalize the problem and the people concerned with it. You
could get a completely new angle on the situation.
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Brainstorming
Think of all ideas you can, without judging them. Consciously try to
get a least a dozen different ideas before you stop. Brainstorming helps
writers get over the tendency to be overcritical or to develop a mental
block after they’ve thought on one idea or approach. The first idea you
have may not be the best.
Problem solvers tend to grasp at first solutions that come to mind.
This practice inhibits the search for new avenues of thought. Alex Osborn
developed a technique called brainstorming. This method is used to
promote a free flow of idea.
To make a brainstorming session successful, group members
need to adhere to certain guidelines:
1. temporarily suspend judgment. Adopt a “try anything” attitude.
2. encourage freewheeling. The wilder the ideas are offered, the
better. At this point, the practicality of ideas are not of primary
importance.
3. think of as many ideas as you can, at this stage , it is the quantity –
not the quality of ideas that is important. The greater the number of
ide3as, the better the chance of finding a good one.
4. build on and improve or modify the ideas of others, work to mix
ideas until they form interesting combinations.
5. record all ideas. This ensured that the group will have available all
the ideas that have been generated during the session.
6. don’t evaluate ideas too soon. Only after brainstorming session is
finished should group members evaluate the ideas for usefulness
and applicability
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Negative Brainstorming Clustering or mind maps
Graham Gibbs has developed this variation to Osborn’s ideas (14).
Gibbs has found that it is easy for people to see what’s wrong. He Write your topic in the middle of the page and circle it. Write down

suggested brainstorming based on problems, faults and ‘what’s wrong the ideas the topic suggests, circling them, too. (The circles are designed

here’ negative approach. The ides is to take the list of negatives, tackle to tap into the nonlinear half of the brain) When you’ve filled the page, look

each, and turn it into positives. for patterns or repeated ides. Then use these ideas to develop reader
benefit in a memo, questions for a survey, or content for the body of a
report.
Figure1 presents the mindmap that one writer created about
Freewriting business communication in the United States and France.

Make yourself write, without stopping, for 10 minutes or so, even if

you must write “UI will think of something soon”, At the end of 10 minutes
– write what you have written, identify the best points in the draft than set it
aside, and write for another 10 uninterrupted ten minutes. Read the draft
again, marking anything that is good and should be kept, and then write
again for 10 minutes. By the third session, you will probably produce
several sections that are worth keeping – maybe even a complete draft,
that’s ready to be revised.

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Fishbone Analysis
Fishbone Analysis is a systematic model for analyzing and solving
problems. It help to separate the course of a problem from symptoms and
can also help us to avoid focusing on only on the symptoms, or taking
actions which dos not solve the real, underlying problem, but causes new
ones.
Fishbone Analysis has been widely used for examining quality
issues in manufacturing. It discourages jumping to the obvious
conclusions, and can help us to identify multiple contributory causes of
permanent problems.
In this example, the apparent problem – job stress – is treated as a
symptom, and the fishbone is developed to identify possible causes.
Fishbone analysis can be used for solitary problem-solving or for
tackling problems in a team. In either case, it helps to be clear at the
outset about the extent of the apparent problem, or symptoms and to ask
these questions:
• What are the features (symptoms) of the problem?
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• Who is affected or involves? Who is not but could have been?
So, for example, the apparent problem might be a high incidence of
stress related absences and below average performance in a certain
administrative team, affecting four members in particular.
Then consider the possible causes. It is often helpful to list the
different main characteristics of possible causes as the main bone: as in
this diagram, these may be people, equipment, environment and
materials.
Think broadly and creatively about possible causes, the more
logically and analytically about the most likely of the possibilities you have
identified.
4.10
SWOT Analysis • Products and services supplies
• Responsiveness
SWOT is a systematic way of setting out information for planning • Efficiency
and decision-making. It can be used at a strategic level for a whole • Staff and skills
organization; when considering the positions of an individual product, • Teamwork
service or project; when evaluating the prospects of a department or
section within a company. It can even be used to assess the position of an
individual person – for career planning or staff development purposes: It might cover opportunities and threats such as:

SWOT stand for: • Representation at strategic levels

• Links with the core business
Strengths Weaknesses
For a single product, we might consider SWOT factors such as:

• Product design
• Pricing, promotion and distribution factors
• Costs and profit margins
• Size of market and rate if growth/decline
Opportunities Threats • Share of market
• Actions of competitors
• Changes in technology or legislation affecting the market

Much of the value of SWOT lies in its use as a discussion tool to

surface information and opinions and establish a degree of consensus
about the true state of affairs as a preliminary to planning.
There may be disagreement about strengths, weaknesses, opportunities
Strengths and weaknesses are internal factors, and opportunities
and threats – and if analysis is to bear fruit there may require exploration
and threats are external factors that affect the situation – or which may do
and discussion. A thorough analysis is likely to be time-consuming.
so in the future.

When analyzing a single department a SWOT might cover

strengths and weaknesses such as:

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Asking questions: a structure problem-solving approach • What are the benefits of solving the problem?

This is a technique which is helps you to analyze the problem in Possible solutions
depth and in doing so can often bring you closer to a solution. • What are some possible solutions?
• Can you find some more alternative solutions?
It involves eight stages:
Testing and evaluating solutions
Initial problem identification: • What are the likely outcomes of the moist attractive possible
• What does the problem seem to be about? solutions?
• Whose problem is it? • How do these compare with your objective and constraints?
• Is there in fact more than one problem? • What are the likely repercussions?
• Are circumstances likely to change?
Information gathering:
• What information do you need to understand the problem? Selecting solutions
• What is available? • Which of the possible solutions comes closest to your objective?
• Is it reliable? • What action is required?
• Do you need more?
• How can this be obtained? Implementation and action planning

• Who needs to be consulted/involved • Who can take the action?

• Who needs to be informed/involved?
• What is the overall action plan to implement the decision?
Problem refining and definition: • How will you know if it has worked?
• Does the conformation change your view of the problem?
• What objective do you want to achieve? Review
• How important is the problem? • What caused the original problem?
• How much time have you got? • Is it likely to occur again?
• What are the constraints? • How effective was your solution?
• Is it really your problem? (Is it shared by others?) • How effective was you decision making?
• Do you have the authority to implement decisions?
• Do you need to make recommendations to higher-level
management?
• What exactly is the problem?
• Can you express it in positive language?

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ACTIVITY Thinking Hats

Think of one or more real problems from your work situation. Try When we are faced with decisions or problems, our minds can be a
each of the approaches on it: muddle of thoughts. In decision-making meetings, the discussions may
swing from positive to negative evaluations of a situation, from rational
Draw it. analysis to highly emotional and intuitive assessments. Edward de Bono's
6 thinking hats can help us to be more aware of our instinctive patters of
Be the problem. thinking.

Imagine something completely different. De Bono's 6 hats represent the main patters of thought, artificially
separated. The value of the model lies in helping us to recognize which
Invert the problem. pattern of thought we are using (which hat we are wearing) when we react
. to a situation, and helping us to adopt a different pattern of thought( taking
that hat off and trying on another)
Think of the opportunities that could arise from the problem.

Write the story.

The 6 hats are:

WHITE : neutral, objective thinking, concerned with facts

In the light of the ideas you generate, reflect on which of the
approaches helped you the most. Think of, and try out, other approaches. RED : emotional, intuitive thinking
You will find it useful and truly interesting, to carry out what may seem at
first a rather silly exercise, but we guarantee that you will come up with BLACK : gloomy, negative, critical thinking
new ideas and imaginative / creative solutions.

YELLOW : sunny, positive, optimistic thinking

GREEN : creative, innovative thinking

BLUE : cool, organized, summarizing thinking

The value of trying on other hats is perhaps greatest when we have

looked at a situation for too long and have become negative about it

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(Black), or when we are becoming too emotional or relying too heavily on Typical questions for activating the different hats are:
intuition (Red)
It is also useful, when we are facing complex situations that call for White: what are the facts?
reactions of different kinds, to adopt the different patterns of thinking one
at a time. White hat thinking is necessary to establish the known facts,, Red: how do I feel about this? What is my gut feeling?
green hat useful for speculating on causes of problem, or possible
solutions. While Blue thinking hat is needed for drawing together the Black: what can go wrong?
contributions of different parties in a meeting.
Yellow: how can I add these ideas together into a good plan?

Using the model Green: is there a different way of looking at this? What new things
could we do here?

The thinking hats model can have significant effect in helping you to
achieve new viewpoints on problems. Blue: taking it all together, what should I do?

The hats can be successfully introduced to a team, and used to

address management problems.

The first stage in using the hats is to memorize their core meaning
The diagram may help:

YELLOW GREEN
SUNNY GROWING

BLACK
Gloomy

RED WHITE
PASSION FACTUAL

BLUE
COOL

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