Fostering Business Creativity for SR&ED Practitioners
Reference Article (>5 Years Old)
Is your business taking the proper steps to foster creativity?
A business that is working in Scientific Research & Experimental Development (SR&ED) requires innovative thinking in order to overcome technological challenges.
Many factors go into building an atmosphere that allows for cutting edge research and development. Below are some perspectives on fostering business creativity that can be applied to SR&ED problems.
How Can Businesses Foster Creativity?
1. Leave Adequate Time for Rest, and a Proper Diet
While the basics of living, such as proper sleep, may not appear to have immediate relevance to business problems, researchers continually remind overly busy executives of the need to sleep. A Stanford University writer tracked how much deep sleep they were getting each night, using a wristband to monitor the length of time their body remained still. The writer was distressed to discover they were only sleeping for 15 minutes. The writer found that measures such as turning off their tablet computer at night helped them sleep more.1
2. Emphasizing Individualism
When John Dragoon was senior vice-president at software design firm, Novell, he wrote a Forbes blog highlighting the value of identifying individuals who are unafraid to be disruptive.
Truly creative leaders invite disruptive innovation, encourage others to drop outdated approaches, and take balanced risks.
Dragoon challenged readers to seek those individuals who, at first, might appear to be dreamers, as they may actually be creative thinkers. In the article, Dragoon states that allowing these creative thinkers sufficient latitude could address customer problems.2
3. Building Playgrounds
A March 2013 article in the Harvard Business Review by Bruce Nussbaum, notes that most creative thinking takes place within teams, often in small groups encompassing two or three people. These, Nussbaum notes, are the “playgrounds” within which creativity occurs.
The magazine recommends finding the individuals who are known for creative thinking within an organization and creating multi-generational teams so different age groups can include their perspectives in solving business problems. 3
4. Allocating Adequate Time for Managers
A 2012 article by Jeremy Simon noted it is important that the structure of the company allows the time for managers to create innovative solutions, whether by themselves or in teams. Managers must speak with those who are at the top levels of the organization, possibly implementing changes to duties or other measures in order to obtain the resources required to examine business processes creatively. 4
Conclusion
Through following these basic parameters, it is possible for a business to find itself with more time and energy to solve SR&ED problems. Increases in the creativity of a team can lead to an increase in productivity, which may also bring a rise in revenues.