Creative thinking is not just a crucial element for Eightwire, but a necessary tool in any companies skills set. Although generally under used and disparaged, original thought and creative problem solving can aid any company in gaining ground within their market place, even creating new markets.
Being different from business rivals is becoming increasingly important as individual companies need to spread out from their immediate geolographical footprint and compete on a national stage to survive.
Continually operating in the same old ways and expecting to gain the same results is increasingly becoming a thing of the past. But creative thinking does not need to come just from upper management. Thinking creatively should be encouraged in all your staff and suppliers, whilst ensuring there is an easy way for suggestions to be voiced and assessed. Below are five suggestions for changing your working environment which cost little but can give your company limitless possibilities to expand.
Five suggestions for changing your working environment:
- Give time and space for all employees to think creatively where deadlines and budgets allow.
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- Ideally set time aside or plan time into a project, for brain storming sessions.
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- Constantly look at working practices and procedures, as well as encouraging those who use them to look for better ways of achieving success.
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- Assuming your existing practices are not the best way of doing things can sometimes help alternative, more efficient approaches to present themselves.
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- Reward and give credit to members of staff who bring creative solutions to the table.
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- Not all ideas are going to work but do not ridicule people for voicing them.
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- Try to instigate a fun culture in the work place.
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- This does not mean targets and the day to day business of running a company cannot be done efficiently, but by finding new ways to work and increasing the input staff have in shaping their working life, can increase the company’s moral and possible its bottom line.
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- Finally creativity is not a guarantee for success.
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- A focus should always be applied to how new ideas can be used in an innovative, sustainable and profitable way. Change for change sake is not a solution, but change for continual improvement is.
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