Creativity

If you need help transforming your organization’s wildest dreams into reality, introduce a new managerial device that’s as simple as it is effective.

Last week, there was a wonderful essay in The New York Times about a leadership program created by the old Bell System back in 1952. The all-powerful telephone company worried that its executives needed a broader perspective, not just on business but also on society, even life itself. “A well-trained man knows how to answer […]

I was running along the six-mile loop in Central Park on a cold winter day when I passed the southern most end of the park where I noticed a large number...

A couple weeks ago I wrote a post on creative sabbaticals. It featured Stefan Sagmeister, a design studio owner who takes a year off from client work every seven years to boost his creativity. Readers reacted strongly, polarized into two camps: The “I wish!” folks, for whom a sabbatical seems like a distant dream, and […]

Everyone says they are in favor of open innovation and co-creation. We have all heard about the wisdom of crowds, bringing the outside in, and have bought the t-shirt which states that “none of us is as smart as all of us.” But what is co-creation, really, and how do you do it right? Co-creation […]

Consistent innovation is the key to market leadership. Outstanding companies know that and build their success on it. And other organizations can do the...

"There is no excuse. Creativity has to be at the forefront."

The skills taught in engineering courses don’t always lead to new ideas.

Ferrari depends on a creative workforce to build its gorgeous cars. Companies can take a lesson from its unique approach to inspiring employees.

The fatal accident at the Olympics seems to offer yet more support for the truism that higher-ups tend to ignore advice from below. Athletes are saying...

And would you recognize it if you had one?

A note from Bill: My new book, Practically Radical, launches two weeks from today. In this post, I thought I'd highlight one of my favorite pieces of...

Focus on questions, not answers, for breakthrough insights.

No. That's my answer, and I'm sticking to it. That's been my answer since I read Daniel Pink's A Whole New Mind back in 2005. Pink raised the idea that...

The Oscar-nominated actress and outspoken human-rights advocate talks about acting as therapy, inspiration from her older sister, and more.

Don't stick to your original plan.

Coming up with creative ideas is easy; selling them to strangers is hard. Entrepreneurs, sales executives, and marketing managers often go to great lengths...

Diversity, cohesiveness, and autonomy may seem critical to the creative work that teams do. But new research shows that too much of those things can thwart...

Mental tools to help you master new skills

Fifty years ago fashion and luxury goods were all about family businesses and entrepreneurial designers. Today most of the best-known brands belong to...

Can a successful novelist use direct-to-consumer marketing to grow his brand? The author, who in a previous career ran a major advertising agency, uses...

Imagine if the multinational hotel groups had founded Airbnb, or the big auto companies had launched Uber and Tesla, or Blockbuster had created Netflix....

Presents the first of two cases describing the struggle to solve creative problems on the Dry Idea antiperspirant brand introduced in 1978 by the Gillette...

Anyone can think more creatively and unlock innovation. Creativity is the key to innovation, but too many projects and teams are organized in ways that...

Jonathan Geibel, Director of Systems at Walt Disney Animation Studios (hereafter referred to as Disney Animation), walked through the workspace occupied...

A plan for conquering collaborative overload to drive performance and innovation, reduce burnout, and enhance well-being. Most organizations have created...

A credit analyst for a furniture manufacturer is confronted with two customers who have exceeded their credit limits. The financial performance of each...

If you're like most business leaders, innovation now tops your corporate agenda. But despite all the talk and excitement about the importance of innovation,...

Creativity, the production of new and useful ideas by individuals or teams, can appear in many forms and many functions within firms of all kinds--from...

This case examines the unique business model of Ristorante D'O, a high end gourmet restaurant located near Milan, Italy. Founded by Chef Davide Oldani,...

This case focuses on Kit Hinrichs, a 65 year-old partner at Pentagram, a privately-owned multidisciplinary design firm. One of the world's most prestigious...

Unleash your team's creativity and build a high-performing team. Don't leave creativity up to the "creatives" in your organization. Fostering creativity...

Describes how the "Moonshine Shop," a group of plant-savvy creative generalists, is helping a great industrial company become more innovative. Chronicles...

Escalating conflict has erupted within the Satera product development team, resulting from the conflicting cognitive styles of the two senior mechanical...

Deep smarts are the engine of any organization as well as the essential value that individuals build throughout their careers. Distinct from IQ, this...

An essential work on teams--now updated with new research and tools and a new preface--"X-Teams" shows how an externally focused team model is the key...

Charles "Charlie" E. Merrill was a visionary who opened the door to investing for the masses in America. The "financial supermarket" strategy, which Merrill...

A successful company, recognized worldwide for exquisite design of consumer electronics products, strives to better integrate software design into its...

Although internationally recognized for quality design, the collaborative's billings have been on a plateau for four years and they are losing jobs to...

Since its 1999 merger Reckitt Benckiser (RB), a global consumer goods company, led by its CEO Bart Becht, RB developed a reputation for rapid product...

If you need help transforming your organization’s wildest dreams into reality, introduce a new managerial device that’s as simple as it is effective.

A conversation with BCG’s Martin Reeves on encouraging imagination at work.

Last week, there was a wonderful essay in The New York Times about a leadership program created by the old Bell System back in 1952. The all-powerful telephone company worried that its executives needed a broader perspective, not just on business but also on society, even life itself. “A well-trained man knows how to answer […]

To lead innovation, you have to embrace experimentation – and mistakes.

I was running along the six-mile loop in Central Park on a cold winter day when I passed the southern most end of the park where I noticed a large number...

A couple weeks ago I wrote a post on creative sabbaticals. It featured Stefan Sagmeister, a design studio owner who takes a year off from client work every seven years to boost his creativity. Readers reacted strongly, polarized into two camps: The “I wish!” folks, for whom a sabbatical seems like a distant dream, and […]

Everyone says they are in favor of open innovation and co-creation. We have all heard about the wisdom of crowds, bringing the outside in, and have bought the t-shirt which states that “none of us is as smart as all of us.” But what is co-creation, really, and how do you do it right? Co-creation […]

Consistent innovation is the key to market leadership. Outstanding companies know that and build their success on it. And other organizations can do the...

"There is no excuse. Creativity has to be at the forefront."

Can a successful novelist use direct-to-consumer marketing to grow his brand? The author, who in a previous career ran a major advertising agency, uses...