Establishing and Maintaining a Creative Work Climate - Term Paper Example

valuing creativity; (2) by listening attentively and looking for positive aspects in employee’s suggestions and opinions; (3) by implementing employees’ ideas and giving credit when due; and (4) by avoiding discouraging employees through emphasizing that they should not be afraid of failure and can in fact learn from them (243). These concepts indicate that the creation of a creative work climate depends greatly on the ability and style of the leader to solicit cooperative, collaborative and innovative efforts from subordinates along the organizational hierarchy.

Mind Edge (2007) provided some guidelines in the creation of a creative climate which are consistent with Certo’s (2007) recommendations: promoting and communicating innovation and creativity as part of values of the organization; relaying the natural tendencies for mistakes as part of the creative process; and allotting organizational resources to promote creativity through time, money and effort. Likewise, the discourse stipulated the importance of training to develop creative skills. In addition, there are eminent benefits seen in promoting diversity and therefore acknowledging that opinions and ideas from different perspectives are sources of creative and innovative ideas.

Increasingly more global organizations include diversity in culture in their policies such as Walmart (Walmart: Diversity, 2010); Johnson & Johnson (Johnson & Johnson, 2011); and Procter & Gamble (Procter & Gamble, 2011), among a host of others, and realize that diversity encourages the creation and development of positive working environments conducive to honing of abilities, skills, and competencies. Rewarding and motivating exemplary creative performance is also a plus factor to create a conducive working environment. The. This essay stressses that many conditions, policies and practices in the work setting could be a barrier in the promotion of a creative work climate, especially for personnel who have not been prepared to attune themselves to develop creative thinking and to promote thinking outside the box.

The creation and maintenance of a creative work climate is possible through objective, transparent and humane treatment of employees by leaders who acknowledge and encourage innovativeness, creativity and positive thinking. In this regard, the essay aims to present both a research and critical analysis of the topic: ‘Establishing and Maintaining a Creative Work Climate’ sourced from the textbook entitled Supervision Concepts and Skill-building written by Samuel C. Certo. The research would delve into determining the elements that encourages creating thinking to establish and maintain a creative work climate; and to present barriers that preclude creativity in the work environment.

This paper makes a conclusion that the success or failure of an organization is caused by a combination of internal and external factors that influence its existence. As averred by Certo, “a well-led group of creative employees can generate far more good ideas as one creative supervisor trying to come up with all the ideas”. The collective and collaborative efforts that contribute to more innovative and creative ideas sources from diverse points of views, as encouraged, developed and promoted by effective leaders, all attest that creativity in the work place is crucial for an organization’s sustained success.