However, too much freedom can also be paralysing. I have found the more focused you are, the more creative you can be. There is freedom, but freedom within limits. At 3M, for example, senior line managers must achieve 40 per cent of their sales from products that are less than four years old. The objective is clear, but they are not told what new products to introduce.
Creative freedom needs to be grounded with real-world priorities.
There is a promotions agency that places its latest brief on the wall for all to see - and respond to if they wish. These cases show leaders tapping into informal creative processes to develop a more proactive and powerful flow of new ideas. I argue that an over-reliance on formal creative processes will not produce a flow of effective creativity. A more subtle appreciation of the importance of informal interactions and creative chaos is required. When you next eat at the staff canteen, notice what is really happening.