A Comaprison of Methods of Creativity in Small and Large European Businesses

ABSTRACTInnovation is a key to success in today's competitive business environment. Firms that intend to survive and thrive need to constantly develop creative ideas that result in new products and processes. Creativity and innovation, along with risk-taking and proactiveness, are essential elements in an entrepreneurial orientation. The willingness to take risks is essential to divergent thinking that leads to new, creative ideas as not all new ideas are worthy of investment. The fear of looking foolish combined with a low propensity to take risks can stifle the communication of potentially good ideas so they are not shared with others.Brainstorming is one situation in which participants are encouraged to take the risk to enunciate what may seem like silly or nonsensical ideas. These ideas may then be adapted and improved by the group, leading to valuable creativity ideas. While brainstorming requires time and effort, it is relatively simple and inexpensive to perform in companies of all sizes. Groups that are composed of individuals from different backgrounds can develop especially valuable and unique ideas as creativity thrives on diversity.This study uses data from Eurostat's seventh Community Innovation Survey (CIS), which collected data on innovation activities within companies for the reference period of 2008-2010. This survey collected data on the most popular methods used successfully by small, medium-sized and large businesses for stimulating new ideas or creativity. A comparison of small and large businesses shows that brainstorming is use by more small businesses than any other of techniques included in the study. While large businesses were even more likely to use brainstorming, the most popular method was the use of multidisciplinary or cross-function teams. These findings suggest that diversity is a key element in successful innovation. Although SMEs have fewer employees than large businesses, strategic hiring and sharing of ideas among people with different backgrounds could lead to improved innovation efforts.INTRODUCTIONCreativity and the resulting innovation are vital elements in the success of businesses in today's competitive global environment. (Australian Institute for Commercialisation, 2011 ; Charan & Laflcy, 2008; Clegg, 2012; Kuratko, Goldsby & Hornsby, 2012; Pink, 2006; Proctor 2014). Creativity and innovation, along with risk-taking and proactiveness, are essential elements in an entrepreneurial orientation (Bolton & Lane, 2012). Developing creative ideas leads to new products and processes that help companies survive and thrive. Small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) are usually limited in their resources, including financial resources and the human resources from whom innovative new ideas flow. This does not, however, mean smaller firms cannot be innovative. Some techniques for stimulating creative new ideas require few monetary outlays and are therefore as viable for SMEs as for large firms.Innovation does not spontaneously occur or grow out of thin air. Creativity is required to spark an idea which can be developed into an innovative new product or process. This study examines the methods that are most commonly used by small and medium-sized businesses for stimulating new ideas and compares them to those most popular among large businesses. The results show that brainstorming and multidisciplinary teams are two of the most often cited methods for innovative businesses of all sizes. A higher percentage of large businesses than SMEs use brainstorming, but small businesses are more likely to report it as their primary technique for stimulating ideas and creativity.CREATIVITY AND INNOVATIONCreativity and innovation go hand-in-hand like two sides of a coin. While creativity provides the idea, innovation turns the idea into reality. Without the idea, there is no innovation, but without innovation, the idea goes nowhere (Amabile, 1997; Govindarajan, 2010; Gurteen, 1998; Ko & Butler, 2007; Kuratko et al. …