title: Organising for Advertising Creativity: Differential Effects of Agency Structure, Absorptive Capacity, and Abrasion on Originality and Appropriateness

authors: O'Connor, Huw

subjects: Advertising

abstract: The aim of this thesis has been to extend our understanding of creativity.  Creativity is an area that is vital to society, but most commentators agree is a complex area that has been under researched. The setting for this research was the advertising industry. This industry was chosen as it is one of the few industry’s that focuses primarily on the creative thinking process and has highly specialist personnel concentrating on creative ideation. However, unlike the majority of research on creativity, the aim of this thesis was to shed light on a range of interactive, processing capacity, and knowledge elements, in the creative thinking process, rather than looking at divergent thinking processes in isolation.

This thesis is made up of four articles in Chapter’s Two to Five. The first of these articles is a replication and extension of the seminal study made by Koslow, Sasser and Riordan (2006) “Do Marketing Clients Really Get the Advertising They Deserve: Agency Views of How Clients Influence Creativity.” The article extends the findings from this seminal work in a different country context.

The next article looks into a number of structural elements driving creativity in the agency-client relationship and found a number of key interactions affecting the creativity of outcomes.
 
The third article delved into the area of absorptive capacity. In the creative thinking process a key limit is the ability of an organisation or individual to absorb the knowledge required to generate highly creative ideas. Research enabled the development of a model that illustrates the creative frontier, which is also the absorptive capacity frontier. The model indicates the trade-off that occurs between updating our beliefs with continuing to maintain these beliefs. The final article provides a model that summarises many of the key findings from the thesis. Using Agency Theory a new conceptual model that applies this in the context of absorptive capacity is developed. This model begins the process of trying to identify the key variables driving creative outputs in an agency setting and their complex interactions. Each article discusses the very real managerial implications of the findings for both advertising agencies and their clients, as well as the implications for managers as a whole. Additionally it is acknowledged that there is significant complexity in the creative thinking process and this is addressed in areas for further research.

text: Organising for Advertising Creativity: Differential Effects of Agency Structure, Absorptive Capacity, and Abrasion on Originality and Appropriateness The aim of this thesis has been to extend our understanding of creativity.  Creativity is an area that is vital to society, but most commentators agree is a complex area that has been under researched. The setting for this research was the advertising industry. This industry was chosen as it is one of the few industry’s that focuses primarily on the creative thinking process and has highly specialist personnel concentrating on creative ideation. However, unlike the majority of research on creativity, the aim of this thesis was to shed light on a range of interactive, processing capacity, and knowledge elements, in the creative thinking process, rather than looking at divergent thinking processes in isolation.

This thesis is made up of four articles in Chapter’s Two to Five. The first of these articles is a replication and extension of the seminal study made by Koslow, Sasser and Riordan (2006) “Do Marketing Clients Really Get the Advertising They Deserve: Agency Views of How Clients Influence Creativity.” The article extends the findings from this seminal work in a different country context.

The next article looks into a number of structural elements driving creativity in the agency-client relationship and found a number of key interactions affecting the creativity of outcomes.
 
The third article delved into the area of absorptive capacity. In the creative thinking process a key limit is the ability of an organisation or individual to absorb the knowledge required to generate highly creative ideas. Research enabled the development of a model that illustrates the creative frontier, which is also the absorptive capacity frontier. The model indicates the trade-off that occurs between updating our beliefs with continuing to maintain these beliefs. The final article provides a model that summarises many of the key findings from the thesis. Using Agency Theory a new conceptual model that applies this in the context of absorptive capacity is developed. This model begins the process of trying to identify the key variables driving creative outputs in an agency setting and their complex interactions. Each article discusses the very real managerial implications of the findings for both advertising agencies and their clients, as well as the implications for managers as a whole. Additionally it is acknowledged that there is significant complexity in the creative thinking process and this is addressed in areas for further research.

year: 2016

title: Sappers of the south: the origins and impact of the Corps of the Royal New Zealand Engineers

authors: Berry, Peter Edwin

subjects: New Zealand engineers

abstract: This thesis traces the growth, leadership, changes in role, and strategic employments of the Royal New Zealand Engineers from their formation in 1902 until the present day. The writer has deliberately chosen to make his major concern the Corps development since the Second World War. However, because there was a military engineer presence in New Zealand prior to the Corps formation, indeed from the establishment of the first 'Redcoats' fighting force in New Zealand in the1840’s, a preliminary study has been done of the British and Volunteer New Zealand Sappers of the period prior to 1902.
This thesis is intended as a contribution to New Zealand's sparse military history. Concentration on the post-war World War two period has seemed fitting in that, it is in this period that the Corps of the Royal New Zealand Engineers has provided specialist service, in diverse roles through the new regions of New Zealand’s strategic interest – South East Asia, the pacific and Antarctica.

text: Sappers of the south: the origins and impact of the Corps of the Royal New Zealand Engineers This thesis traces the growth, leadership, changes in role, and strategic employments of the Royal New Zealand Engineers from their formation in 1902 until the present day. The writer has deliberately chosen to make his major concern the Corps development since the Second World War. However, because there was a military engineer presence in New Zealand prior to the Corps formation, indeed from the establishment of the first 'Redcoats' fighting force in New Zealand in the1840’s, a preliminary study has been done of the British and Volunteer New Zealand Sappers of the period prior to 1902.
This thesis is intended as a contribution to New Zealand's sparse military history. Concentration on the post-war World War two period has seemed fitting in that, it is in this period that the Corps of the Royal New Zealand Engineers has provided specialist service, in diverse roles through the new regions of New Zealand’s strategic interest – South East Asia, the pacific and Antarctica.

year: 1984

title: Maori Te Aroha before the opening of the goldfield (mostly through Pakeha eyes)

authors: Hart, Philip

abstract: The various names of the peaks of the mountain and the legends concerning it reflected a violent past. As proof, several pa have been located, both at Te Aroha and at Waiorongomai, and the names of some of the streams indicate the nature and consequences of the battles fought in this contested area.
Ngati Rahiri was subdivided into three hapu: Ngati Tumutumu, Hgati Hue, and Ngati Kopirimau, descendents of these ancestors. In the nineteenth century, when the population was small, Hou was the senior rangatira, with Tutuki being the subordinate rangatira of the plains. A pa (later known as Tui pa) was constructed at Omahu, to the north of the hot springs, which were prized by Maori and increasingly enjoyed by Pakeha. Some of the land was cultivated, though visiting Pakeha considered that settlers could do much more to develop the agricultural potential. Most Ngati Rahiri were regarded as being ‘friendly’, welcoming (and benefiting from) visitors. Elaborate welcoming ceremonies were held for officials and rangatira, and a hotel operated by a rangatira’s son provided basic accommodation. Under Maori auspices the first race day was held in January 1878. 
Also in 1878, negotiators obtained an agreement to make a road to Paeroa, using Maori workers, and as the benefits of such improvements became apparent there was increased willingness to permit the construction of more roads, a bridge, and the snagging of the river, over the objections of a minority. Pakeha disapproved of how money raised through land sales in particular were wasted on extravagant displays of mana, which were not possible after the end of the 1870s because of lack of money, necessitating seeking paid employment. Friendly contact increased steadily, apart from occasional worries prompted by such events as the shooting of Daldy McWilliams, and a football match in May 1880 reportedly revealed ‘the utmost friendly feeling’ existing between Maori and Pakeha.

text: Maori Te Aroha before the opening of the goldfield (mostly through Pakeha eyes) The various names of the peaks of the mountain and the legends concerning it reflected a violent past. As proof, several pa have been located, both at Te Aroha and at Waiorongomai, and the names of some of the streams indicate the nature and consequences of the battles fought in this contested area.
Ngati Rahiri was subdivided into three hapu: Ngati Tumutumu, Hgati Hue, and Ngati Kopirimau, descendents of these ancestors. In the nineteenth century, when the population was small, Hou was the senior rangatira, with Tutuki being the subordinate rangatira of the plains. A pa (later known as Tui pa) was constructed at Omahu, to the north of the hot springs, which were prized by Maori and increasingly enjoyed by Pakeha. Some of the land was cultivated, though visiting Pakeha considered that settlers could do much more to develop the agricultural potential. Most Ngati Rahiri were regarded as being ‘friendly’, welcoming (and benefiting from) visitors. Elaborate welcoming ceremonies were held for officials and rangatira, and a hotel operated by a rangatira’s son provided basic accommodation. Under Maori auspices the first race day was held in January 1878. 
Also in 1878, negotiators obtained an agreement to make a road to Paeroa, using Maori workers, and as the benefits of such improvements became apparent there was increased willingness to permit the construction of more roads, a bridge, and the snagging of the river, over the objections of a minority. Pakeha disapproved of how money raised through land sales in particular were wasted on extravagant displays of mana, which were not possible after the end of the 1870s because of lack of money, necessitating seeking paid employment. Friendly contact increased steadily, apart from occasional worries prompted by such events as the shooting of Daldy McWilliams, and a football match in May 1880 reportedly revealed ‘the utmost friendly feeling’ existing between Maori and Pakeha.

year: 2016