Indispensable components of creativity, innovation, and FMCG companies' competitive performance: a resource-based view (RBV) of the firm

Purpose A total of 210 valid paper-and-pencil questionnaires were received from fast-moving consumer goods/small and medium-sized enterprises (FMCG-SMEs) to empirically test the proposed model. Structural equation modelling approach was performed to assess the model fit, measurement and structural models for exogenous and endogenous constructs, and test of nonlinearity. Design/methodology/approach In the hyper-competitive world, while the essence of strategy making is often focussed on environmental and market-based analysis or the structure of the market, the important role of resources and capabilities in determining firm performance and overall strategy formulation within SMEs begs attention. Grounded in the resource-based view (RBV) of the firm, organisational improvisation theory and componential theory of creativity, the purpose of this research is to look beyond the determinants of creativity, innovation and proposes a theoretical model investigating organisations formative performance in strategy formulation. Findings The results imply that intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, creativity-related processes and expertise as the firm's capabilities positively influence improvisational creativity, and creativity-related processes and expertise also positively impact on compositional creativity. Surprisingly, intrinsic and extrinsic motivations are not conducive to compositional creativity, and the relationships between extrinsic motivation and improvisational creativity as well as improvisational creativity and performance are nonlinear. Furthermore, both improvisational creativity and compositional creativity are found to be predictors of innovation in FMCG-SMEs. Practical implications Thus, organisations and specifically FMCG-SMEs can increase the level of improvisational creativity if they formulate strategies to motivate employees both intrinsically and extrinsically, and further, they can boost the level of compositional creativity in their companies through hiring and nurturing experts. Originality/value Less attention has been paid to motivation, creativity, innovation, performance and strategy linkages as the prominent source of competitive advantages among FMCG-SMEs, especially in developing countries. Theoretically, through introducing extrinsic motivation as the predictors of improvisational creativity and innovation, from strategic management perspectives, the empirical findings of this research illustrate that resources and capabilities (RBV) lead to improved competitive performance within the FMCG-SMEs. This study also provides empirical evidence for the nonlinear nature of the relationship between motivation and creativity

Indispensable components of creativity and innovation, on FMCG companies’ competitive performance: A Resource-Based View (RBV) of the firm

Purpose- In the hyper competitive world, while the essence of strategy making is often focussed on environmental and market-based analysis or the structure of the market, the important rôle of resources and capabilities in determining firm performance and overall strategy formulation within Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) begs attention. Grounded in the resource-based view (RBV) of the firm, organisational improvisation theory, and componential theory of creativity, the purpose of this research is to look beyond the determinants of creativity, innovation and proposes a theoretical model investigating organisations formative performance in strategy formulation. Design/methodology/approach- A total of 210 valid paper-and-pencil questionnaires were received from Fast Moving Consumer Goods/Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (FMCG-SMEs) to empirically test the proposed model. Structural equation modelling approach was performed to assess the model fit, measurement and structural models for exogenous and endogenous constructs, and test of nonlinearity. Findings- The results imply that intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, creativity-related processes, and expertise as the firm’s capabilities positively influences improvisational creativity; and creativityrelated processes and expertise also positively impacts on compositional creativity. Surprisingly, intrinsic and extrinsic motivations are not conducive to compositional creativity and the relationships between extrinsic motivation and improvisational creativity as well as improvisational creativity and performance are nonlinear. Furthermore, both improvisational creativity and compositional creativity are found to be predictors of innovation in FMCG-SMEs. Practical implications- Thus, organisations and specifically FMCG-SMEs can increase the level of improvisational creativity if they formulate strategies to motivate employees both intrinsically and extrinsically and further, they can boost the level of compositional creativity in their companies through hiring and nurturing experts. Originality/value- Less attention has been paid to motivation, creativity, innovation, performance and strategy linkages as the prominent source of competitive advantages among FMCG-SMEs especially in developing countries. Theoretically, through introducing extrinsic motivation as the predictors of improvisational creativity and innovation, from strategic management perspectives, the empirical findings of this research illustrate that resources and capabilities (RBV) lead to improved competitive performance within the FMCG-SMEs. This study also provides empirical evidence for the nonlinear nature of the relationship between motivation and creativit

A Standardised Procedure for Evaluating Creative Systems: Computational Creativity Evaluation Based on What it is to be Creative

Computational creativity is a flourishing research area, with a variety of creative systems being produced and developed. Creativity evaluation has not kept pace with system development with an evident lack of systematic evaluation of the creativity of these systems in the literature. This is partially due to difficulties in defining what it means for a computer to be creative; indeed, there is no consensus on this for human creativity, let alone its computational equivalent. This paper proposes a Standardised Procedure for Evaluating Creative Systems (SPECS). SPECS is a three-step process: stating what it means for a particular computational system to be creative, deriving and performing tests based on these statements. To assist this process, the paper offers a collection of key components of creativity, identified empirically from discussions of human and computational creativity. Using this approach, the SPECS methodology is demonstrated through a comparative case study evaluating computational creativity systems that improvise music

Positive and neutral mood inductions: ties to creativity

Positive mood may broaden cognition, allowing for an increase in creativity. This study tested whether creativity could be increased when positive mood and creativity were induced through verbal instructions that direct ed participants to revisit memories that depicted positive mood and/or creative moments. This experiment had a 2(mood induction positive/neutral) X 2(creativity induction yes/no) design, and 112 participants in four condi tions: 22 in the first, 33 in the second, 25 in the third, and 32 in the fourth. Mood and creativity inductions were autobiographical, as this method is the most effective technique for inducing mood. Scales used were the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking and the Brief Mood Introspection Scale. Findings indicated that creativity can be increased when positive mood and creative thinking are induced in the same experimental condition versus inducing creativity or mood separately or not at all. This study has implications for understanding factors that produce creative though

A First Look at the Role of Domain-General Cognitive and Creative Abilities in Jazz Improvisation

The present study explored the associations among several cognitive and creative abilities and expert ratings of jazz improvisational quality. Ten male undergraduate jazz students (8 performance majors, 2 education majors; 5 winds, 3 strings, 1 piano, and 1 drum) performed a video-recorded improvisation with a trio and completed measures of divergent thinking, working memory, and fluid intelligence. Performances were rated for creative quality by 3 expert raters. Students also answered questions regarding their musical background and subjective experience of improvisation. As expected, cumulative practice hours substantially predicted improvisational creativity. Results for the cognitive variables showed mostly negative correlations with improvisation; however, divergent thinking strongly predicted performance quality. We consider these results in the context of the literature on expertise and creativity

Angels, tooth fairies and ghosts: thinking creatively in an early years classroom

This chapter offers an evaluation and interpretation of the creative thinking and collaboration that took place in a class of five year olds in an English primary school during the academic year 2004–05. This school was committed to developing itself as a creative learning community by participating in a creativity-training programme, Synectics, more usually employed in an adult business context. This school wanted to develop its capacity for creative teaching and learning. This intent was in tune with national and international developments in education where strenuous efforts were being made to extend the reach of creative education which had for a long time been more or less exclusively associated with the arts. The chapter offers an outline of these developments to set the research in context. The research described is a case study and second phase of an evaluation of the project EXCITE! (Excellence, Creativity and Innovation in Teaching and Education) and was carried out by researchers from the Open University. Previous research suggests that when children first start school, they are already competent creative thinkers and storytellers and that both creative and narrative modes of thinking involve abductive rather than deductive inferential reasoning. It is argued that although children may need training in paradigmatic (deductive) modes of thought, they do not necessarily need further training in narrative modes of thought. The examples of young children’s thinking discussed in chapter support this argument. The Synectics creativity-training programme does not claim to ‘teach’ creative thinking per se. The evidence presented suggests that when teachers use Synectics tools and techniques to inform practice, these allow them to create a positive, emotional climate that allows young children to use analogy and metaphor to construct creative explanations and narratives through collaborative discussion

Sociability in virtual citizen science

Past research suggests that sociability can enhance volunteers’ experiences of virtual citizen science (VCS). We define four types of sociability. We also describe how outreach events - ‘Thinkcamps’ – can be used to support the design of social tools for VCS platforms

Playshops: Workshop series exploring play

Playshops was a collaborative project between OCAD University research labs, faculty, and Symon Oliver of ALSO Collective. Expanding on the conventional model of academic workshops, Playshops incorporated both theory and practice in an attempt to investigate methods of play and how they relate to research and innovation. The workshop itself was composed of practice-based exercises followed by discussion periods. The documentation, and post-workshop writing was gathered and designed into the Playshops publication. The publication can be read cover to cover as a conventional book; however, the signatures fold out into posters that relate to the individual exercises on play

Knowledge quality effect on small and medium-sized enterprises’ competitiveness through improvisational creativity, compositional creativity and innovation

The concept of competitiveness involves the level of creative actions and ability to produce quality goods and services. For Small and Medium Enterprises (SME), competitive advantage is contingent upon their timely decisions and speedto- market production capabilities. Many researchers have considered competitiveness as the degree of creativity and innovation. In recent years, the concept of quality has been synthesized with data, information, and knowledge while advancements in knowledge management concepts have made it necessary to consider knowledge quality (KQ) as well. A sample of 358 Malaysian SMEs was used applying partial least squares (PLS) approach which is a variance based structural equation modeling method. This thesis proposes that organizational factors such as absorptive capacity (AC), functional diversity (FD), knowledge network (KN), organizational structure (OS), organizational culture (OC), and technology utilization (TU) influence the sense-making activities (KQ dimensions) of business entities. This research combined theories of sense making, creativity, and organizational improvisation and developed a cogent model helping to understand and examine the structural relationships between organizational factors, KQ, and competitiveness. The findings indicate that TU, AC, FD, and OC are significant contributors to sense-making activities of Malaysian SMEs and TU, AC, and OC are found to be indirectly significant with improvisational creativity (IC), compositional creativity (CC), and innovation. Actionable KQ and accessibility KQ are found as mediators to the relationship between intrinsic KQ, contextual KQ, and IC and CC. The results of PLS-multi group analysis show a discrepancy between the results of Malay and Chinese ethnic groups. Finally, importance-performance map analysis indicates that IC and actionable KQ have the highest importance on Malaysian SMEs’ innovation