A book review by: Diane Bessel, PhD, LMSW, CNM
Assistant Professor and Undergraduate Program Director (Sociology and Social Work)
Daemen College
Creative Conspiracy
Think about the various items included on your work-related
to-do list. Review each item and consider which you can perform completely
independently and which items require assistance from at least one other
individual. Chances are the most important tasks on your to-do list require you
to work with others, and the
success of those endeavors depends on your ability to collaborate effectively.
The nature of business collaboration – and creative
collaboration, in particular – is at the heart of this thoroughly researched
yet highly accessible work of non-fiction: Creative Conspiracy. According to management expert and
author Leigh Thompson, collaboration is “the art and science of combining
people’s talents, skills, and knowledge in order to achieve a common goal” (p.
1). While an essential part of contemporary work life, Thompson argues that
creative collaboration remains one of the most challenging tasks undertaken by
professionals due, in part, to critical misunderstandings of creative problem
solving processes and research.
To underscore this point, Thompson identifies a series of
commonly held beliefs about creativity and links to research findings that fly
in the face of conventional wisdom. She debunks several “myths” by sharing data
that demonstrates that teams are typically less
creative than individuals when left to their own devices; that providing
specific “rules” and engaging in a stimulating environments actually lead to
increases in a group’s inventiveness; and that changing a team’s membership and
composition can enhance a team’s innovation. She notes that most business
leaders are unable to articulate the four basic rules of brainstorming – a
staple of the creative problem solving process.
Nevertheless, Thompson also suggests that when collaboration
is conscious, planned, and focused on generating new or novel ideas, it can
develop into a "creative conspiracy." Teams that “conspire” organize
themselves, motivate their members, and combine their talents to commit
creative and innovative acts. They are considered the hallmark of highly
successful organizations.
In the book, Thompson reveals what she considers to be some
of the major barriers to creative conspiracies including the tendency for group
members to change their behavior to go along with the team (conformity); free
riding or social loafing among group members; the development of a team
superiority complex; the tyranny of the average (also known as regression to
the mean); the tendency among group members to multi-task; and the purposeful
dumbing down of participants to avoid attracting unwanted attention.
Thompson also discusses key strategies that enable teams to
reach their full creative potential and maximize results. These “best
practices” center on opportunities to develop a nimble and diverse team;
provide appropriate leadership and motivation to members; address and
ultimately transform team conflict; and set the stage for building a creative
conspiracy through the development of an associated action plan.
Likewise,
Thompson offers tips to address specific concerns. Her advice is practical and
drawn from real-life experiences making it useful to myriad groups from
start-ups to seasoned professionals. Drawing on research conducted by Paulis,
Thompson argues that individuals should engage in idea-generating activities on
their own before participating in brainstorming as a group. She insists that
teams should never be set up just for the sake of having a team, but should
only be used if one needs to draw upon a range of skills and views. She states
that teams should be kept small and should be as diverse as possible.
Thompson
also argues that new members should constantly be brought into the group and
old ones removed, as this keeps members on their toes and working at a high
level. Citing research that shows that quiet and relaxed areas are not always
best when it comes to idea generation, Thompson suggests that sessions should
be held in places that get the mind buzzing or run the risk of allowing members
to get too comfortable.
While
the book could benefit from some additional examples of creative conspiracies
and a discussion of their real life impact, it is, at its core, about
increasing creative collaborations and has the potential to become a powerful
resource for those in a position to implement these best practices. The book
draws on strong empirical evidence to support the appropriate use of creative
problem solving techniques including brainstorming, brain writing, and
rules-based facilitation among others. This information is particularly helpful
to individuals who are not trained in creative problem solving as well as those
in need of a skills refresh. Many constituencies can be aided by this book
including business executives, team leaders, entrepreneurs, educators,
researchers, and students of creativity, in general.
References
Thompson, L. (2013). Creative conspiracy: The new rules of breakthrough collaboration. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Review Press.
