Creativity and Perception in Management

Creativity and Perception in Management outlines the importance of creativity and innovation to today's organization. The book attempts to articulate the role of perception in management, and in so doing, plays its part in redressing the balance in management thinking which is more commonly associated with analysis. The emphasis on perception necessitates a psychological orientation, and offers approaches that are of particular interest in the current fast-changing environment.

The text is split into five parts covering creativity in organizations, provides background on new understanding about how the brain works, and emphasizes the importance of tacit knowledge and intuitive thinking in uncertain environments. It introduces a variety of perspectives and metaphors, including complexity, and suggests ways the reader can reframe their own mind-sets. The book outlines recent work on fundamental personality characteristics, such as the Big Five, and describes the impact of personal style on creativity, problem solving, decision making and ways of communicating. It goes on to discuss the implications of long-standing cultural values on today's business practices and concludes by suggesting ways in which organizations can adopt more socially responsible and sustainable practices.

This book is a key course text on the Open University Business School Creativity, Innovation and Change master's level course, which is studied by over 1,000 managers and others annually. The author chairs this course.

• Part 1: Creativity
1. Creativity
1. Need for creativity
2. Nature and origins of creativity
3. Individual characteristics
4. Experience, knowledge and motivation
5. The context of creativity
6. Changing conceptions
7. Review
2. Creative Management
1. Managing creatively
2. Creative leaders
3. Creative managers
4. Creative teams
5. Creative organizations
6. Organizational change
7. Review
• Part 2: Perception
3. Cognition
1. Tacit knowledge
2. Intuitive management
3. Mind-sets
4. Deconstruction
5. Review
4. Metaphors
1. Organizational metaphors
2. Management metaphors
3. Paradigms
4. Review
• Part 3: Style
5. Style
1. Personality inventories
2. The 'big five'
3. MBTI types
4. Adaptors and innovators
5. Learning style
6. Review
6. Roles
1. Team roles
2. Innovation roles
3. Review
• Part 4: Values
7. Culture
1. National values
2. Implications for management
3. Culture and economic development
4. Social capital
5. Review
8. Development
1. Linear thinking
2. Approaches to learning
3. Local knowledge
4. Review
• Part 5: Sustainability
9. Sustainability
1. Growth versus sustainability
2. Environmental problems
3. Drivers for change
4. Organizational response
5. Review
10. Responsibility
1. Community involvement
2. Social responsibility
3. Review
• Appendix A: Life goals
• Appendix B: Solutions to problems

Sigh, just a rehash of the authors old ideas.