Forrester Research: “Creativity Leaders” grow 2.6x faster than “Creativity Laggards”

Earlier this week Forrester Research hosted an online event, “The Tech Org’s Secret Weapon: Creativity.” It was a pandemic lunch hour well spent, and you can listen to the recording here.

Here’s the most significant finding from among their analysts: companies that successfully turn Creativity into an operating principle – which they define as an individual and collective way of working, featuring freedom, permission, and humility – grow 2.6 times faster than those that don’t. That’s an amazing multiple for simply leveraging the creative capacity (and, I would argue, desire) that all employees possess in any case. One of the analysts said (I’m paraphrasing), “You’re already paying for it anyway; why not derive the benefit?”

We live in a world where sustainable differentiation is becoming more challenging by the day, as so much capability is available instantly in the form of software as a service. Companies (especially but not exclusively those in the tech sector) are faced with the challenge of how they can set themselves apart in any meaningful way from traditional competitors as well as “disruptors.” Again paraphrasing the presentation, employees who are able to combine technologies in novel ways present one of the last levers for differentiation that a company can pull.

The key attributes of the leading companies include an open invitation to participate/contribute/create; permission to fail; and a focus on learning. In my view this is not a surprising list, but what I have seen is:

• a failure to put in place the systems and processes needed to support such an environment;
• a lack of appreciation for the creative process and how different it is from “regular operations.”

I got a chance to ask the panel what leadership looks like in these more creative organizations.  They offered a few very interesting ideas:

1. Leaders are not seen as the “providers of answers” and are more focused on collaborating to make sure the team is asking the right questions.
2. Leaders make resources readily available to support creative efforts.
3. Leaders ensure that the organization celebrates creative effort, success, and learning.

I come back to this idea again and again: our ability to use our imagination – individually and collectively – to bring new ideas to life is the source of infinite potential, the most powerful resource we have. Because of this, focusing on unleashing creativity in our organizations is the highest leverage activity for our leaders. Growing 2.6 times faster is only the beginning of where this can take us.

What do you think? Have you seen places where Creativity is an operating principle? Please share your stories!