It has been recently argued that managers do not use creative problem‐solving techniques because of concerns about managing the ideas produced. This paper examines five different ways of “closing down” during creative problem solving, and suggests factors which influence the selection of a...

Feedback from a disinterested observer can be a powerful stimulus for change. In our everyday lives the new mirror in the bathroom can act as the disinterested observer reminding us of progress (or lack of progress) in the fight against middle‐aged flab. Similarly there are few more salutory...

Conventional wisdom presumes that accounting professionals have little capability for creative thinking. An alternative view is that accountants display creativity when provided with organisational opportunities. This view has been tested in a comparative study of professionals drawn from...

Traditional audits play a powerful role in helping companies change. A “creativity audit” can play a similar role in helping a company overcome possible blocks to the creativity of its employees. The auditors now become change agents, and their method of data collection and feedback is the...

We propose that theories of team development and of team creativity can usefully be integrated into a new framework. In this exploratory paper, we attempt such a synthesis, drawing on empirical evidence from studies with teams engaged in innovative projects. The framework proposes two structural...

Purpose – The purpose of this research is to investigate creativity within the context of a more regulated accounting functional area (audit and tax) and a less regulated non‐accounting functional area (consulting). Accordingly, this research aims at developing insights into how current...

The innovativeness of eight manufacturing firms (or four matched pairs of firms) in Malaysia was measured and compared using certain criteria. Initially, we selected the four matched pairs of firms (each pair is comprise of a more innovative and a less innovative firm) from various manufacturing...