Growing revenue remains the top business priority of the C-suite for the third consecutive year. Yet, recent outlooks suggest a moderating economy will make growth that much more difficult to attain. More than ever, business today relies on a means of sustainable advantage, a way to stand apart in the minds of customers and propel success in the marketplace.

But how will you improve your firm’s growth and success when your competitors have access to the same resources as you? When technology empowers every firm equally, when capital is freely available, and when business processes are standardized, what will differentiate your company, your products, and your brand to fuel your growth?

The Answer Is Creativity

We believe companies will turn to creativity, a way of thinking and working that elevates your individual and collective ability to solve problems and develop potent products and experiences. Creativity is not a special ability held by the few. It’s a willingness and permission to tap into the ingenuity and imagination inside all of us. And it pays off. In our research, we found that companies that identify as creative leaders grow 2.6 times faster than creative laggards.

To get your head wrapped around the simplicity of this idea, it’s helpful to think about what creative organizations do differently.

  • They have a different mindset, a different way of thinking that embraces the curiosity — and the tension — of cooperative work.
  • Their companies cultivate different conditions — permission to try things out, to invite in diverse thinking, to see “failures” as learning from experiments.
  • And they use different practices, one you’ll recognize, such as driving toward a common “North Star” metric or outcome, a metric that every team member knows how they can improve. They also utilize some new practices such as “four in a box leadership,” where technology, operations, business, and product teams come together to execute as one with a common purpose and diverse contributions.

The best part? Creativity doesn’t cost you extra, nor does it conflict with existing programs, as it slipstreams in at the front of your existing design and innovation practices.

Welcome To The Creativity Boom

When the unique combination of technology, process, capital, and human ingenuity collide, the result is a boom of creativity that fuels business expansion, product innovation, and a slew of novel concepts and ideas. This combination is exactly what drove the economic prosperity of the roaring twenties and post-World War II consumerism. And it’s what can propel your company’s prosperity today.

Jay Pattisall and I are supercharged to tell you the whole story of how Creativity Catalyzes A Growth Mindset when we kick off our Technology & Innovation event on November 2. Please join us!