Leading On The Creative Edge: Gaining Competitive Advantage Through The Power Of Creative Problem Solving

by Roger L. Firestien

ARE YOU USING YOUR BEST BUSINESS WEAPON? Creativity isn't just for artists and musicians. It's a strategic business weapon crucial to gaining and maintaining a competitive edge. The organizations that will thrive over time are not the ones with the deepest pockets, but the ones that unleash and apply the creativity to their workforce. Leaders play a vital role in nurturing and developing others' creativity. Whether you lead a multi-million dollar corporation, help a volunteer group, coach Little League, or work for a non-profit organization, leaders make the difference between whether their employees' creativity is nurtured or destroyed. Leading on the Creative Edge provides you with the vital information you need to take your leadership to a new level. Leading on the Creative Edge explains how creative problem solving can be used to move from a challenge, goal, or opportunity to creative action; shows leaders how to develop a creative environment by generating more ideas than you ever thought possible, and explains how mistakes can actually help you become more creative. You'll find numerous examples of the extraordinary results created by those who have chosen to lead on the creative edge. Most important, Leading on the Creative Edge highlights your own creativity while igniting creativity in others. "If you want to unleash the creative problem solving ability of the people in your organization, read this book! Roger provides a number of straight-forward, practical, creative problem solving techniques that you can use immediately. You will be inspired by the bottom-line results that have been achieved through these techniques."-Cindy Moeller, vice president of human resources, Baldwin Piano & Organ Company "Roger has captured the major ideas and applications flowing from creativity research and practice over the last forty years, presenting them in a readable, conversational style. Whether you're just learning about the power of creativity or have used creativity for years, this book has much to offer."-Lyman K. Randall, president and board chair of The Creative Education Foundation "If you're a manager competing in today's global economy, you must read Leading on the Creative Edge. Roger Firestien will open your eyes to new ways of winning in the marketplace by teaching you to unleash the creative power locked inside the people you lead."-Dr. Paul Magelli, director, Office for the Study of Business Issues, University of Illinois "Leading on the Creative Edge is absolutely indispensable for any leader dedicated to lifelong learning. With an ideal blend of theory and practice, Roger Firestien proves his reputation as a top resource in executive skilled innovation. Leading on the Creative Edge is extremely valuable-and a lot of fun along the way."-David Kozak, Ph.D., professor of public policy, Gannon University

204 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

Hello, I am Roger Firestien, Ph.D.

I serve as the Senior Faculty Member at the International Center for Studies in Creativity at SUNY-Buffalo State. I have written and published over eighty articles, books, audio and video programs.

My first book, “Why didn’t I think of that? “ is a business fable that presents 10 methods to help individuals and groups become more creative. The story revolves around Tyler who is the senior ‘idea forager’ for The Big Black and White Company, a company that manufactures ‘black’ and ‘white’. The Big Black and White Company maintains the time-honored tradition of doing things the way they have always been done.

In “Why Didn’t I Think of That?,” the Big Black and White Company was forced to change because a new company, The Color Company, had come onto the scene. The story focused on Tyler’s experiences with The Color Company’s Color Director as he taught Tyler some important lessons about creativity. “Why didn’t I Think of That?” has been translated into Spanish, French, Japanese and Hebrew.

My second book, “Leading on the Creative Edge: Gaining competitive through the power of Creative Problem Solving” was written with the focus on the organizational leader. Leading on the Creative Edge spotlights the fact that the organizations that thrives over time are not the ones with the deepest pockets, but the ones that unleash and apply the creativity of their workforce. Leaders who know how to nurture their own creativity while igniting creativity in others are able to use the strategic business weapon most crucial to gaining and maintaining a competitive edge. I gave examples of organizations that have successfully implemented creativity methods and I also provided results of studies that showed the importance of a creative workforce.

I am a Co-author of three books.

In 1982, I collaborated with Donald Treffinger and Scott Isaksen to write the Handbook of Creative Learning. The handbook provides an overview of the Creative Problem Solving Process, a bibliography of books published at that time that were designed to stimulate creativity in individuals and groups, and a variety of creativity warm-up activities designed to prepare groups to engage in Creative Problem Solving (CPS).

In 1997 collaborating with Blair Miller and Jonathan Vehar, I co-authored Creativity Unbound: An introduction to creativity and Facilitation: A Door to Creative Leadership.

Creativity Unbound is a popular textbook that is used in introductory creativity courses world-wide and provides specific tools to help individuals and group develop their creativity skills. Facilitation: A Door to Creative Leadership provides instruction for individuals who want to facilitate Creative Problem Solving groups. Both books have been translated into three languages: Spanish, French and Japanese.

In addition to writing books, I have also written articles that were accepted for publication in a number of referred journals and conference proceedings. Those journals and the title of the articles are listed below:

Journal of Creative Behavior

Firestien, R.L. & Lunken, H.P. (1993). Assessment of the long term effects of the master of science degree in creative studies on its graduates. The Journal of Creative Behavior. 27 (3), 188- 199*

Firestien, R.L. & Treffinger, D.J. (1983). Ownership and converging: Essential ingredients of creative problem solving. The Journal of Creative Behavior, 17 (1).*

Treffinger, D.J., Isaksen, S.G. & Firestien, R.L. (1983). Theoretical perspectives on creative learning and its facilitation: An overview. The Journal of Creative Behavior, 17 (1).*

Firestien, R.L. & Treffinger, D.J. ( 1983). Creative Problem-Solving: Guidelines and resources for effective facilitation. G/C/T Magazine, (Jan/Feb).*

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Reviews

[Brandi · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Dad had an autographed copy and gave me this book a long time ago. I finally decided to read it since I'm at a midpoint in my career. It's a really good read and applicable to tasks outside of work. A lot of the examples used were companies that make physical products, so I was constantly thinking about how the concepts could still apply. I plan on keeping this book and maybe reading it again or giving it to a new leader or manager.