ORGANIZATIONAL-DEVELOPMENT INTERVENTIONS FOR ENHANCING CREATIVITY IN THE WORKPLACE

In an era of rapidly accelerating change, many organizations which dev eloped during a more stable era that demanded bureaucratic efficiency find themselves in a crisis of adaptability and commitment. Effective organizations are those which can mainstream both adaptability and eff iciency and strike an appropriate balance between the two. This paper evaluates traditional organizational development (OD) approaches to th is problem, then presents a new approach to OD based on organizational creativity. Organizational creativity is defined as a deliberate and continuous change-making process of problem generation and formulation , problem solving, and solution implementation, and as synonymous with adaptability and innovation. Unlike traditional OD approaches that la ck a strategic perspective and that rely on single interventions, OD s hould be employed as an innovation process requiring thinking skills i n change-making and incorporating interventions as tools. Under the ne w approach, organizations can learn to mainstream adaptability by doin g two things: encouraging employees to master new thinking skills whic h increases their creativity, motivation, and commitment; and creating an infrastructure that ensures that these skills will be used regular ly. Research is reviewed supporting the new approach, and future resea rch directions are suggested.