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The power of companies has always been limited with their knowledge and creativity. This power is derived from sources both internal and external to the company. Companies today often seek more expensive methods of improvement in products and processes. The truth is that there is a cheaper and potentially more effective solution for improving processes and that is through employee creativity. Li-Yueh and Tan (2012) noted that creativity is not just created by a company's strategy, but also from the employees that perform the everyday work. Many managers often overlook the fact that the people in front of them may hold the answers to some of their most difficult problems. This article aims to shed light on the reasons why employers should use their employees' knowledge to their advantage and why it is so difficult for companies to integrate these techniques from the start. There is a large demand for individuals within the workplace that demonstrate the remarkable ability to look at a problem from multiple perspectives. This ability presents a powerful tool in a company's arsenal that rarely gets utilized effectively. Dennis, Minas, and Bhagwatwar (2013) define creative thinking as the primary objective for producing ideas that will be evaluated and implemented over time. Becoming engaged in creative thinking has an abundance of potential uses for organizational activities. Employees can generate ideas that lead to improvements in products, services, and organizational processes. Processes can include improvements in supply chain management, production efficiency, and human resources. Promoting employees to stretch their minds also has a beneficial effect of the employees themselves. De Stobbeleir and Ashford (2011) noted in their research that creative employees possess a better ability to absorb information, have higher intrinsic motivation, and are more likely to open themselves to newer experiences. Creativity is not bound to one specific department in an organization. All of these improvements possess the potential to increase a company's bottom line. Not only does employee creativity generate solutions throughout an organization but it's also an empowerment tool used to give employees more freedom throughout the workplace. This cognitive effect can provide employees with a stronger sense of dedication and importance to their own job. The information provided so far only describes the importance that employees play in the company's innovation. However, there are reasons why companies opt out of this management style and go for a simpler process. If engaging employees in creative thinking is such a simple task then why don't all companies use it? The answer is that not only do many companies not use their employees as a source of creative inspiration but they in fact hinder it. Dong, Hui, and Loi (2012) argued that management can unintentionally deprive their subordinates of their creative abilities. The authors argue that abusive actions from employee's supervisors can diminish creativity because it reduces intrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation is the enjoyment and pleasure that a person receives from their accomplishments. Intrinsic motivation is purely internal and doesn't rely on outside factors such as rewards and compensation for their work. The authors’ research data in their own finding suggested that there is a link between the abusive actions of managers and their supervisors. The abusive actions do not merely interpret to be verbal abuse and behavior, but it is also any type of behavior caused by managers that limits any employees' ability to think and act outside the box. For example, an employee who has just recently been hired by a manufacturing company. The manager for the company is in charge of training this employee to perform a specific task. Over the course of the training, the manager explains how to perform each specific task accordingly. The manager then explains that perform the task in any other way would be counterproductive and hurt the performance of the rest of the employees. This example is meant to show that since the beginning of their employment, all people are taught how to act and what to do. This leadership style gives employees the impression that anything performed other than the way they were taught is wrong and doing differently may come back to hurt themselves. Companies often opt for the easier method of telling their employees how and when to act while on the job. Companies generally their own process for completing tasks. When employees are hired on the job, they are trained to do tasks in a certain way that mimics their predecessors. They are trained this way because parts of an organization are meant to work as a whole. When one part changes, the other parts must adapt as well. Though, no matter how big the change to the organization is, companies that do not attempt change will be beat out by those that do. Finally, this article is a call to action for companies to stop abusing the logical capabilities of their employees and help promote an atmosphere that allows them to freely experiment with alternative means of productivity. Management should be open to the ideas and opinions of their own employees and help inspire them by emphasizing more value on job satisfaction. Zhang and Bartol (2010) argue that job satisfaction is important to employees and the effort that they put into the job. The authors believe that employees will spend more time learning, understanding, and correcting problems if they perceive their job gives them more personal value. These are the people who perform tasks within an organization every day, and if anyone has an idea on how to make improvements then it should be them. Without these needed improvements, companies have less of a chance to make changes to their organization and improve processes not only for the company but for themselves as well. References Dennis, A. R., Minas, R. K., & Bhagwatwar, A. P. (2013). Sparking creativity: Improving electronic brainstorming with individual cognitive priming. Journal Of Management Information Systems, 29(4), 195-216. doi:10.2753/MIS0742-122290407 Dong, L., Hui, L., & Loi, R. (2012). The dark side of leadership: A three-level investigation of the cascading effect of abusive supervision on employee creativity. Academy Of Management Journal, 55(5), 1187-1212. doi:10.5465/amj.2010.0400 Li-Yueh, L., & Tan, E. (2012). The influences of antecedents on employee creativity and employee performance: A meta-analytic review. Interdisciplinary Journal Of Contemporary Research In Business, 4(2), 984-966. M. De Stobbeleir, K. E., Ashford, S. J., & Buyens, D. (2011). Self-regulation of creativity at work: The role of feedback-seeking behavior in creative performance. Academy Of Management Journal, 54(4), 811-831. doi:10.5465/AMJ.2011.64870144 Zhang, X., & Bartol, K. M. (2010). Linking empowering leadership and employee creativity: The influence of psychological empowerment, intrinsic motivation, and creative process engagement. Academy Of Management Journal, 53(1), 107-128. doi:10.5465/AMJ.2010.48037118
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