Creativity & Change Management

For many years as I trudged through my corporate career I thought what differentiated me was my creativity. My ability to think different in working around the issues that lead to the doors of corporate glory. I equated my creativity to my entrepreneurship, my ability to make things work for me but often ended up taking a few steps ahead and multiple steps behind. My solutions were often too complicated for my managers, colleagues and my reports to understand, not to toot my own horn but I thought of it as my genius that left most people baffled (not scared, just baffled).

After many rounds of trying, learning and trying again I realized a very fundamental precept (Many thanks to my mentors for accelerating this learning); In a corporate role it is ones ability to make change, manage change, communicate change, enroll sponsors, engage managers and deploy change that is measured and rewarded. On the other end as the system recognizes your ability to align and drive the change it is creativity that starts to take center stage. Leading right back into making the new and different entrepreneurial solution to be accepted, adopted and deployed.

It is interesting to hear the same stories from my protege. He thinks he is creative and notices obvious opportunities that others miss and yet his suggestions are bounced off deaf ears. Are organizations just not smart enough or are they lacking leaders that have the heart to drive change?