Bravo, David.
 
John
----- Original Message -----
From: [log in to unmask] href="mailto:[log in to unmask]">David Atkinson
To: [log in to unmask] href="mailto:[log in to unmask]">[log in to unmask]
Sent: Wednesday, April 01, 2009 8:59 AM
Subject: [SPAM] Re: actualisation

Ralph, Sue and friends
 
I heartily agree with your sentiments. My own business collapsed around me in August last year, as I failed to raise sufficient finance to make further acquisitions of small businesses. The board and other shareholders laid the blame at my feet, as CEO, and I accepted their desire to see me leave.
 
Since then, I have been applying creativity and innovation to see where I can get to now. I have recently put together a research proposal to undertake a multi-level analysis of creativity/innovation as a socially negotiated response to states of distress (within the SME sector). I have no answers to your question yet, but I believe I have a direction to go in. 
 
As artists (and I use the word with caution), we can help as catalysts to creative conversations - but only if those conversations are related to specific states of distress; i.e we need to understand the problems faced by those we have the conversations with. Now is not the time to present a theory about thinking differently, or to float the idea of an artist in residence, or some other such scheme. We need problem solvers who think as artists think - they needn't be painters, poets, musicians, dancers etc - they just need to see the business world differently, while at the same time understanding it from its current reality.
 
If we can engage in useful conversations now, we will earn a right to theorise later.
 
Best to all
 
David
 

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From: Aesthetics, Creativity, and Organisations Research Network [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Ralph Kerle
Sent: 01 April 2009 14:24
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: actualisation

Hi Sue,
 
With all due respects, let's leave the rhetoric out about opportunities at the moment.I get emails from the erudite through to spam daily exhorting me to adopt new thinking, new design processes and thinking, creativity and innovation programmes, arts based processes etc that will lead me out of this mess.
 
After two weeks of interviewing CEO's in middle to large corporations in Australia around leadership, creativity and innovation, I can categorically state where business is focused.
 
Back to basic business fundamentals particularly revenues that are dropping rapidly in every industry regardless; prices, costs and head counts and the cutting of all surplus expenditure especially those to do with what are perceived as non essential services such as training, O&D, HR where outcomes cannot be calculated and expressed in hard and fast monetary terms.
 
I found that as opposed to 12 months ago, at least the CEO's are now prepared to listen. They acknowledge they don't know where things are going. They want creative conversations. However, in all the discussions without exception they ask to be shown the tangible outcomes art based processes and creativity and innovation programmes etc will have on their bottom line in order to help them make their figures so their people can retain their jobs!! It's that focused!
 
Senior management is not interested in theorising, they are seeking practical financial outcomes..NOW..it is a matter of survival. So here is the challenge for all of us as I see it involved in this field. 
 
How does one respond to that from an aesthetic, creativity and organisations research perspective?
 
Ralph
 

ralph kerle
chairman
the creative leadership forum
http://www.thecreativeleadershipforum.com
p 612 9403 5327 m 0412 559 603






 

From: Aesthetics, Creativity, and Organisations Research Network [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Sue Congram
Sent: Wednesday, 1 April 2009 9:41 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: actualisation

I agree with these sentiments - that there is an opportunity for the arts to have a positive affect on the current economic situation.

I hear time and time again from people in business that there is a need to be 'creative' in order to survive. I hear that as both an inward (how we work) and outward (products and services) statement. My interest is in the extent to which the arts can create paradigm shifts in business, because that is what I believe is needed in order to take business minds into new ways of thinking. To achieve that at a cognitive-thinking level invites the old paradigm to keep it's bag of tricks active, making change difficult. In my view the arts can offer incredibly effective ways to create sustainable paradigm shifts in the way that people engage in leadership, management and business practice (in both the HOW and the WHAT) stepping around old established patterns which no longer work.

Is it the case that there is a window of opportunity open right now that will close soon? If so what does it mean to build on the opportunity that is open to us?

Interested in your thoughts on this.

Sue

Bringing imagination to life and work
–––––––––––––––
Sue Congram C.Psychol
Dolgarren
St Weonards
Herefordshire
HR2 8NZ 
 
01981 580040

–––––––––––––––––
 'Education and Imagination' Edited by Raya Jones, Austin Clarkson, Sue Congram, Nick Stratton, published by Routledge 

–––––––––––––––––



On 31 Mar 2009, at 17:43, Taylor, Steven S. wrote:

I'm with John in that I think the financial crisis is an opportunity for
arts-based thinking/work.  As we start to move beyond the initial panic
responses and start to look for new practices that may be better suited to
working with the complexities of the world the arts offers a lot.

- Steve


On 3/31/09 9:51 AM, "John Cimino" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

Jügen,

Thanks for reviving your timely question.  There are probably many unique
responses to the economic crisis from within our profession.  Many of my
American colleagues are impacted by their major clients' withdrawal into a
reactive state of innovation dormancy and short-term thinking.  We believe
this protective mode will soon produce its own problems.  Creativity,
innovation and artful thinking are needed now more than ever.  Some of us
practitioners are endeavoring to position ourselves in anticipation of this
second realization, that creativity holds at least some of the keys to working
ourselves out of the mire of the present economy.  I also find more and more
pracitioners turning to one another in what feels like a very healthy
dialogue, establishing bonds of friendship and a level of sharing more rare in
prosperous times.  I experience this as a silver lining to the present crisis,
something from which much good may come.

Secondly, I also perceive at least some of our arts/aesthetics dialogue
merging with the dialogue around "design thinking" which may result in some
healthy cross-fertilization and a strenghtening of the cases for both in the
wider world.  

I look forward to your comments and others as well.  Our own community might
well be strengthened by this dialogue.  Best.

John

John J. Cimino, Jr.
President & CEO
Creative Leaps International
845-469-7254 (office)  845-216-0607 (cell)
[log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
www.creativeleaps.org <http://www.creativeleaps.org>



Steven S. Taylor, PhD
Associate Professor
Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Department of Management
100 Institute Rd
Worcester, MA 01609
USA
+1 508-831-5557
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