The Creativity-Competence-Performance Connection: A New Paradigm for International Business Success

Imagine a world where the creative spark of a single employee could ignite international success. Our latest research reveals that this is not just a fictional but a tangible reality that forward-thinking executives can harness to drive international performance.?

Our latest research involving 112 small and medium-sized enterprises paints a vivid picture of how individual creativity, when nurtured and shared, can evolve into a formidable force of organizational creativity. Importantly, we found that creativity's value extends far beyond the obvious product or service development processes. Creativity, when deployed across all aspects of business development, it drives more robust strategy formulation, market entry approaches, relationship building with international partners, and, ultimately, international success. We found that organizational creativity becomes the fuel that propels these companies onto the global stage with remarkable success.

However, the journey from individual creativity to international success is not a direct path but a carefully orchestrated process. The key component in this journey is what we call International Business Competence (IBC). Think of IBC as the engine that converts the raw fuel of creativity into the kinetic energy of organizational success.

But what exactly is IBC, and how can managers cultivate it? Our research breaks it down into four critical components, including international orientation, international marketing skills, international innovativeness, and international market orientation.

Intriguingly, we found that three of these components—marketing skills, innovativeness, and market orientation—act as powerful conduits, channeling organizational creativity into tangible international performance. This insight provides managers with a clear roadmap for action.

However, we also found that creativity is often not strategically deployed in organizations due to several factors. Many leaders view creativity in organizational processes as fuzzy and difficult to grasp, preferring more structured approaches. There's a common misconception that creativity belongs solely in departments like R&D or marketing rather than being a company-wide asset. Budget constraints and short-term profit pressures can also lead to underinvestment in creative initiatives or worth, into failed efforts by trying to unlock creativity “on a press of the button” in ad-hoc workshops or retreats, but not as a core element of the organizational DNA. Ultimately, firms neglecting organization-wide creativity may be outpaced by more innovative global competitors despite strong core offerings.

However, even leaders who don't consider themselves creative or operate in less creative industries can champion creativity. The key is recognizing that creativity isn't about personal artistic talent but about fostering an environment where novel solutions thrive.

Effective leaders in this context:

1. Openly acknowledge their own creative limitations, using this vulnerability to empower others.
2. Reframe creativity as strategic problem-solving, aligning it with business goals.
3. Integrate idea generation into existing processes, making innovation a daily practice rather than a special event.
4. Develop systems to capture, evaluate, and implement ideas from all levels of the organization.
5. Celebrate and reward creative thinking, even when ideas don't succeed.

Championing creativity as a collective endeavor rather than an individual trait enhances operational efficiency and drives international competitiveness and adaptability in global markets. The real magic happens when you create an ecosystem where creative ideas are shared, nurtured, and transformed into organizational capabilities.

Remember: true innovation often emerges from the tension between structure and creativity. Embracing this paradox is the hallmark of forward-thinking leadership in traditionally non-creative industries.

The full open-access research can be found here: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intman.2024.101203

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