Creative Work - Publications - Faculty & Research

02 Jan 2007
Research & Ideas

Most Popular Articles of 2006

managers do can have great impact on their workers, says Professor Teresa Amabile. In this conversation with Professor Mike Roberts, she updates her ongoing research on creativity in the workplace by investigating how people's intense... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

14 May 2009
Sharpening Your Skills

Sharpening Your Skills: Managing Teams

Sharpening Your Skills dives into the HBS Working Knowledge archives to bring together articles on ways to improve your business skills. Questions To Be Answered How does a team leader win the confidence of the group? What's the best... View Details

Keywords: Re: Multiple Faculty

2008
Case

Thomas Green:Power, Office Politics and a Career in Crisis

By: W. Earl Sasser

The case describes the dilemma of a marketing manager, Thomas Green, who, after being rapidly promoted, is harshly criticized by his boss, Frank Davis. Green and Davis disagree on work styles and market projections. Green believes the sales goals set by Davis are based... View Details

Keywords: Relationships; Personal Development and Career; Conflict and Resolution; Failure; Accounting; Creativity

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05 Jul 2023
What Do You Think?

How Are Middle Managers Falling Down Most Often on Employee Inclusion?

(DEI)—the holy trinity of organizational development at present. Team members with diverse backgrounds, especially in creative types of work, have been shown to deliver better ideas and bottom-line results than those in less diverse teams... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

23 Jun 2023
HBS Case

This Company Lets Employees Take Charge—Even with Life and Death Decisions

case, we heard anecdotes from Buurtzorg’s employees that suggest many, if not most, of them are highly engaged, take full ownership of their work, are pursuing creative ways of serving their patients, and feel motivated to do the best... View Details

Keywords: by Annelena Lobb; Health

30 Jan 2024
Research & Ideas

‘Intrinsic Joy’ Sparks Ideas Better than Cash

It seems obvious: If you want to boost innovation from a crowd writing and improving software code, just dangle a cash incentive. When GitHub began offering matching funds to open source software users who snagged outside sponsors in 2019, it seemed to View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Technology

16 Nov 2021
HBS Case

How a Company Made Employees So Miserable, They Killed Themselves

In 2009, a 51-year-old man killed himself in Marseille, a city in southern France, leaving behind a suicide note that blamed his employer for “overwork” and “management by terror.” “I am committing suicide because of my work at France... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding

19 Dec 2023
Research & Ideas

The 10 Most Popular Articles of 2023

Soon after ChatGPT debuted in late 2022, business leaders began taking their first steps into generative artificial intelligence, approaching this powerful technology with a mix of awe and trepidation. It’s no surprise that one of the most-read articles in HBS View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost

20 Jul 2011
Research & Ideas

Five Discovery Skills that Distinguish Great Innovators

them to be more intuitive and divergent thinkers. Either you have it or you don't. But does research really support this idea? Our research confirms others' work that creativity skills are not simply genetic... View Details

Keywords: by Jeff Dyer, Hal Gergersen & Clayton M. Christensen

17 Oct 2006
First Look

First Look: October 17, 2006

Working PapersInstitutional Pressures and Environmental Strategies Authors: Magali A. Delmas and Michael W. Toffel Abstract This paper suggests how institutional theory can explain enduring differences in organizational strategies. We... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

03 Feb 2009
First Look

First Look: February 3, 2009

Working Papers Goals Gone Wild: The Systematic Side Effects of Over-Prescribing Goal Setting Authors: Lisa D. Ordonez, Maurice E. Schweitzer, Adam D. Galinsky, and Max H. Bazerman Abstract Goal setting is one of the most replicated and... View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

17 Jul 2012
First Look

First Look: July 17

PublicationsPerspectives on the Social Psychology of Creativity Authors:Teresa M. Amabile and Julianna Pillemer Publication:Journal of Creative Behavior 46, no. 1 (2012) Abstract Scholars began serious... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

22 Aug 2016
Research & Ideas

Master the One-on-One Meeting

important meetings with your direct reports, be thoughtful about how these sessions play out. Below is the guidance I give to new managers on conducting 1:1’s. Be thoughtful about how your one-on-one meetings sessions might play out. Source: Yuri_Arcurs Set... View Details

Keywords: by Julia B. Austin

autumn 1993
Article

Motivational Synergy: Toward New Conceptualizations of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation in the Workplace

By: T. M. Amabile

The foundation for a model of motivational synergy is presented. Building upon but going beyond previous conceptualizations, the model outlines the ways in which intrinsic motivation (which arises from the intrinsic value of the work for the individual) might interact... View Details

Keywords: Motivation and Incentives; Theory; Creativity; Situation or Environment; Organizational Culture

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02 Jan 2008
Research & Ideas

Most Popular Stories 2007

messages I received were that if leadership involves control, it is only over setting an organization's course and priorities." HBS Cases: How Wikipedia Works (or Doesn't) For HBS professor Andrew McAfee, Wikipedia is a surprisingly... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

31 Jan 2022
Research & Ideas

Where Can Digital Transformation Take You? Insights from 1,700 Leaders

comes with “co-creation” seriously, with younger generations of employees ready to be judged on their creativity as much as their expertise. New societal expectations. Roundtable participants said that Millennials and members of... View Details

Keywords: by Linda A. Hill, Ann Le Cam, Sunand Menon, and Emily Tedards

02 May 2023
What Do You Think?

How Should Artificial Intelligence Be Regulated—if at All?

that will relieve humanity of mind-numbing desk work with attendant improvements in quality and reductions in cost and allow people to pursue more creative and interesting work? Or a tool so powerful that it... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Information Technology; Technology

25 Jun 2024
Research & Ideas

Rapport: The Hidden Advantage That Women Managers Bring to Teams

It’s a manager’s nightmare: A customer pulls into a drive-thru after a long day at work with children in tow, everyone looking frazzled and famished. After waiting patiently in line, the customer grabs her bag of burgers through the... View Details

Keywords: by Kara Baskin; Food & Beverage

28 Aug 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, August 28, 2018

analytical research posits that low-powered incentives can motivate employees to generate creative ideas by diverting their attention away from fixating on performance measures associated with their standard tasks included in the... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

22 May 2019
Research & Ideas

Forgiving Student Loan Debt Leads to Better Jobs, Stronger Consumers

for higher-paying work just to pay collectors more. If their loans are discharged, however, they may feel more motivated to pursue new jobs, knowing that any additional dollar earned will go right into their pockets. They chipped away... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

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