Understanding the Role of Creativity in Collaborative New Product Development
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Manchester
Department Name: Materials
Abstract
The project provides a framework for examining and assessing the body of literature about the subject of creativity and to draw some initial conclusions about how this may apply to the fashion/textiles industry.
High street fashion organisations are increasingly requiring a collaborative effort to develop fashion items on trend and on time, raising many issues. Much of our understanding of collaboration issues is from the electronics, high tech and automotive industries, which is not necessarily appropriate for the fashion/textiles world which differs in that it is largely low tech and consumer driven, requiring the incorporation of a complex set of consumer information as well as technology. Collaboration has the potential to encourage creativity but requires: co-operation and integration, bilateral relationships and mutual commitment. The realities of collaboration more often are: high task uncertainty, joint problem solving (eg. through inter-firm project teams) and, often, the transfer of incomplete information. Organisational structure has been noted to be significant in innovation and the climate within which the new product development teams work needs to be examined to identify methods of supporting, facilitating and improving creativity.
The steering group is comprised of the Universities of Manchester (Rachel Studd), Salford (Alex Williams) and Westminster (Wendy Malem & Lorraine Harper) and will initially meet to decide a strategy for collecting and compiling literature reviews about the following areas of creativity: research and assessment methods, problems solving, decision making, judgement and negotiation, creativity in fashion and textiles, teamworking and collaboration, creativity and the new product design process.
Seminar events with the following themes are planned: Research methods to understand creativity, Team working and collaboration in new product development and Balancing risk and creativity: decision making and negotiation.
High street fashion organisations are increasingly requiring a collaborative effort to develop fashion items on trend and on time, raising many issues. Much of our understanding of collaboration issues is from the electronics, high tech and automotive industries, which is not necessarily appropriate for the fashion/textiles world which differs in that it is largely low tech and consumer driven, requiring the incorporation of a complex set of consumer information as well as technology. Collaboration has the potential to encourage creativity but requires: co-operation and integration, bilateral relationships and mutual commitment. The realities of collaboration more often are: high task uncertainty, joint problem solving (eg. through inter-firm project teams) and, often, the transfer of incomplete information. Organisational structure has been noted to be significant in innovation and the climate within which the new product development teams work needs to be examined to identify methods of supporting, facilitating and improving creativity.
The steering group is comprised of the Universities of Manchester (Rachel Studd), Salford (Alex Williams) and Westminster (Wendy Malem & Lorraine Harper) and will initially meet to decide a strategy for collecting and compiling literature reviews about the following areas of creativity: research and assessment methods, problems solving, decision making, judgement and negotiation, creativity in fashion and textiles, teamworking and collaboration, creativity and the new product design process.
Seminar events with the following themes are planned: Research methods to understand creativity, Team working and collaboration in new product development and Balancing risk and creativity: decision making and negotiation.
