Creativity and innovation at greenpeace - Essay Example

?Creativity and Innovation at Greenpeace Introduction The process of globalization is progressively reshaping relationships all over the world. It has widely influenced the environment, culture, economic growth and policies, political systems, and societies globally. However, the pace of development is so rapid that even trained experts are unable to regulate, monitor and control its impacts properly. The highly dynamic and competitive market trends have forced organizations to rethink and reevaluate strategies according to their internal resources and capabilities. While implementing any sustainable strategy, an organization has to closely analyze its resources and capabilities such as culture, diversity, human capital, innovation and creativity, as if they are durable, transferable and replicable or not. Creativity and innovation among organizations usually occurs through development and implementation of new mechanisms in a non-traditional way. Any organizational environment constitutes a social and a cultural aspect called the field and the domain respectively. According to Csikszentmihalyi (1999), “creativity occurs when a person makes a change in a domain, a change that will be transmitted through time”. Creativity is essentially a two way process in which people must interact with the field and the domain to achieve certain level of novel variation. The person with specific set of talents and experiences transmits the body of knowledge in context of the cultural system (domain). The social system (field) then evaluates innovation and retains the selected creativeness in context of the domain. For instance, there are people in the field of modern art who decide whether the new paintings deserve to be purchased, collected and added to the domain or not. Amabile (1998) suggests that “within every individual, creativity is a function of three components: expertise, creative-thinking skills, and motivation” illustrated in figure 01. In any organization, however, managers are fully capable of influencing these components via workplace practices and conditions. The intellectual, procedural and technical knowledge comprises the expertise. The novel and unique ways in which people approach certain issues come under the creative-thinking skills component, and the inner spirit and devotion required for tackling or solving a particular issue forms the motivation component. Factors such as challenge, freedom, resources, work-group features, supervisory encouragement, and organizational support affect creativity and can be analyzed to enhance creativity in organizations. It is important to note here that some systemic practices are existent which may also kill creativity. Figure 01: The Three Components of Creativity. Source: (Amabile, 1998) According to West and Farr (1990), innovation is “the intentional introduction and application within a job, work team or organization of ideas, processes, products or procedures which are new to that job, work team or organization and which are designed to benefit the job, the work team or organization”. The process of innovation encompasses both the development of a concept and effective translation of that concept into practice. All organizations are capable of being innovative to certain extent depending on the sources of innovation and many of them consider creativity and innovation as part of their competitive strategies. If a change is beneficial, intentional and novel, it can be rightly regarded as innovation. Economic activities are mostly dependent on finite and limited set of natural resources present on earth. Overexploitation of these limited resources is continuously threatening the global economy, which at its core is embedded in the environment. Industries worldwide are depleting resources of the earth not taking into account the provision of relatively free ecosystem services. The changing patterns of resource scarcity have given rise to a new business model known as Natural Capitalism. According to Lovins et al. (1999), “business strategies built around the radically more productive use of natural resources can solve many environmental problems at a profit”. Natural capitalism emphasizes on the notion that economic and ecological goals must be integrated to ensure sustainability of the natural capital. Natural capitalism aims to replace traditional industrialism for the betterment of both economy and the ecosystem. Organizations can achieve natural capitalism in a multi-stage process. For instance, in the first stage, they must devise strategies to prevent the wastage of valuable resources in production systems. Secondly, creation of new products and technologies according to the biological models comes into consideration. Now they can move on to a new solutions based business model. Finally, reinvestment in the resource base further increases resource productivity. Founded by a small team of activists at Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada in 1971, Greenpeace is a not-for-profit environmental organization working to expose and solve environmental issues globally. The organization retains offices in over 40 countries with a central coordinating body functioning in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. According to Greenpeace, its goal is to “ensure the ability of the earth to nurture life in all its diversity” (Greenpeace.org, Jan 2009). From a small group of protestants against US underground nuclear testing at Amchitka, Greenpeace has emerged into an international organization of much significance. In January 2007, around 2.9 million people were having membership with Greenpeace. The organization does not accept any funding from governments, political parties or corporations to maintain independence. The financial needs of Greenpeace are met through donations made by its supporters and campaigners worldwide. The organization actively serves to publicly raise environmental issues and implements counter strategies by means of direct-action, lobbying, research and innovation. Greenpeace has launched many vessels so far in the open waters to peacefully protest against and eradicate overexploitation of environment and has succeeded in many of its ventures so far. Greenpeace supports investment of businesses in natural capitalism. It believes in preserving the natural resources by addressing environmental issues such as forest conservation and management, greenhouse gases, chemical contamination, and the loss of biodiversity. As hegemonic corporations tend to exploit natural resources to rule the way people live or desire to live, it is not a sustainable strategy for environmental organizations to pressurize firms to change their traditional business practices. Greenpeace learnt this drawback overtime and is gradually adopting a relatively collaborative strategy to achieve sustainability. For instance, along with various multi-national organizations and UNEP, Greenpeace received the prestigious 2011 Roy Family Environment Award from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government for a collaborative effort on reducing the use of environmentally-harmful fluorinated gases such as Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) in cooling and refrigeration installations. Now, the corporations will be using natural refrigerants in place of these gases. Greenpeace also took stand on continuous industrialized fishing that is threatening the ecological food chains in the seas. According to fifth Carting Away the Oceans (CATO) report by Greenpeace USA, none of the firms in American seafood industry reached the goal of ecological sustainability. However, some of the corporations including Safeway and Wegmans have started to realize the importance of Natural Capitalism approach, supporting sustainability of marine life in the Ross Sea. Greenpeace has also collaborated with Kimberly-Clark to help them transform fiber sourcing from traditional to environmentally sustainable resources. Most of the tissue products in Kimberly-Clark are now being processed from recycled fiber. Strategies Productivity expansion and technological developments have contributed towards the formation of an increasingly improvisational industrial sector. New economic developments internationally have played an important role in fading the spatial barriers between nations. The formation of an international industrial and financial system is contributing towards free flow of information, products, people and investments across the globe. Intensive trade activity has catalyzed global competition elevating living standards of the participating masses. However, firms often take advantage of the countries with poor environmental regulations and are continuously setting up industries degrading the environment for financial gains. These corporations are continuously deriving huge benefits at the expense of people and their living environment. The resources available to an organization have a key strategic role in acquiring, implementing and maintaining a competitive advantage. However, competitive advantage cannot be gained through individual resources. The resources collectively form organizational capability, which is the basis for establishing a sustainable competitive strategy. Greenpeace set of available resources and capabilities enables it to build a strategy focused on company’s internal environment rather than just following the external trends. An effective implementation of any competitive strategy requires both the prevailing conditions of scarcity and relevance of a resource. Greenpeace strategy is based on the efforts of participating masses fighting for the creation and sustenance of shared values as well as the environment. With creativity and innovation, both in terms of concept and practice, the organization strives hard for translating the action of local people into community’s practice. Most of the strong government agencies and huge corporations are raising environmental concerns and undermining social stability in a continuous way. Greenpeace aims to force them to address and find sustainable solutions to these environmental issues and impacts. Organizations often strive hard to achieve valuable, rare, inimitable and organized resources for establishing sustainable strategies. There are certain organizational structures, systems and processes that restrict or enhance creativity and thus innovation. As Greenpeace encompasses innovative activities and services derived by social needs and not for the maximization of profit, its working strategy is dependant upon social innovation. The impact of innovation differs from that of individual effort to change brought by huge movements involving millions of people. From a strategic point of view, Greenpeace itself is a movement of change or innovation i.e. environmentalism, that has directed universal change in public consciousness. However, for creativity and innovation to flourish in organizations, it is important that they must not restrict free flow of communications. According to Ekvall (1997), there are “conditions that restrict free and open communications, such as rigid bureaucratic rules and instructions, ‘holy’ hierarchies and detail controlling supervision keep creativity down, because new mental structures, new constellations, come into being when knowledge, experiences, ideas from widely different and distinct domains meet”. The strategy of any organization can also be evaluated from the key principles it is based upon and reflected in its everyday activities. These principles govern and direct the way in which organizations innovate. The official website of Greenpeace enlists their core values as bearing witness, non-violence, independence, having no permanent friends or foes, and promoting solutions. As the name suggests, Greenpeace not only bears witness to environmental destruction and opposes it in a peaceful way but also shows it to the people all over the world. The major interest areas of Greenpeace are climate change, forests, oceans, agriculture, toxic pollution, nuclear, and peace and disarmament. The organization explores the deterioration of natural resources and the extent of involvement of corporations as well as also recommends sustainable solutions to the rising issues. According to Greenpeace (2006), “We don’t work to manage environmental problems, we work to eliminate them”. After realizing the need for integration of society with science, Greenpeace has devised some other innovative strategies also, including the establishment of The Greenpeace Science Laboratory at Exeter University. The lab is a way forward in shaping company campaigns according to new scientific standards, influencing governmental and corporate policies, and changing societal opinions. The commissioning of research reports and investigations is at the disposal of the Greenpeace science unit. These publications provide people with a great source of information on current environmental events and concerns. Ships have been playing a significant role in Greenpeace campaigns since its very existence. This creative and innovative concept led to the international recognition of Greenpeace. The first and original Rainbow Warrior ship was a 40m dragger, purchased by Greenpeace at a cost of ?40,000. The ship was launched in 1978. It took volunteers four months to renovate the ship for launching it to open waters. The ship was used in several of Greenpeace campaigns and was also used for direct-action against environmental threats like the discharge of toxic waste into the ocean and nuclear testing in the pacific. Japanese fisheries agency called Greenpeace ‘eco-terrorists’, a label strongly rejected by Greenpeace. However, after the bombing of Rainbow Warrior in Auckland in 1985 by French government, the organization needed to maintain its successful innovative strategy. So, Greenpeace launched a replacement ship called Rainbow Warrior II which served in numerous ventures till august 2011. The organization continued its innovation by launching a purpose-built campaigning ship referred to as the third Rainbow Warrior. The ship is installed with latest scientific technologies, and is faster and more reliable than any of its predecessors. Greenpeace has regarded this ship as environmental friendly and a shining example for green ship building. The third Rainbow Warrior excellently reflects the implementation of innovation strategies by Greenpeace. It’s probably the only ship that is specifically created for Greenpeace. Due to its being more innovative than any of the predecessors, the ship successfully attracted financial support from its million of members worldwide having respect for green values. Apart from its huge cost estimated to be around ?14 million, this ship contains an onboard recycling system, relies on wind power, and complies with eco-friendly standards. In a precise way, it’s a symbol of renewable energy revolution for industrial corporations who are still in a doubt to adopt natural capitalism. Greenpeace itself applauds the ship as a purpose-built campaigning ship keeping its vision alive as a beacon of hope and inspiration. Human Resource Management Though not visible in organization’s balance sheet, human resource management (HRM) is considered one of the major players in formulating any strategy. HRM is also instrumental in determining and utilizing the strategic position of organizations in a business or social environment. Greenpeace is one such organization that considers and utilizes human resource development as part of its strategy. Its founders and early members put every effort to develop Greenpeace according to the social needs of the system, an organization effective, efficient and creative enough to be able to address environmental issues properly. From a small group of activists, Greenpeace struggled hard for to emerge as a dominant organization capable of leading environmental movement over the past 40 years. Organizations often hire change managers to bring about employee empowerment. Companies are unable to achieve any strategy without empowering employees. In any organization, it is the internal commitment of employees that reinforces empowerment. According to Henry (2001), “empowerment necessarily entails a commitment that comes about through participation”. However, in order to facilitate organizational change through learning, change managers most often inhibit the outcomes of empowerment. At Greenpeace, employees and members are empowered in different ways to facilitate the overall decision making process. Employee empowerment can also be sometimes considered as human resource retention strategy. Individuals are in a sense empowered to create and innovate according to their internal and external commitment to bring out change collectively. Greenpeace strives to enable its extensive human resource to maintain a relatively higher level of coordination and internationalism. It has established a coordinating body at Amsterdam that coordinates, monitors and develops strategy in accordance with fluctuating situations in different regions of the globe. A highly qualified and unique workforce is one of the prime resources of Greenpeace. Organizations often tend to systematically evaluate potential employees in terms of setting up future performance targets at the time of hiring. In order to utilize human resources to formulate effective strategy, organizations should improve their ability in recruiting, developing and retaining employees. Human resource development plays an important role in achieving cost effective and performance based targets. Successful integration of goals and workforce concerns is the strategic ability distinguishing the organizations from each other. Greenpeace as an organization has been able to acquire this ability to a greater extent and thus enjoys a firm strategic advantage. An organization requires its employees' competence in achieving the present as well as future performance goals. Despite facing the growing criticism over its human resource development methodology, the company has managed to maintain its strategy in a sustainable way. The company values its employees with a number of benefits, performance rewards and is also considering wide expansion to its current human resource. Figure 02: Management Structure of Greanpeace. Source: (Greenpeace, 2011). Greenpeace’s interest in human resource development is well reflected in its HR management policy which encourages employees in all levels of management structure to innovate freely. At the top level of the management, there is the International Executive Director responsible for overseeing Greenpeace and management of the senior team. Each area of daily operations is headed by a director forming the senior team. Campaign areas including climate, energy, oceans, forests, business and legal units are headed by program directors and deputy program directors. Directors include fundraising director, communication director, organization director, operation director and development director each responsible for his department and answerable before the senior team or directly International Executive director. The management structure of Greenpeace is illustrated in figure 02. Conclusion Almost all organizations, whether small or large, do have strong strategic competitors. However, they are successful only because of being able to maintain a fair balance between strategic targets, strategic thrusts and human resource development. Any organization that incorporates creativity and innovation in its strategy has a much more stable basis to define its identity. Along with its bundle of sustainable resources and capabilities, Greenpeace as an innovative and learning organization, has a much touted potential to flourish considerably. Greenpeace through its innovative approach has successfully forced industrially capitalized corporations to design their future strategies based on natural resource conservation and climate protection enhancing profitability in the long run. Despite of all the glorious achievements, a lot of room still exists for improvements in its strategic management practices. The company lacks a number of key resources and capabilities including infrastructure development, human resource development, and application of innovative technologies commonly and abundantly found in traditional corporations. The existing relationship between nature and technology also needs quite deep exploration. Moreover, company has not yet been able to stand at par with other developed industrial capitalists or to shift them to sustainable natural capitalism. If the existing innovation strategy is extended to unexplored areas rather than modifying old ones, it is highly likely for Greenpeace to deliver far greater returns and establish diverse position in identical environments. Recommendations Instead of working with few definite policies for the whole world, Greenpeace needs to adopt a regional and diverse policy based on novel ideas. The diversity can also be enhanced by looking outside the organization for sources of creativity. It surely has basic sources of knowledge and thinking, but lacks the core component of sourcing creativity i.e. a fair balance between the breadth and depth of applied knowledge. Research reveals that individuals in any organization are found to be having more appreciation for innovative thoughts when they are left high on openness. Greenpeace should take every measure to encourage creativity in both the employees and members individually. Like the Rainbow Warrior strategy, the company needs to invest more in creativity to become a learning organization and enhance a thinking and unique human capital. Greenpeace should encourage individuals with in organizations as well as externally to express themselves creatively and freely without strict restrictions. The Rainbow Warrior itself has been reported many times violating the environmental sustainability standards depleting the repute of company. The company should refrain from any political and industrial affiliations entirely. Though it has already significant presence in over 40 countries, there is a dire need to extend its working range beyond borders. Greenpeace needs to focus on strengthening internal capabilities and provide efficient services for bringing about the revolutionary practice of natural capitalism. References Amabile, T. (1998). 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