Defines Compares and Contrast - Coursework Example

DEFINES COMPARES AND CONTRAST DEFINES COMPARES AND CONTRAST Businesses, organizations and institutions have always made claims of the role of innovation, design and creativity to their development and growth. However, debate continues to rage on the definition, similarities and differences that these three terms carry. This issue is worth settling because having clearer understanding of these will lead to a better application of them (Poon, Choi and Davis, 2008). Poon, Choi and Davis (2008) explained creativity is a cognitive act that embodies the ability to conceive something original or unusual.

Design on the other hand has been defined to be the putting together of creative ideas either in paperwork or in physical pattern to make the idea a tangible value (Zhao, Calantone and Cavusgil, 2002). Capron (1999) also mentioned that innovation represents the actual implementation of something that is new. From the definitions given, it would be noted that there are some ways in which all of these three important terms are different from each other and other ways in which they closely relate to each other.

Comparing the three terms, Poon, Choi and Davis (2008) explained that all of innovation, design and creativity are needed in a typical organization to make the execution of organizational goals possible; especially in cases where organizations want to build a competitive advantage for themselves. By this explanation, the meaning that is drawn is that innovation, design and creativity are all focused on bringing about things that are new and different from what already exists. Therefore even though the three may carry different meanings, they are all concerned with new ideas because it is when organizations are able to differentiate themselves from others through creative, innovative and design oriented means that they gain competitive advantage over their competitors.

Another important similarity that organizational leaders ought to know in the application of these three terms is that none of the three is independent on its own (Capron, 1999). Rather, they each depend on the other to ensure the objectives for which they are independently set are achieved. By implication, even though each of these can help organizations achieve different objectives, the achievement will not be made if the three are not used together.Despite the similarities, there are various differences that exist between these three terms.

For example, whereas creativity is abstract and produces abstract results, innovation is highly tangible as it results in implemented products. In effective, a person is said to be creative if the person is good in coming up with ideas that are considered to be very new, unusual or out of the ordinary. Due to the differences however, it is not everyone who is creative that is innovative. After a creative person brings forth a new idea, it would take an innovative person to implement the new idea.

Design is also different from the other two in the sense that design could be either abstract or tangible, depending on the approach that a designer takes (Zhao, Calantone and Cavusgil, 2002). Between design and innovation, it would be noted that design results in completed product but innovation does. In most cases, design precedes innovation and actually tells the innovator the approach to use in implementing the idea.ReferencesCapron L. (1999). The long-term performance of horizontal acquisitions.

Strategic Management Journal. 5(20):987-1018.Poon S. K., Choi B. and Davis J. G. (2008). Effects of knowledge management strategy on organizational performance: a complementarily theory-based approach. Omega 36(2):235–51.Zhao Y., Cavusgil, T. S. and Calantone, R. J. (2002). Learning orientation, firm innovation capability, and firm performance. Industrial Marketing Management 3(31):515–24.