The right team structure is essential for a variety of endeavours. let alone creativity and innovation.

Defining creativity as problem identification and idea generation and innovation as idea selection, development and commercialisation, it becomes easy to see how team structures can vary according to the specific area of the creativity and innovation process.

There are essentially four possible structures:

a) The single individual - many single individuals have been known to make significant contributions in their fields - Einstein etc. But can you separate the idea from its influences? Individuals also suffer a high degree of path dependency.

b) The pair. This structure goes some way to overcoming path dependencies but does not benefit from the intellectual cross pollination of large groups.

c) The small group. Intellectual cross pollination increases but so do core and peripheral information pathways, creating hierarchies and restricting information flow.

d) The large group. Very high levels of intellectual cross pollination but an increase in group think, a decline in individual performance, higher evaluation apprehension, an increase in political behaviour and more.

In conclusion, it seems that a pair and small group combinations are most effective overall. But different combinations geared for the specific endeavour produce the best results overall.

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The MBA research project and other creativity and innovation tools can be found at http://managing-creativity.com/. You can also receive a regular, free newsletter by entering your email address at this site.

Kal Bishop is a management consultant based in London, UK. His specialities include Knowledge Management and Creativity and Innovation Management. He has consulted in the visual media and software industries and for clients such as Toshiba and Transport for London. He has led Improv, creativity and innovation workshops, exhibited artwork in San Francisco, Los Angeles and London and written a number of screenplays. He is a passionate traveller. He can be reached at http://managing-creativity.com/.

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