I recently came across an old Psychology Today article with a definition of creative individuals. It’s worth the read, here.

The paradox for large companies is that, to stay large and grow in an economy where change is increasingly accelerating, they need to behave like creative individuals, who as the article states are “remarkable for their ability to adapt to almost any situation and to make do with whatever is at hand to reach their goals.”

I used to do a lot of work with Fortune 500 companies, since they were the bread-and-butter of my former search firm, Heidrick & Struggles. But while I worked with a lot of terrific people at the big companies, by and large, the most creative people I’ve met have been at the small- and medium-size companies we work with now at Chen Partners.

I wonder: Is scale a natural enemy of creativity? Is creativity truly an individual trait – as in “We’d better hang on to our creative individuals?” Or can it be developed company-wide: “Here, we’re all rewarded for being creative”? Which large companies successfully foster a culture of creativity? (I’d like to headhunt from them!)

Does creativity naturally leach out of companies as they grow, and is this process what “creative destruction” is really all about?

I’d love to know your thoughts.