Businesses are stifling their employees' creativity and innovation, says RADA

Businesses are failing to support a culture of innovation despite employees believing that their companies would benefit from fresh ideas and innovative ways of working, new research shows.

A study of 1,000 workplaces conducted by RADA Business (the commercial subsidiary of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art which provides communication skills training for corporate individuals), found that 73% of workplaces in Greater Manchester have failed to create a culture that encourages new ideas and experimentation, according to their staff.

Many employees in Greater Manchester feel that businesses are suffering as a result, with a quarter (25%) saying that their workplace is desperately in need of new ideas and fresh thinking to overcome current problems.

The report found a number of combined factors are suppressing new ideas and original thinking. 

Close to 20% of those surveyed in Greater Manchester said that they didn’t believe that anyone wanted to hear their ideas, and the same number believed their business leaders actively discouraged innovation.

A similar number (22%) also said that even when they put their ideas forward, they were rarely implemented.

In response to this ‘innovation gap’, RADA Business has been working with leading UK companies to transfer dramatic techniques, such as play and improvisation, from a theatrical setting to a business environment.

Kevin Chapman, Director of RADA Business, commented on the findings: “It’s concerning to see how many people feel that creativity and innovation aren’t encouraged in their role – especially when there are simple techniques available to help companies to support and tap into the power of imagination for solving problems or developing new ways of working as a team.

In the same way that a theatre director works with their cast of actors to experiment with different ways to tell a story, business leaders can benefit from improvising with their teams, which is a key element to unlocking greater creativity. 

Rather than promoting individualism and ‘showing off’, improvisation is a surprisingly effective tool to create better team bonds and understanding.

We encourage businesses to give space to play with new ideas without being overly critical. Adopting an attitude of enthusiastic curiosity towards every idea that you come up with defies your critical voice and may lead the way to new innovations.’’

RADA Business is the commercial subsidiary of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, transferring the unrivalled actor training disciplines taught at the Academy to the workplace.