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What is Michael Kirton's KIA Instrument (adaption-innovation theory)?
It is a model of problem solving and creativity, which aims to increase collaboration and reduce conflict between groups.
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According to Mr. Kirton's book Adaption-Innovation: In the context of Change and Diversity what are the 2styles and how do the knowledge of the factors involved in his theory help us?
- 1. Adaptors
- 2. Innovators
- Helpful Factors
- 1. Difficulties/Challenges
- 2. Opportunities/Benifits
- 3. Style vs. Level of Performance
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What does the adaptors do?
- People that lean in this direction tend to employ deciplined, precise and methodical approaches.
- Prefer to solve existing problems rather than find new problems.
- Like to refine existing practices.
ie. Accountants, Engineers,Civil Servants
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How are knowing style vs. level of performance helpful?
Kirton found that style is not at all related to a person's effectiveness.
Style ie. adaptor innovator
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How are knowing the opportunities /benefits helpful?
The reason that studying these styles is benificial is that we can learn to value both approaches and see them as complimentary insted of contradictory.
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How do understanding Difficulties/Challenges help?
- Styles tend to clash.
- Adaptors view innovators as impractical and abbrassive and overly cavilier with ideas and creators of chaos. While Innovators view adaptors as dogmatic and detail driven.
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What do innovators do?
Tend to approach tasks from unusual angles. Like to discover new problems and avenues of solutions. Question basic assumptions related to current practices and have little tolerance of routine or detailed work.
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Discuss the five categories of individuals who have different ways of accepting change?
- 1. Innovators
- 2. Early Adopters
- 3. Early Majority
- 4. Late Majority
- 5. Laggards
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How do Early Majority handle change?
This is 34% of the population and they constitute the tipping point of whether an idea catches on or not.
Seldom hold positions of opinion leadership in a social system.
Deliberate some time before adopting a new innovation.
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How do Late Majorities handle change?
This is 34% of the population that accept change a little later, but still in a respectable period of time. These folks are skepticle for change and may adopt change out of necessity or peer pressure.They do not adopt change until a Majority has done so.
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How do Laggards accept change?
The last 16% of the population and tend to resisit change more than the other types. Tend to possess almost no opinion leadership. Tend to be isolates in a social system. Look to the past rather than the future. Suspicious of innovationand those that promote them.
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Who should leaders focus their change efforts on?
All of them, but Early Majority would probably be the group I would focus on. If you have that 34% they will more likely get the Late Majority to come on board.
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What is Cognitive Dissonance and how can knowing about this help you become a better leader?
Theory originated with Leon Festinger at Stanford University. It is a mental dicomfort you are being torn between two competing choices. To be a quitter or fixer is up to you.
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What are the two major aspects of change and how can this help you as a leader?
- Danger/oppotunity, to make different
- People tend to resist it.
It can help you manage change.
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Explain inferences and why it is important to know about them.
It is when you draw a conclusion that goes beyond what is known and is based on a guess or assumtion.
Because you make act incorrectly on assumed information.
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What are the seven tactics for managing change?
- 1.Education/Communication- Valid information
- 2.Participation- Get them involved in process
- 3.Facilitation and Support- Provide training
- 4.Negotiation- Between the two parties involved
- 5.Co-Optation- Assign someone else to solve issue
- 6.Manipulation- Hidden agenda is present
- 7.Coercion- Forcing a person to do something
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What are the two different phases of creativity and how do you think you can use these in your life, give specific example?
1. Divergent Thinking- First step in problem solving. This is a practice of generating many diverse ideas in order to find the best ones.(Mining for diamonds)
2. Convergent Thinking- The need for people to reach an agreement to support an idea.
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Explain the four parts of the Shamrock Organization model.
- First Leaf- Core employees -Typical model (9-5)
- Second Leaf- Contract employees (limited term)
- Third Leaf- Employees that work from home (Online)
- Stem- Customer (self service)
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How can a knowledge of the Shamrock Organization model help you?
- 1. Have exciting new products
- 2. Be lowest cost prvider
- 3. Have truly exceptional service
Know where to cut or tweak organization.
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Describe the concept of reframing and give an example of how you think you can use this in your life?
Changing your way of thinking by changing your frame of reference.
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What is the Mozart effect?
Title of book by Donald Campbell. The theory that music can develop peoples brains in non-obvious ways.
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What are three ways the Mozart Effect can improve your own creativity?
- 1.Fluency- Create an environment that forces creativity (Darwin)
- 2. Flexability- Abbility to see novel combinations (velcro)
- 3. Risk-Taking- Create organization that is willing to allow for risk and reasonable failures.
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What are some ways companies are using “weird ideas that work?”
Give examples:
- 1.Vu ja de- Seeing old things new ways.
- 2.Retrograde Inversion- Looking at things upside down and backwards.
Segway, Flexus roll up keyboard, Realestate
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How do you think these “weird ideas” can be applied to your job or at EMU?
Using innovation
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What does Margaret Mead’s anthropological research in New Guinea tell us about organizational culture?
Her main finding was that culture radically shapes peoples behaviors.
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