Creative Management, Technology and the BBC

The past decade has witnessed increased attempts by managers, scholars and policy-makers to stimulate the creativity of organisations. The practice of stimulating organisational creativity has led to a paradigm shift known as creative management, the focus of which is to use these practices to achieve competitive advantages. Such creative stimulation can come in a variety of forms. These include identifying and influencing environmental conditions that can increase the chances for creating new and significant products or services. In order to stimulate creativity, current creative management literature proposes the use of technology as a disseminator of knowledge and ideas. This chapter offers a literature review of creative management and technology use for creativity. It next introduces a case study of how technology is used as a creative management tool at the BBC. The findings of the study indicate that although the BBC’s yearly revenues are under sustained pressure, the organisation has invested heavily in technology in order to maintain its high creative standing. In conclusion, supported by the findings of the case study, this chapter corroborates and further advocates the use of technology as a significant component of creative management practices.