FAIRFAX, VA—A new survey finds that most Americans believe that their creativity is underused on the job. Commissioned by the Fairfax County, Virginia Economic Development Authority as it prepares to host the 2007 National Conference on the Creative Economy next month, the survey found a gap between how many Americans think they’re creative and how many feel that creativity is used on the job.
Conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs, the survey found that 88 percent of U.S. workers consider themselves creative. But when it comes to creativity in the workplace, just 63 percent said their positions were creative, and a comparable 61 percent thought similarly about the companies for which they work.
This “creativity gap” – the disparity between the creative resources available and those being employed – can be an important indicator, experts say, in determining how well American companies are preparing for a future U.S. economy that will rely on creativity and innovation more than ever.
“The U.S. economy has always been fueled by new ideas and innovation, and this survey underscores the value that American workers put on creativity at work,” said Gerald L. Gordon, Ph.D., president and CEO of the FCEDA.
“In many ways, the results of this research are a wakeup call to U.S. companies. Today they must find new ways to harness the creative energies of the workforce, and give their employees creative and productive outlets for their ideas to close the creativity gap.”
The survey found that most workers put a high premium on creativity at work. Seventy-five percent of respondents thought their employers valued their creativity, and even more telling, one in five (21 percent) said they would change jobs in order to be more creative at work even if it meant earning less money.
Twenty-nine percent of those surveyed indicated they would move if it meant being part of a more creative community. This was especially true of younger workers ages 18-34 (37 percent).
“The communities that attract and retain this talent will be the economic winners in the future,” Gordon said.
The “creative economy,” a term coined by economist and author (Rise of the Creative Class) Richard Florida, reflects the growing sense that creativity is an economic engine, and that creative people – from software engineers to healthcare professionals to entrepreneurs – provide a critical stimulus for economic growth.
Florida will be one of the keynote speakers at the 2007 National Conference on the Creative Economy to be held October 24-25 in Fairfax County. Other prominent participants include Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Tom Friedman, futurist Alvin Toffler, FORTUNE magazine senior writer Anne Fisher and CNN journalist Frank Sesno.
On the Web: For more information on the Creative Economy event: www.creativeeconomies.org;
Fairfax County EDA: www.fairfaxcountyreda.org
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