Creativity, Innovation, and Quality
by Paul E. Plsek

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|| Table of Contents (below) ||
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 NEW BOOK ON CREATIVITY
FOR QUALITY MINDS

Creativity, Innovation, and Quality
by Paul Plsek

You'll gain new insights on how to use creative thinking and innovation to advance the practice of quality management in today's organizations. This book targets the needs of individuals engaged in quality management activities and enables them to incorporate new skills into their daily work.

The author presents a serious study of creativity and innovation targeted at the needs of professional engaged in quality management activities. It will appeal to even the most analytical thinkers in quality.

Creativity, Innovation, and Quality clearly articulates five reasons why practitioners of quality management should be interested in innovation and the three central principles that underlie all the tools of creativity. Once you know the principles behind the tools, you can generate your own methods for creative thinking that are uniquely suited for your specific needs. Added features of the book include:

a theory section that will be helpful for proper application of the tools and methods.

chapter summaries as well as thought-provoking lists to make application easier.

the results from the study of creativity and innovation that debunks many common stereotypes about creative thinking.

"The author's identification of 'attention-escape-movement' has provided others the tools to be just as creative as the creativity experts."

Paula Brooks Sommer, President
Institute for Standards in Quality Education

"For over a decade, Paul Plsek has been one of the most significant contributors worldwide to the progress of the quality movement in health care. He has helped dozens of organizations and hundreds of leaders to learn and use approaches to the kind of rapid improvement society is demanding, and he has done so with his own special brand of humor, insight, respect for the individual, and complete mastery of systems thinking. Now, in his new book, Paul has produced another gem. In comfortable and easy-to-digest language, he offers all of us new, pleasant, and powerful ways to tap into our creative selves."

Donald M. Berwick, MD, CEO
Institute for Healthcare Improvement

About the Author: Paul Plsek is an independent consultant with 15 years of diverse experience in the field of quality management. He also served in a variety of engineering and management positions in AT&T's Bell Laboratories Quality Assurance Center and the AT&T Corporate Offices. Plsek has BS and MS degrees in electrical engineering from Texas A&M University and the Polytechnic Institute of New York (Brooklyn).


Creativity, Innovation, and Quality by Paul E. Plsek
316 pages. 12 chapters, with Preface, Prologue and Appendix. 180 references.
ISBN 0-87389-404-9. 6 x 9 hardcover.

Table of Contents

Prologue: An Illustration of Directed Creativity

Part I Why Should Quality Practitioners Bother Learning About Directed Creativity?

The Need For Creative Thinking In The Pursuit Of Quality

Part II Some Essential Theory for Directed Creativity

Definitions and the Theory of the Mechanics of Mind

Heuristics and Models: Attitudes, Approaches, and Actions That Support Creative Thinking

Part III Methods and Tools for Directed Creativity

Three Basic Principles Behind the Tools of Directed Creativity

Tools That Prepare The Mind For Creative Thought

Tools That Stimulate The Imagination To Come Up With New Ideas

Development and Action: The Bridge Between Mere Creativity and the Rewards of Innovation

Part IV Applying Directed Creativity to the Challenges of Quality Management

Process Design, Reengineering, and Creativity

Creativity and Customer Needs Analysis

Innovative Product and Service Design

Creative Problem Solving and Incremental Improvement

Summary and Future Directions in the Application of Creative Thinking in Quality Management


Appendix: Resources for Continued Practice and Learning (11 pages)

Bibliography (180 references)

 

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|| Preface of the book with narrative summary of contents ||
|| Chapter excerpt giving an example of the application of DirectedCreativity ||
|| Take me to The Creativity Bookstore where I can order a copy ||

|| Take me back to the DirectedCreativity.com home page ||