Lessons for Business from BAA

We are in the third week of the Business Acumen for Artists programme. One of the most critical leverage points for Business which has emerged from this process is the way in which multiple forms of artistic expression can help to invigorate organisational thinking. We ran a process last week at the UCT GSB called the Think Indaba where we used visual process facilitation to help delegates to visualise Africa in 2012. The findings were profoundly positive not only because it allowed executives to start thinking through another medium but also because of the pride which emerged at the end of the process and what they had created together. What this brought up for us in terms of the BAA was how rich a deposit the language of creativity is for business - imagine being able to document a journey you go on with your EXCO through represented images, melodies, and even theatre that they create by means of a guided facilitated process together!  Consultants are so often looking for the next big thing to differentiate their offerings in the market. I for one, after having seen the extraordinary success of this tool am all for the tracing of multiple creative disciplines into the texturing of strategy and multiple perspectives so crucial for business value creation and sustainability. Try it - you might even surprise yourself at the results.