Creativity in leadership for start-ups: A case study of fresh in a box vegetable company

Abstract

This dissertation is an analysis of creativity in leadership for start-ups. Most importantly is that it is undertaken in the context of start-ups. The main objective of the research was to ascertain if creativity in leadership for start-ups led to start-up success. Creativity requires special expertise and skills and thus the goal of leaders is to determine if they can promote creativity among followers so that there is sustainability within the organisation. The main theories behind this dissertation include theories of creativity namely componential theory of creativity,Wallas theory of creativity and the culture mixing theory of creativity, among others. The leadership theories also supported this thesis but was transformational leadership theory. This is due to that it is a relational theory that fosters change and innovation.The thesis had five main research questions and a qualitative study was undertaken as it investigated the lived experiences of the start-up. This study demonstrates that leadership behaviour has a direct impact on organisational performance, with transformational leadership having the stronger impact of the leadership behaviour investigated. Some of the results from the study are that there is a link between creativity in leadership and start-up success in that leadership promotes and stimulates creativity by providing expertise and immense support to their followers. The start-up also faced some challenges within their operations and there were also some success like being the first Zimbabwean start-up to create an e-commerce platform for ease of doing business. The importance of motivation was also highlighted and even if the research based on transformational leadership was emphasised more, there were other leadership styles like democratic leadership that were evident in the findings.