Master Class "Creative and Innovative thinking"

How can you develop creative thinking within an organization and overcome the main barrier to innovative solutions — the "dominant idea"? Dmitry Ivanov and Lyudmila Gavrilova, business trainers and experts at BusinessLink Training, will explain.

Agenda:

• What is "creativity" and "creative thinking"
• The specifics of organizational creativity and how it differs from creativity "in general"
• Abstraction over illustration: creativity in solving organizational problems
• The components of organizational creativity (based on T.M. Amabile's work)
• What is "innovative thinking" and how does it differ from creative thinking
• The "dominant idea" as a tool for developing creative and innovative thinking

What participants will gain:

• Learn what creative thinking looks like within an organization, and how exercises like "Come up with 30 uses for a paperclip" can help
• Get an overview of the key components and conditions for creativity to emerge in organizations
• Understand the essence of innovation and how innovative thinking differs from creative thinking
• Practice overcoming the "dominant idea" — the main barrier to innovative solutions

Speakers:

• Dmitry Ivanov — business trainer, consultant, and Director of Development at BusinessLink Training. A professional manager with 15 years of experience, co-author and co-host of the "Critical Thinking" course in Sber University's mini-MBA programme, and a guest lecturer at the Stockholm School of Economics, the Moscow Government University, and IMISP.
• Lyudmila Gavrilova — business trainer and CEO of BusinessLink Training. A certified expert in leadership maturity assessment (Harthill, UK), Chair of the Certification Committee at the Department of Cognitive Psychology, St. Petersburg State University, and a guest lecturer at the Stockholm School of Economics and IMISP.

Date: October 6, 2026, Tuesday

Time: 16:00 – 18:00, registration starts at 15.30

Venue: Mertens House, 6th floor (21 Nevsky Prospekt)

Places are limited. Maximum number of participants per company: Gold membership — 2 representatives, Silver membership — 1 representative.

The event is free of charge for Association members. Participation fee for representatives of non-member companies: 7,000 RUB.