Ethical interruption and the creative process: A reflection on the new

Abstract

Both organizations and management theory seem obsessed with creativity and ‘the new,’ but lately, the ‘newness’ of this so‐called ‘new’ has also been questioned. With this paper, I continue in this critical fashion and point to the peculiar fact that the obsession with the new is accompanied by just as strong a rejection of that which is different. Overcoming this paradox, the paper emphasizes the relatively ignored ethical element in organizational creativity and in the ‘production’ of novelty. In doing this, I draw on the moral philosophy of Emmanuel Levinas to argue that profound novelty can only be accomplished in an ethical encounter with the Other in which not only is knowledge questioned but also the interruption of the Other changes the self as a knower. In other words, this paper argues for ethics as creativity.

Keywords:

• the new
• creativity
• ethical interruption
• Emmanuel Levinas