EMPLOYEE CREATIVITY AND ORGANIZATIONAL SUCCESS OF MANUFACTURING FIRMS IN RIVERS STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between employee creativity and organizational success among manufacturing firms in Rivers State, Nigeria, with particular attention to idea generation, brainstorming, expertise building, and the moderating role of leadership style. A descriptive survey design was adopted. The target population comprised 5,606 employees in ten registered manufacturing firms. Although the methodology section reports a calculated sample of 400, 400 questionnaires were distributed and 300 usable responses were included in the analysis. Data were collected with a structured four-point Likert-scale questionnaire. Face and content validity were sought through review by the supervisor and other experts, while internal consistency was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha. Descriptive statistics and Spearman rank-order correlation were analysed using SPSS. The reported coefficients indicated positive relationships between idea generation and market share (r = .351), efficiency (r = .672), and profitability (r = .611). Brainstorming was associated with market share (r = .183), efficiency (r = .617), and profitability (r = .577). Expertise building was associated with market share (r = .511), efficiency (r = .647), and profitability (r = .483). The paper also reported that the relationship between employee creativity and organizational success increased from r = .446 to a partial association of r = .832 when leadership style was controlled. Overall, the findings suggest that creative idea generation, employee learning, and collaborative problem-solving are relevant to organizational outcomes. The study recommends that manufacturing firms establish systems for employee suggestions, continuous skills development, and constructive team brainstorming. The moderation result should be interpreted cautiously because the reported analysis does not provide a complete formal interaction test.