Do employers ever really want someone who "thinks outside the box?"

[raccoon]

IME, they don't. They just want somebody who'll do what they're told, go along to get along, and don't ask questions.

[unpossibles]

1. sort of. Most of the time, not really

outside-the-box thinkers are too rogue for most companies and/or bosses to deal with. And speaking of the bosses thing, I've found that many seem to feel unreasonably threatened if you actually come up with good solutions regularly.

This is so silly to me as (a) I usually don't want their job and (b) me doing well reflects well on them anyway as a manager.

[Kajsa]

2. From my experiences,

No!

Too much free thinking innovation scares the
hell out of them.

[Deja Q]

12. And yet Microsoft defends itself, claiming they need the "freedom to innovate"

:D

[Kajsa]

19. I heard that.

Hypocritical bunch, aren't they?

:hi:

[grace0418]

3. They want you to think outside the box just long enough to come up with some

good ideas for which they can take credit. Then they want you to fall in line and not complain. At least that's how my bosses operate.

[DS1]

4. Yep. The last time I did that in a small meeting, the boss repeated

exactly what I'd just said and called it his own idea. Amazing gall on this one.

[grace0418]

5. Whenever that happens, I always have the urge to look into some unseen camera

like Jim on The Office does. His expression is just perfect.

[petronius]

10. And god help you if your outside-the-box idea is a dud

Even if the last dozen have been brilliant, stepping out of the lines and not hitting a home run is deadly...

[grace0418]

13. So true. And they love to rub your nose in it.

So is there any hope of getting a job that isn't like this? I'm getting very depressed.

[petronius]

18. I think they're few and far between, unfortunately

I ended up in academia, luckily enough, so even though we have our frustrations it's not like the outside world. What I did conclude from my limited 'real-world' experience is that the less-drone-like jobs will be found at smaller companies, and the best strategy is to learn to leave it all behind when you walk off the premises (i.e. find satisfaction in things other than work).

Of course, another coping strategy is to become a total sadist and give back as much irritation as you get, but I think that strategy also requires becoming a republican, which is a deal-breaker...

:)

[CTyankee]

20. What happens is as you get older you see the same routines over and over again.

It wears you down and one fine day you realize you've burned out. If you are lucky, and I was, you make it to retirement. But after age 60 you have a big target on your back. You make too much money and they want to replace you with a younger, cheaper employee. Age discrimination is very much still with us.

However, as much as I detest the age discrimination used against me, I realize that the same thing will happen to the discriminators when they reach 60 plus. They don't think it will happen to them; nobody thinks that will happen ("not me, I'm too valuable, talented, experienced, yada yada"). It's a kind of karma.

[Rambis]

6. only if they think themselves out of work

that means the employer saves $-

[greendog]

7. Yes, I think they do!

"Think outside the box" = Break any and all laws that inhibit profitability, don't tell us about it and take the rap when we get caught.

[Jade Fox]

8. As long as they don't mind if....

the employer steals their ideas.

I had a boss, way out of her depth, who would regularly seek my "feedback". The result was her using my ideas (and taking credit for them), which I stopped volunteering after awhile. She acted like it was all part of "teamwork" or something, but to me it was someone making a lot more than I do ripping me off.

[Ellen Forradalom]

9. Not any more than they want a gator in the kitchen.

[electron_blue]

11. They want you to do all the status quo work and then hand them

outside the box ideas for free that they can run with.

[grace0418]

14. There are quite a few like mind in this thread. It would make me laugh if it

wasn't so damn depressing.

[malta blue]

15. that has been the mantra of our new CEO

and he seems to welcome any and all comments.

:shrug:

[NJmaverick]

16. Employers want results. If thinking outside the box gets them that

then yes they do what that. If thinking outside the box doesn't get them results, then no.

[dembotoz]

17. depends on the box

some boxes are scacred
venture outside only at your paychecks peril


some boxes are not in favor
box what box we don't need no stinking box!

The trouble is trying to discover what kind of box you are trying to get outside of.

[Mountainman]

21. When I've gotten hired in the past I always was told that they would like me to solve certain

problems they have. But they never really want solutions, they just want you to take on the frustrations of the person who left before you came.

[Rabrrrrrr]

22. Absolutely. Not usually at the middle-management level,

but at the executive level, the engineering/creative/design level, and some other areas.

At the consulting firm I worked for, it was a LOT of "out of the box" thinking, all the way down to the the secretarial staff and the guys in the mailroom. Innovation was highly rewarded.

But in drone jobs, usually, no, the company isn't looking for an out of the box thinker, because they're not really looking for a thinker - they're looking for a drone.

[KG]

23. not very many do.

they cling to the same old way of doing things, even as the business is going down the drain.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

24. It depends on the extent of the area out-of-the-box...

and whether it encompasses the employer's job.

[crim son]

25. Oh, I think as long as the employer/boss gets credit for a good idea

then it's okay to have one.