A Challenge-Based Expriment Aiming to Develop Strategic Thinking: An Inquiry into the Role of Stimulating Creativity for Out-of-the-Box Thinking

In my SUTQ study, I elaborate that universities must adapt to 21st-century challenges by integrating learning objectives, didactics, and assessments that develop engineering and business students’ higher-order thinking skills, particularly creativity and strategic thinking. The Erasmus+ Project PERFECT, which I participated in, highlighted the importance of creativity, interpersonal skills and intrapersonal attitudes.

I could include these in my Industry Engineering and Management masters course, Purchasing Management. I surveyed the students in the cohorts from 2018 until 2024 before and after the course on 36 “soft skills”. Individual students could see their progress, and I could show evidence that “soft skills” can be activated.

Educators should understand that teaching and assessing creativity differs from traditional cognitive objectives, requiring students to be result-driven, open to new experiences, and curious. Necessary traits for creativity include curiosity, intuition, playfulness, and risk-taking, while the course must be attractive and stimulate a willingness to learn.

Evidence suggests creativity is essential for strategic thinking, with anxiety being a significant barrier. Direct links between analytical and strategic thinking were not found. However, an indirect relationship via creativity was established.

In other words, to think out of the box, students must be able to believe in the box, i.e., analyse the problem. However, in-the-box doesn’t lead directly to out-of-the-box for complex problem-solving. Therefore, “creativity” is needed.

A creativity workshop and real-life problem-solving assignments shifted education from teacher- to student-centred, showing improvements in creativity and strategic thinking.

The study emphasises the need for student-centred approaches, differentiating between knowledge, skills, and attitudes and focusing on active, “knowledge-producing” roles over passive, “knowledge-consuming” ones. Courses should activate students from the start with challenge-based assignments and interactive lectures to enhance understanding and engagement.