What is the place of organizational creativity in hypergrowth SMEs ?
Creativity, in various forms, proves to be a crucial factor of development and performance of SMEs. It appears interesting to identify the processes of creativity in exacerbated contexts. One of these contexts is that of hypergrowth (HG) SMEs, in which the rhythm of development invites the company to exploit its resources in a permanent urgency. We privileged an organizational view of creativity in order to raise two questions : which are the conditions favoring creativity in HG SMEs ? Is creativity enough to generate, then to maintain rapid growth ? Data resulting from ten case studies, adding up 48 interviews are mobilized to answer these questions. A work of location in these talks of the principal terms related to creativity is carried out, supplemented by the examination of secondary sources which made it possible to know in-depth the studied cases. Two central results concerning creativity in HG SME are proposed : (1) The leader plays a central role to organize the conditions favoring creativity ; (2) Creativity is necessary, but nonsufficient. Hypergrowth requires creativity processes to be curbed by processes of stabilization/rationalization. Then, that hypergrowth is generated by the paradoxical management of the couple creativity-routine.