Given the potentially negative consequences of past success, it is important that managers understand how to manage their most creative employees so that they do not become boxed in by their own ideas. The results of Audia and Goncalo (2007) suggest that the negative effects of past success, at least at the individual level, may be mitigated by encouraging collaboration. Collaboration may allow people to “break set” and view
problems from a new perspective and expose people to new information that can be used to generate creative ideas. This solution also may have limitations, however, if role identities based on highly creative ideas create social constraints that lead to collaborations between people with similar perspectives. However, by understanding the mechanisms that explain the negative effects of past success, organizations will be in a better position to develop effective interventions and to continue to profit from their most creative employees.