Co-founder
Sam is an industrial-organizational psychologist working as an Innovation Program Manager at a human capital consulting firm. Originally from New Jersey, she is now based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Sam holds a B.S. from Pennsylvania State University and a M.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Oklahoma, where she specialized in the study of creativity and innovation. In addition to publishing research on the topic, she brings deep experience translating that expertise into applied practice. Sam currently leads a team of consultants delivering customized innovation support to federal clients and oversees an innovation program at a large federal agency. In this role, Sam runs workshops where employees develop solutions to challenges, coaches innovators who carry ideas from submission through development, and builds the structure and criteria governing boards rely on to evaluate innovations and make funding decisions within their portfolios. Throughout her work, she navigates complex organizational dynamics and works to mobilize employees around shared problems. What draws Sam to this work is the belief that expertise on its own doesn't solve problems, people do. And creativity and innovation are how people solve the world's most complex problems. That conviction is what drives her to make the research behind creativity and innovation more accessible, so more people can put it to use. Outside of work, she can be found reading science fiction and fantasy, spending time with family and friends, traveling to new places, or cuddling her pug Petunia.
Sam on LinkedInWritten by Sam
Decades of research contradict three common beliefs about creativity: that it arrives as a flash of insight, that it belongs to a certain kind of person, and that it only counts when it is disruptive. This post unpacks what the evidence actually shows and what it means for how you see your own work and the work of the people around you.
