单选题

Sheer Genius — or a Waste of Time?

Encourage your original thinkers and live with their strange habits, says Alan Worthin
If one of your research staff announced that he had worked out a way to propel a vehicle on a cushion of air, would you tell him to concentrate on something practical, or suggest taking it further? If a member of your development team asked if she could come in late because she had her best ideas at 3 am, would you insist that she is in the office at 9 am like everyone else?
Current business wisdom is that companies need creative, innovative people to beat competitors. The reality is that companies have always needed new ideas to survive and progress, but in the past they weren"t particularly good at encouraging the people who produced them.
Original thinkers don"t always fit easily into the framework of an organization. However, the advice from managing director, John Serrano is, "Get rid of the dull people and encourage the unusual ones". Essentially, he believes that companies need to learn how to manage their original thinkers in order to ensure that the business profits from their contribution. He also says, "Original thinkers often find it difficult to drive change within the organization, so they resign, feeling angry and disappointed. It is essential to avoid this."
"You can"t recognize original thinkers by the way they look," says lan Freeman. "An apparently ordinary exterior can conceal a very creative thinker." His consultancy, IBT Personnel, has devised a structured way to identify original thinkers. "We define employees as champions, free-wheelers, bystanders and weak links, and most original thinkers come into the category of free-wheelers. They may miss deadlines if they become involved in something more interesting. They are passionate and highly motivated but have little or no understanding of business directions and systems." Headhunter George Solomon also thinks original thinkers have their disadvantages. "They may have a bad influence within an organization, especially given the current management trend for working in teams. The original thinkers themselves may be unaware of any problem, but having them around can be disruptive to colleagues, who have to be allowed to point out when they are being, driven crazy by the original thinkers" behaviour." Yet, in his opinion, the dream team" in any creative organization consists of a balanced mixture of original thinkers and more practical, realistic people.
So, having identified your original thinkers, how do you handle them? One well-known computer game company has a very inventive approach. "We encourage our game designers by creating an informal working environment," says director Lorna Marsh. "A company cannot punish risk-takers if it wants to encourage creativity. Management has to provide support, coaching and advice — and take the risk that new ideas may not work. Our people have flexible working hours and often make no clear distinction between their jobs and their home lives."
Original thinkers may fit into the culture of 21st century organizations, but more traditional organizations may have to change their approach. Business psychologist Jean Row believes that the first step is to check that original thinkers are worth the effort. "Are the benefits they bring worth the confusion they cause? If so, give them what they want, allow plenty of space, but set clear limits. Give them extremely demanding targets. If they fail to meet them, then the game is up. But if they succeed, your organization stands only to gain."

单选题 It is important for a company to encourage original thinkers because ______.

单选题 John Serrano thinks that original thinkers should be ______.

单选题 What does lan Freeman say about original thinkers?

单选题 What problems can be observed when there are original thinkers in the workforce?

【正确答案】 A

【答案解析】[解析] 具有创新性思维的人在工作场所中会带来哪些问题：
定位段落第五段，定位句为“Headhunter George Solomon also thinks original thinkers have their disadvantages. "They may have a bad influence within an organization, especially given the current management trend for working in teams. The original thinkers themselves may be unaware of any problem, but having them around can be disruptive to colleagues, who have to be allowed to point out when they are being driven crazy by the original thinkers" behaviour.”即：猎头George Solomon认为具有创新性思维的人自身也有缺点，尤其是在团队工作中他们可能会对公司造成不利的影响。具有创新性思维的人意识不到自身的问题，然而，周围的同事却因他们的存在而受到干扰，他们不得不指出那些具有创新性思维的人的行为让他们感到抓狂。
原文定位句中original thinkers have their disadvantages对应题干中problems can be observed when there are original thinkers in the workforce；原文定位句中having them around can be disruptive to colleagues与选项A中They may have a negative effect on other workers表达意思相近。

单选题 In what way is the game company"s approach to original thinkers special?

【正确答案】 C

【答案解析】[解析] 电脑游戏公司对待具有创新性思维的人的特殊方式：
定位段落第六段，定位句为“One well-known computer game company has a very inventive approach. "We encourage our game designers by creating an informal working environment," says director Lorna Marsh.”即：一家知名的电脑游戏公司提出了一个创新的方法，我们通过建立一个随意的工作环境来鼓励我们的游戏设计者们可以设计出更好的游戏软件。
原文定位句中One well-known computer game company has a very inventive approach对应题干中In what way is the game company"s approach to original thinkers special；原文定位句中creating an informal working environment与选项C中a relaxed atmosphere in the workplace的表述大体相同。

单选题 A traditional organization wishing to employ original thinkers needs to ______.

【正确答案】 B

【答案解析】[解析] 传统企业在雇佣创新性人才之时需要考虑到的是：
定位段落第七段，定位句为“but more traditional organizations may have to change their approach. Business psychologist Jean Row believes that the first step is to check that original thinkers are worth the effort.”即：更多的传统企业需要改变他们的方法，商业心理学家Jean Row认为改变的第一步就是要确认那些具有创新性思维的人是否真的值得雇佣。
原文定位句中traditional organizations may have to change their approach对应题干中a traditional organisation wishing to employ original thinkers needs to；原文定位句中check对应选项B中assess；原文定位句中worth the effort与选项B中makes up for any problems意思表达相近。