Unveiling the intangible: a systemic perspective for creativity and innovation in public organizations

This study examines how systemic creativity manifests empirically in the public sector using Csikszentmihalyi’s systemic model operationalized through 15 empirically grounded categories. By analyzing 60 Brazilian cases from the OECD Observatory of Public Sector Innovation, findings reveal that the most decisive enabling conditions are intangible: trust, psychological safety, shared purpose, and relational dynamics. A consistent pattern of frugal innovation emerges, with resource scarcity activating systemic mechanisms that substitute material resources. Theoretically, the study operationalizes an abstract model of creativity in organizational contexts. Empirically, it expands insights beyond Global North settings. Practically, it offers public managers a lens for rendering visible innovation's invisible infrastructure.