Igniting the Entrepreneurial Spark Within Corporate Walls
This Isn't a Contradiction: Can a Corporate Soul Truly Embrace a Startup Mindset?
I've always felt a pull towards innovation, a restlessness that chafes against rigid corporate structures. I often encountered a "just enough" mentality, a risk aversion that seemed to stifle creativity. Yet, I also recognized the immense power of established organizations—their resources, their reach, their potential. Can a corporate soul truly cultivate a startup mindset? I believe the answer is a resounding yes.
This fusion, what I call "Intrapreneurial Corporatism," isn't just a trendy buzzword. It's a fundamental shift in perspective, a way to inject the dynamism of a startup into the heart of a corporation. It's about empowering individuals, fostering a culture of experimentation, and embracing calculated risks. It's about building teams that thrive on innovation and challenge the status quo. It's about me, and it's about you. It's about finding that sweet spot between structure and freedom, stability and disruption. An Accenture study confirms this: companies with strong innovation cultures (often fostering intrapreneurship) are 2.4 times more likely to outperform their peers in revenue growth.
Become an Agent of Change: I'm an Intrapreneur.
My experience spans both the entrepreneurial and corporate landscapes. A key lesson? The transition was initially a struggle. After running my own PR and events company, where I made the majority of the decisions, I suddenly had a boss, stakeholders, and a whole new set of rules. My first two years were a steep learning curve. I grappled with aligning stakeholders, gaining consensus, and mastering the art of "internal selling."
Through introspection, I learned to modulate my strengths and sharpen my entrepreneurial skills into something new: intrapreneurship. I started asking myself crucial questions: What problems am I uniquely positioned to solve within this organization? What skills can I develop to innovate within this context? Investing in understanding the organizational landscape became crucial. I learned to decipher the unspoken words, the individual agendas, and the subtle nuances of corporate culture. Strategic patience, coupled with organizational awareness, helped me unlock my intrapreneurial potential.
Scaling Intrapreneurial Corporatism: Building a High-Performing Team
Building a high-performing intrapreneurial team requires a new set of behavioral mindsets. As a leader, I've learned that recognizing and appreciating individual contributions is paramount. Eric Parker wisely said, "A person who feels appreciated will always do more than expected." When onboarding new team members, I look beyond their independent thinking skills and assess their intrapreneurial potential. Can they navigate ambiguity? Embrace the unknown? What's their comfort level with innovation and risk-taking?
Equally important are soft skills. Can they contribute to a winning culture? Do they prioritize collective growth over individual accolades? Can they build trust within the team? These qualities distinguish a truly effective intrapreneurial team.
Fostering Intrapreneurship from the Top Down: A Case Study in Success
I've been fortunate to work within an organization whose leadership actively fosters a culture of experimentation. This supportive environment allowed me to develop and productize new service offerings. The process involved creating a comprehensive business plan, a growth plan, and a financial forecast. It also required pitching the concept to various stakeholders, including the executive and finance boards, and achieving global alignment.
We developed a offering, piloted it with a client, evangelized its benefits, refined based on feedback, and aligned the team around a compelling case study. Finally, we scaled the offering globally. Through this experience, I realized I was acting as a true intrapreneur—building, innovating, being resourceful, connecting the dots, aligning stakeholders, motivating the team, and striving for excellence rather than simply meeting minimum requirements. This approach resulted in double-digit growth for the department and the achievement of key targets.
A Call to Action for Intrapreneurial Corporatism
Ignite the entrepreneurial spark within your corporate walls. Let's embrace Intrapreneurial Corporatism and redefine what success means, both individually and for your organizations. Understand the commercial aspect of the business if you are in operations, account, strategy it is critical to operate with KPI’s numbers and tangible quantifiable impact.
If you want to chat more and if there are roadblock that you would like to share I can help you get unstuck.