Intrapreneurship is the latest hot topic for large organizations, and for good reason. It’s what brings that entrepreneur-like culture into a process-driven corporate world; what drives innovation, grows bottom lines and introduces new perspectives to established companies. Imagine bringing in the core characteristics of an entrepreneur under your roof and having that drive, hunger, and passion for success. That’s exactly what intrapreneurs can do for your organization, and that’s what we’ll be diving into in this month’s MIMA monthly event.
To kickstart the conversation, let’s take a look at the top 5 reasons to have an intrapreneur at your company.
1. Intrapreneurs Drive Innovation
Intrapreneurs act as the entrepreneur of established companies. They are the most fundamental component of an innovative and growing company. Their main responsibility is to provide solutions to unique market driven problems and to identify new areas of opportunity to help reinvent and grow the organization. Once opportunities and solutions have been identified, they make decisions on how to act and lead a team through to end results. Which brings us to our next point.
2. Intrapreneurs Solve Critical Problems
The process of intrapreneurship requires the ability to think independently and take initiative to investigate any problem at every possible angle. Similar to how an entrepreneur requires the ability to experiment and investigate different solutions to a given problem, so does an intrapreneur. They take risks and find more effective ways to accomplish a task and approach any issue that may be facing the company. This type of thinking along with the willingness to take initiative allows them to solve critical problems and even potentially contribute to increased productivity for the whole organization.
3. Intrapreneurs Keep You Agile
Intrapreneurs do not back down in the face of adversity. They aren’t afraid to go against the grain, to throw out the old adage of “that’s the way it’s always been done,” or to change course when something doesn’t go their way. They understand that as time changes, so does the way that things operate. This type of thinking is what keeps you nimble and agile in an ever-evolving landscape. It helps you stay on trop of trends, to bounce back after a mistake, and also be proactive in your efforts.
4. Intrapreneurs Build Culture
Many businesses are realizing that strict hierarchies and closed-door policies aren’t helping their workplace culture and morale. The energy that intrapreneurs bring to the team, however, does. Intrapreneurs take initiative, exhibit ownership, accept their role as a leader, and collaborates with their team to hit milestones. Bringing this into a workplace inspires other workers and invites them to get more involved in the process to make change happen.
5. Intrapreneurs Propel Business
All the above characteristics of intrapreneurs coupled together is what ultimately propels your business forward. They have an amazing ability to think differently and thrive on making an impact. They have that same hunger and passion as entrepreneurs to achieve success, but that energy is focused on your company rather than their own. And that’s something worth investing in.
Interested in learning more about the core attributes of intrapreneurs and how you can bring these characteristics into your daily work? Join us and Nancy Lyons, President/CEO at Clockwork, at Own it: Uncovering the Intrapreneur in All of Us next Wednesday, Feb 17 at 8:00 am. You can also follow along on Twitter at #MIMAMonthly.
