4The Intrapreneurial Mindset
The influence and impact of ‘intrapreneurship’ within companies and organisations is often headlined through iconic breakthroughs, such as the Post-it, created within 3M by Spencer Silver and Art Fry, and the PlayStation, envisioned by Ken Kutaragi within Sony. Google’s 20% Rule, dedicating 20% of time for employees to work on other projects and passions is well known for generating the foundations of key innovations, such as Gmail and AdSense. Intrapreneurship is the practice of fostering entrepreneurial behaviour and initiatives within their organisation, empowering employees to innovate, experiment and develop new ideas or projects. An exploration of the history of intrapreneurship in MIT Sloan Management Review2 tracks one of the earliest manifestations to the 1970s when ‘intrapreneurship’ was cited by Gifford Pinchot III and Elizabeth Pinchot in their paper “Intra-Corporate Entrepreneurship”, and subsequently in their book Intrapreneuring.
Gamers and offices, the world over, have Kutaragi, Silver and Fry to thank, with the PlayStation and the Post-it as innovations born of intrapreneurs, but what of intrapreneurial thinking that can address the need for more agile and creative skillsets throughout an organisation? ...
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