What is an intrapreneur?

An intrapreneur is an employee who is asked to bring to market innovation with the support of her company and the resources available to her. Although the term intrapreneur may not be part of the official title, many companies have relied on intrapreneurs to launch their most important new products, new ventures, or investments. 

As an intrapreneur, I recognize I was fortunate to have resources and access to certain capabilities that many founders don’t have.

Jonathan Carrier, Director, Rocketspace & Director, Corporate Innovation

As Jonathan Carrier observes, many companies offer intrapreneurs access to resources and capabilities what is often not available for entrepreneurs. Best-in-class companies also offer autonomy so that an intrapreneur becomes successful in delivering results.  

The business outcomes may look comparable for entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs. But there are some key differences between the two.

Unlike an entrepreneur, an intrapreneur will not invest personal assets. At the same time, if the innovation, product, or venture achieves market success, the rewards for the intrapreneur will be limited. As a result, compared to an entrepreneur, an intrapreneur enjoys a lower risk profile both in personal rewards and potential losses.

At the same time, intrapreneurs and entrepreneurs share similar personal characteristics. Because of that, it is not uncommon for an intrapreneur to turn into an entrepreneur over time. Similarly, many entrepreneurs join organizations and become intrapreneurs, especially after selling a company, or if their venture doesn’t become successful.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• An intrapreneur is an employee of a company and is tasked with commercializing an innovative idea that has the potential to improve the company’s competitive position.
• Intrapreneurs are generally given the autonomy and resources to make the initiative successful.
• Although the risk and reward profile for an intrapreneur is significantly lower when compared with an entrepreneur, both roles require one to have similar personality traits. 
• It is not uncommon for intrapreneurs to turn into entrepreneurs, or vice versa.

Characteristics of Intrapreneurs

Intrapreneurs have the unique capability to both be a strategist as well as an implementer. They can recognize the potential for a venture or a product. They are also able to devise the roadmap to launch it into the market. Along the way, they build a team, identify resources, and resolve organizational issues as they implement. 

Being an intrapreneur requires many critical capabilities – namely, strategic insight, grit, creativity, flexibility, and leadership. 

A successful intrapreneur is strategic and understands the market and industry trends that might negatively or positively influence her organization. She might recognize where the company needs to invest before others in her organization. This insight is an essential driver for the intrapreneur because she will use it to focus her team on the right targets, activities, and goals while socializing her idea with others to gain organizational support. 

Grit is a term that is often used for entrepreneurs who are passionate about their idea and pursue it regardless of how hard it appears to be and can persevere. Intrapreneurs are similarly resilient and have a growth mindset. They have the will power to find ways to pursue their initiative. 

Creativity is the ability to perceive the world in new ways, to identify patterns, to make connections between seemingly unrelated fields, and to generate solutions for a problem at hand. The whole process of intrapreneurship is rooted in creation. It is curious to observe that many intrapreneurs are interested in seemingly unrelated fields. 

Setting up a new venture or launching a new product is not an easy task. Markets change, competition reacts, consumer habits might favor something very different than what you had in mind. Therefore, an intrapreneur needs to be inherently flexible to be able to pivot and change the course of action.

A pivot may result in changes along eleven different axes in a business model: product, customer segment, distribution channel, revenue model, pricing, resources, capabilities, activities, costs, partners, and customer acquisition. An intrapreneur needs to be aware of these and be open to pivot.

Finally, leadership is a critical component of any successful intrapreneur. An intrapreneur demonstrates confidence and a willingness to take action and an ability to attract and inspire others.

The most innovative organizations set up special programs to develop leadership skills of their intrapreneurial talent and address soft and hard leadership skills. These companies recognize that actively developing critical behaviors are the key to unlocking intrapreneurial potential.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Being an intrapreneur requires many critical capabilities – namely; strategic insight, grit, creativity, flexibility and leadership. 
• A successful intrapreneur is strategic and understands market and industry trends.
• Intrapreneurs have grit; they are resilient and have a growth mindset.
• Creativity is a critical skill of an intrapreneur as the whole process of intrapreneurship is rooted in creation.
• An intrapreneur needs to be inherently flexible to be able to pivot and change the course of action.
• Leadership is undoubtedly a critical component of any successful intrapreneur. An intrapreneur needs to be able to demonstrate confidence and a willingness to take action and an ability to attract and inspire others.

Developing Intrapreneurs

The intrapreneur is the driving force mapping out and creating the organization’s future. It’s important for organizations to develop their potential intrapreneurs. These employees will become the natural pipeline for a company’s executive teams and leaders. The most successful among them will rise to the top of the company as they understand the business and their markets from all perspectives.

Unlike employees who are mostly with a company to get a paycheck, intrapreneurs should be considered a strategic asset as part of the company.

They do so much more than just commit their time to a company, as they also invest their personal time and skills.

Therefore, it’s extremely critical for organizations to have a formal development program for nurturing intrapreneurship as a core capability.

Read more on why intrapreneurs are the lifeblood of organizations here.
If you are interested in improving your skills as an intrapreneur, read my article on better decision making using first principles here.