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Intrapreneurship

Intrapreneurs as corporate entrepreneurs — Google's 20% time, Marico innovation awards, Kinetic Zing, and the Adobe-Xerox warning story.

Notes

Intrapreneurship

Class 11 Entrepreneurship — Innovation from within large organisations

What is Intrapreneurship?

Intrapreneur
An inside entrepreneur, or an entrepreneur within a large firm, who uses entrepreneurial skills without incurring the risks associated with those activities. Intrapreneurs are usually employees within a company who are assigned a special idea or project and are instructed to develop the project like an entrepreneur would. The intrapreneur's main job is to turn that special idea or project into a profitable venture for the company.
Also called corporate entrepreneurship. The term was coined in the 1980s by management consultant Gifford Pinchot. Intrapreneurs are used by companies that are in great need of new, innovative ideas. An Intrapreneur is someone who has an entrepreneurial streak but chooses to align their talents with a large organisation instead of creating their own.
Smart organisations will seek out individuals who like to invent, innovate, and want to be on the front lines of change. These individuals can work independently but, more importantly, can work seamlessly as part of an integrated team structure. Intrapreneurs are most successful when management empowers and supports them, and in turn, the Intrapreneurs represent the best interests of their organisations, while earning the respect of corporate peers.
Why is intrapreneurship necessary? It is the best way to retain talented staff. Otherwise, most of them will just quit and develop these ideas on their own. It will be a win-win situation for both the organisation and the talented employee.

Real-World Examples of Intrapreneurship

Click any card to explore the full story — including an Indian parallel example for each one.

Key Takeaways

Key Takeaways

  • Intrapreneurs are employees who think and act like entrepreneurs within a large organisation, without bearing the financial risk.
  • Intrapreneurship is the best way to retain talented staff who might otherwise leave to start their own ventures.
  • Google's 20% time program produced Gmail, Google News, and AdSense — proof that intrapreneurship drives real innovation.
  • Marico receives 30–40 innovation entries annually from employees across factories, brand, sales, and HR.
  • Failure must be accepted as part of innovation — "unless one is ready to fail, one can never succeed."
  • The Adobe founders case proves that not encouraging intrapreneurship can cost an organisation billions in lost value.
  • It is a win-win situation for both the organisation and the talented employee.