Intrapreneurship: 5 steps to an innovative mindset
Disruptive ideas and the creation of innovative solutions have always been associated with entrepreneurship. The term entrepreneurship itself refers to the ability to seek new opportunities and invest in brilliant ideas to develop something different. It is undeniable that entrepreneurship is linked to the act of creating something new, of being the promoter of innovation.
For a long time, we believed that this was directly related to a business of its own, and that it was only possible for those who were independent, who called their own shots, as they say. A concept linked to the image of a scientist or other professional working alone in a room until their idea was complete and put to work.
We recently discovered that entrepreneurship, and therefore innovation, disruption, and incredible solutions, can exist within a framework in a corporation. This is intrapreneurship. With it, it is possible to take advantage of the potential of the employees themselves to innovate and thus create incredible solutions to leverage the business.
Steve Jobs, Apple’s founder and CEO, stood out for promoting theintrapreneurship ideia and encouraging an innovative mindset among tech giant employees. But he was not the only one .
There are many cases of disruptive ideas arising within a company, which gave rise to services and products that have become a success. Gmail, for example, was created by Paul Buchheit, a Google employee and post-it was the work of two 3M employees. They created the adhesive, now well colored and ubiquitous, from a product that had not worked well.
That is, often the best ideas do not come from leaders or lonely geniuses, but from employees engaged in their work in a company. Therefore, encouraging all people, at all levels and areas, to contribute with ideas can lead to new products and services capable of revolutionizing the market.
How to encourage entrepreneurship and innovation in a team?
Get team members to see art in what they do.
Provide room for thinking and testing new ideas, and tools to automate work. Try to reduce the operational tasks so they have time to cultivate the skills that drive innovation. This helps them find art in what they do.
It ensures employees alignment with the company’s mission.
Alignment with the mission and purpose of the company ensures that the innovations that arise have real value to the business. This should be the driving force behind all kinds of discussions and ideas.
Reward creativity and eliminate obstacles.
By empowering team members, rewarding creativity, and eliminating unnecessary obstacles, leaders create an environment that is more conducive to innovation and new approaches to solving challenges. This creates a culture of disruption.
It encourages employees to seek ideas outside of their daily lives.
Thinking outside the box has become a mantra, but for this it is necessary that leaders enable the exchange of ideas outside the environment and the daily routine. This includes encouraging the valuation of contributions, large or small, so that employees are not afraid to fail or give vent to their ideas.
Make room for experimentation and failure.
Creating an environment where the team feels comfortable taking risks is critical. This means giving room to experiment and fail. Ensuring there is room for new – and unusual – ideas helps foster a creative environment.
