Intrapreneurship Discussed at GROW

By: Talha Bhatti  |   August 18th, 2013   |   Business, News, O Canada

TechVibes reprots that, “Fast Company senior writer Ellen McGirt spoke with Zappos‘ Will Young and Shopify’s chief culture officer, Daniel Weinand, at GROW 2013 on how to infect your startup’s culture with a mentality of “intrapreneurship.” Young said that he has found techniques by which even call center people who are usually not involved in such ventures can be included in the company’s culture of generating new ideas.

Talking about Shopify’s culture, Weinand said that they have an open door policy where they encourage all employees to bring forward new ideas any time and this helps build a better and more supportive culture where employees feel inspired and are willing to think for the company. A few days called Hack days are held at Shopify where workers get a chance to discuss their ideas with colleagues and get feedback. This is a very positive step in encouraging intrapreneurship.

Zappos has a program just like Hack days but the main thing is that employees have to share their ideas with low level employees so that they feel included as well and because they are present at the grass root and so know the market more.

The debate arises that how can  it be affirmed or quantified how much this culture of bringing new ideas is contributing to the success of the company. Weinand says: “The value of a mentality of ownership, that an employee is part of something, is big,”

Young also has similar views that it is very difficult to measure. Weinand believes that involving employees gives them a sense of satisfaction and boosts confidence that is very important for the growth of a company even if it can’t be measured as such.

However it is not easy to implement a culture of intrapreneurship just anywhere. Fist employees have to be prepared for such a culture because they may not be ready for such a change and have to make question whether it complements the culture of the office. If it is very different from the prevailing culture, leaders have to proceed with caution.

“If you’re concerned that your culture isn’t pro-intrapreneur, ask employees: would you fear being fired or punished for pitching a crazy idea to   an executive? “If employees are afraid of that, then something is fundamentally wrong with the company,” Weinand says.”

“Ultimately, Young and Weinand say that not every company needs to cultivate intrapreneurship. But if it’s a natural fit with your startup’s culture, then look for creative ways to foster employees’ inner entrepreneur.”

Source: TechVibes