Entrepreneurship vs. Intrapreneurship. — Why Intrapreneurship Succeeds.
While Entrepreneurs shape and influence the VC and Start-up world, Intrapreneurs are rather unknown — or so one would think. But there are enough successful examples in big companies like Google and Apple.
But what is the exact difference between an Entrepreneur and an Intrapreneur? Some people use the term “Entrepreneurship” to refer to Venture Capital-funded start-ups and their dependents, while others use it to apply to any small firms. Meanwhile, as the world becomes more digital, the term “Entrepreneurship” has grown increasingly ambiguous. Overall, Entrepreneurship may be defined as the act of taking risks in order to bring a new product, idea, or service to market. Starting a firm, growing it, and scaling it to generate a profit is what Entrepreneurship entails.
The Entrepreneurs themselves are, of course, the driving force behind it. But what qualifies someone to be an Entrepreneur?
An Entrepreneur is a risk-taker who, rather than working as an employee, wants to operate a small firm and claim all losses and gains in a particular business endeavour. In addition, Entrepreneurs have more responsibility than anybody else in a firm since they are in charge of duties that impact them as well as those that may have an influence on other areas. Lastly, where the normal person sees just annoyances and difficulties, Entrepreneurs see possibilities and solutions.
The concept of Intrapreneurship allows people to have the security of a job while still having the independence of an Entrepreneurial experience. Many businesses now offer Intrapreneurship programs, which allow employees to function as Entrepreneurs within a bigger corporation. What qualifies an employee to be an Intrapreneur?
Intrapreneurs are known for being inventive, bringing new ideas to the table, and taking on leadership roles. They launch new projects and use start-up techniques to attain their objectives. Moreover, Intrapreneurs are able to leverage their firm’s resources and foundations to generate new ideas that may be adopted in the company, perhaps leading to corporate development. Lastly, a successful Intrapreneur is willing to take risks in order to test new product concepts.
The Benefits of Intrapreneurship:
Employees may be inventive thanks to Intrapreneurship, which stimulates initiative and positions organisations as industry leaders. While many employees obey the rules, companies with Entrepreneurial employees benefit from new opportunities, improved skills and capabilities, and competitive advantage, as well as cost savings, motivational boosts, and faster product and service launches. Most of the time, an Intrapreneurial spirit has the following effects on the company:
1. Increasing the profit margin:
Intrapreneurship drives the development of new products and services by allowing for a continuous flow of innovation. The number of innovative inventions pursued and implemented rises when Intrapreneurs are nurtured within a company’s culture.
2. Talent Generation
One way to nurture, educate and attract talent within the company is Intrapreneurship.
3. Getting a leg up over competitors
Intrapreneurs work not just within their own organisation, but also outside of it. They are on the lookout for new opportunities and prospects, as well as important information about the competitive landscape.
4. Increasing the company’s culture
Intrapreneurs will assist from productive and highly engaged teams, develop other personnel, and produce amazing growth for the company as a consequence.
5. Expanding the Key Takeaways
Intrapreneurs approach their idea from the inside out, utilising the resources at hand to realize it as effectively as possible and produce the greatest potential result.
6. Getting to the Market faster
Intrapreneurs concentrate on the fundamentals and release a minimum viable product to avoid any conditions that might jeopardize their goals. As a result, they are able to bring innovations to market faster than typical, keeping the company updated.
Is intrapreneurship thus a hybrid opportunity?
An Intrapreneur might feel secure in their employment because they are hired by a corporation and are thus assured to be paid. Importantly, Intrapreneurs have access to their company’s tools and resources, allowing them to focus entirely on their vision and ideas and work toward bringing them to reality with significantly less perceived risk.
Because they bring about change, Intrapreneurs are considered as the future of business. This is because Intrapreneurs are at ease in their jobs, they may be more imaginative and change agents, which can have a significant influence on the company as it grows to new heights. They can not only actively create change in their firm but also become a role model for change, inspiring other colleagues or organisations to do the same.
Entrepreneurs are among the most effective re-shapers on the planet. From Elon Musk sending humans to Mars to Bill Gates and Steve Jobs delivering computers to every household, entrepreneurs have a distinct view of the world. So why not use that power to existing businesses? Post-it Notes (3M) and Sony PlayStation (Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.), for example, are two of the most successful and well-known Intrapreneurship innovations.
Many thanks for reading.
This newsletter is fully independently produced by the members of the Nova Venture Capital and Private Equity Club. This club is run by students of the Nova School of Business and Economics.
You can access the sources we used here:
Daykin, J. (2019). Intrapreneurship. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/jordandaykin/2019/01/08/intrapreneurship/?sh=138371624ea3
Eisenmann, T. (2013). Entrepreneurship: A Working Definition. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2013/01/what-is-entrepreneurship
Garibay, C. (2021). Entrepreneurship Versus Intrapreneurship — What’s the Difference?. ValiantCEO. Retrieved from https://valiantceo.com/entrepreneurship-versus-intrapreneurship-whats-the-difference/
Kolev, N., Goldstein, A., and Grossman, M. (2015). Five Insights into Intrapreneurship. Deloitte. Retrieved from https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/de/Documents/technology/Intrapreneurship_Whitepaper_English.pdf
Swearingen, J. (2008). Intrapreneurs in Business History. CBS News. Retrieved from https://www.cbsnews.com/news/great-intrapreneurs-in-business-history/
YEC. (2021). An Alternate Career Path to Successful Entrepreneurship. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/theyec/2021/11/11/an-alternate-career-path-to-successful-entrepreneurship/?sh=3d79d67b4207
YEC. (2021). The A-Team You Need To Run A Successful ‘Intrapreneurship’ Program. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/theyec/2021/09/16/the-a-team-you-need-to-run-a-successful-intrapreneurship-program/?sh=439b2d33c76d
