Corporate Entrepreneurship

By

Shubhang Mishra

MBA(IT) Semester-III

Indian Institute of Information Technology, Allahabad

 

We are living in very intense times. The Iraq War, financial meltdown of global markets, crumpling financial institutions, the list seems quite endless and may make us short of breath if we try and encapsulate each and every thing that is changing the economical landscape right before our eyes while I am writing about it. A new world order is being established as far as economies are concerned. Whether we are fortunate to be alive and working in these moments of crisis and metamorphism is something that only time can tell us but one thing is for sure not only the financial institutions but corporate and business houses too will have to change their strategies and game plan if they want to emerge out of this financial apocalypse surviving and kicking.

For long corporate and business houses have thrived and flourished on the sheer merit of their fixed strategies, their rigid structure and their uncanny marketing sense wherein they repackaged the same product and service million of times and sold it to the customer, making their mega millions in the due course. But the market scenario has made it imperative that any corporate that is not continuously changing, acquiring or adapting new technology will be wiped from the scene of the competition rapidly. Whatever is obsolete is fast moving sideways to make way for innovative and ingenious thoughts and processes. In such circumstances it is obvious and wise that corporate and companies have consciously started making an effort for fostering and encouraging entrepreneurship in their ranks. They are pushing people to identify opportunities as and when they present themselves and devise ways to exploit them and make the best out of them. But life as human beings have known and experienced it is always paradoxical in meting out its typical treatments. So, while corporate entrepreneurship is a very desirable virtue that can save the day for any sinking organization, at the same time it is very difficult to achieve it and sustain it especially in situations like now days when everybody wants to run and take comfort in the realms of the known and certain.

It is thus very crucial to understand what corporate Entrepreneurship is. In its very core it is fundamentally innovation aimed at sustained growth and further wealth creation for the stockholders. It encompasses identifying an opportunity and utilizing it in terms of increased satisfaction and reprisal of any grievances or problems faced by them. As a process and as a corporate system it encourages people with managerial authority to pursue opportunities regardless of the scope of their authority or the resources they have at their disposal. Such a manager picks up nuggets of technical knowledge that he encounters in course of the discharge of his duties and later position them to resolve the problems that customers might be facing or to utilize a hitherto unexplored opportunity resulting in the birth of new opportunities or change in key ideas of the company leading to their transformation. Innovation may also play a crucial part in this strategy.

After understanding Corporate Entrepreneurship, the inevitable question is what are the tangible and non-tangible advantages offered by it? Does it make any sense for a company to leave it’s tried and tested path and indulge in something that might turn out to be nothing more than a wild goose chase? Well, probably the biggest advantage offered is that it helps a corporate in maintaining its competitive edge and relevance. It can transform corporations, their competitive positioning, their markets and at times their complete industry if harnessed properly. The performance gets a boost since it is an indicator of company’s proactive nature and willingness to take risks. It reflects in their pioneer product design and services which boosts their productivity and profitability. The message that filters down to all rungs of management is that company will actively promote the entrepreneurial streak of the employees thereby encouraging them to push the barriers and thinking out of the box when faced with stagnation and reduced growth.

Now, this brings to the all important question, which is how to foster corporate entrepreneurship. The problem is that most organization after an initial phase of discovery and innovation soon settle down in a stage wherein they are more concerned with being recognized as a well-managed business rather than a pioneer in their chosen field of operation. Most of the corporate prefer with to stick with their expertise rather than taking risks and breaking new frontiers. More over they are not able to identify as to when they should go for “change” as the lure to stay in their comfort zones is very tempting. To counter this it is important for organizations to create an economic and management style which does not stigmatised or impedes diversion of large scale resources for achieving creative ends even if the idea to pursue them has emanated from the lower rungs of the hierarchy. It will also require an increased focus on a setup where individuals are given attention and are encouraged to participate in the day to day functioning of the organization. In such an organisation innovation should be considered as an appropriate answer to counter the problems faced by the organisation and herd mentality should be discouraged. Entrepreneurship should be fostered in the culture of the organization and people should be suitably recognized and rewarded for bringing on the solutions that have not been thought of before.