On the way to creativity: Engineers as intrapreneurs in organizations (original) (raw)
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Organizations often hide creativity and talent. This paper describes how to make engineers active in the field of intrapreneurship within large firms where they often are employed in R&D. This development is seen, in Europe at least, most desirable by the companies today. Technology has an extensive impact on the society and economy nowadays, and it is important to study how technological innovations appear and who is behind them. Entrepreneurship and organizational intrapreneurship are, in many cases, the basis of technological innovations and firm renewal. Engineers are the company's special professional workforce that has the role to produce and develop innovations. Since the world of high-tech companies needs the cooperation of many experts, engineers must be able to cooperate well with other fields of expertise such as marketing, research and development as well as external suppliers and service providers. Also, innovations today often ask not only for unique technical knowledge but also social knowledge to make these innovations meaningful. In this sense, social innovation parallels technical innovation. Thus, in this paper we explore the origins of the intrapreneurship capacity in engineering settings of hightech firms, thereby concentrating on three issues: Who is the intrapreneur and the engineer-intrapreneur in particular? What kind of managerial and organizational support is required to facilitate the intrapreneur's upcoming? What are the educational and work related consequences for practical intrapreneurship tool development? r
Looking to determined how Pymes employers incentive into organizations individuals or group innovations. Therefore, it is possible to think that managers lead the innovation process, which is classified gradually according to companies needs in order to improve their competitiveness. Organization must have intrapreneuring and organized culture with flexible structure to generate individual autonomy. A characteristic is the amount of capital risk needed; that is why it is necessary encourage their work and their risk tolerance.
A Holistic Approach to Innovation and Fostering Intrapreneurship
International Journal of Knowledge-Based Organizations, 2019
A plethora of research and management theory exists on how a business should create and maintain an internal engine of innovation with emphasis on top-down programs with direct management support being the most important factor to encourage employee innovation and drive intrapreneurship behavior to tackle some of the issues for dealing with current challenges and uncertain future. In this article, the authors propose counter points to three beliefs which have become accepted as common-place assumptions. First, that intrapreneurship must have management directed programs to succeed. Second, that given management support of innovation programs all (or a majority of) employees will act as intrapreneurs. Finally, that an intrapreneurial program should receive the focus of management to ensure the continued success of the enterprise; the assumption being day-to-day business operations will function successfully without focused management attention.
Knowledge Integration and Innovation
In this chapter we argue that knowledge integration is not just an organizational and team level practice but concerns the everyday activities of inventive engineers and researchers involved in development activities. Previous research has shown how individuals are important as inventors also in large R&D organizations. This chapter investigates inventive individuals in non-managerial positions: engineers, product developers, and researchers and show how they contribute to innovation and knowledge integration in these firms. The focus is on inventors who generate ideas and span new knowledge fields to complement deep knowledge in their own domains and to turn ideas into new solutions i. e. innovations. The chapter illustrates the practices of innovative individuals, such as spanning knowledge across different fields; pursuing individual exploration as well as collaborative search; and participating in formal projects but simultaneously using them as permeable entities to further their own innovative ideas. In this way the chapter contributes to an understanding of the micro-level of knowledge integration activities.
Journal of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, 2020
Understanding of intrapreneurship as a phenomenon is somewhat fragmented and inconsistent especially in the case of engineers or engineering firms. This paper seeks to assess the relevant intellectual territory of intrapreneurship or corporate entrepreneurship (CE) by taking a systematic review of relevant research to collect insights into research linking intrapreneurship with engineering firms. The purpose of the systematic review is to identify key concepts in intrapreneurial research with regard to engineers or engineering firms as deliberated by researchers in literature. This systematic literature review (SLR) found that the academic interest of researchers on intrapreneurship has increased over the last decade with a diverse focus. Based on the findings of the review, this study has suggested various areas for future research on the conceptual framework of intrapreneurship, relationship of intrapreneurship with corporate performance, and intrapreneurship for engineers.
Intrapreneurship and Innovation in Engineering Education
Journal of Engineering Education Transformations, 2016
It is observed that around 1-2 % of the faculty membersin autonomous institutes usually take arisk in developing many innovative projects and programs for corporates and International Development Agencies (IDAs) by responding to letters of invitation or advertisements through abidding process. They utilize their talents, expertise and prepare high quality and cost effective projects which meet the stringent terms of references (TORs). These facultiesneedsempowermentand adelegationof administrators of the institutes but they are usually neglected in many institutes. Usually, there is an inordinate delay in forwarding thebid documents and providing with sufficient technical staff even though the revenue generated would meet all expenditures. Most of the innovations are due to intrapreneuers who are risk-takingfaculty members, and also think out of thebox and provide creative solutions. There is a need for supporting policy from the Chief Executing Officers (CEOs),Board of Governors, and government to encourage such outstanding ventures. Even though these institutes enjoy all types of autonomy but it is not passed on to the departments and to the faculty members. Institutes have to plan project specific policies, maintain separate accounts and distribute the gains as per the approved norms. Also,the fear of failing has to be removed from other faculty members besides giving the needed resources. Such initiatives would encourage more risk takers to undertake development activities, outreach programs and sponsored projects. Since the institutes have to contribute to the economy through providing aconducive environment for creating new and innovative products; the management has to take a lead. Intrapreneurship-Development Policies-Internal Revenue Generation and Utilization. Introduction Well performing Indian engineering institutes like autonomous colleges, deemed to be universities, national institutes and Indian Institutes of Technologies are substantially contributing by undertaking many development projects for industries, governments, and International Development Agencies (IDAs). With high-quality faculty members with creative thinking, risk taking capability, they contributed to the development of improved industrial processes, produced new products and trained the executives of the industries. They also generated sufficient revenue through these activities. Most of the well-performingengineering institutes have established consultancy centers in the 1960s and nurtured the growth of these centers. However, the full potential of high performing faculty
Intrapreneurship: A conceptual model and its dimensions
The present paper objective is to develop a conceptual model of intrapreneurship, or as it is also known, corporate entrepreneurship (CE). The intrapreneurship, through the encouragement of innovation in big companies, can represent both a competitive advantage and also the survival of a company nowadays. For being a current theme, intrapreneurship had its aspects explored more by the authors in recent years, however there are no conceptual standards designed and disseminated that can help to have a general view of the subject. Based on the assumption that intrapreneurship can be grounded on pillars of various themes, the main and more important dimensions found in the literature were gathered. These dimensions, such as innovation capacity, risk taking, resources, among others, are considered essential for corporate entrepreneurship. This paper proposes to discuss each one of the nine points raised and integrate them into one model. By the development of the subject, it was possible to obtain a well-grounded model with the key practice points of the intrapreneurship in large corporations. The nine dimensions were clustered in three core pillars (Structure, Management and Agents) in an intersection model, representing the interdependence between them.
The Intrapreneur Innovation: Led by Medium and Small Size Companies‘Managers
This research is focused on an exploratory study developed with Pymes managers and their roles as intrapreneurs. Using their leadership to impel innovation into organizations. Looking to determined how Pymes employers incentive into organizations individuals or group innovations. Therefore, it is possible to think that managers lead the innovation process, which is classified gradually according to companies needs in order to improve their competitiveness. Organization must have intrapreneuring and organized culture with flexible structure to generate individual autonomy. A characteristic is the amount of capital risk needed; that is why it is necessary encourage their work and their risk tolerance. Key Words: Intrapreneur, innovation, high intra-entrepreneurs, intrapreneur organizational culture, medium and small size companies
Intrapreneurship as a Launch - Pad for Organizational Re – Engineering
Continental J. Sustainable Development, 2019
This paper examines and also gives credence to the potency of intrapreneurship as a launch-pad for organizational re-engineering that is considered as the vitally needed catalyst for economic growth and development. Intrapreneurship refers to employee initiatives in organizations to undertake something new, without being asked to do so. It is a process by which individuals-either on their own or inside organizations-pursue opportunities without regard to the resources they currently control. Major activities related to intrapreneurship include opportunity perception, idea generation, designing a new product or another recombination of resources, internal coalition building, persuading the management, resource acquisition, planning and organizing. Key behavioural aspects of intrapreneurship are personal initiative, active information search, out of the box thinking, voicing, championing, taking charge, finding a way, and some degree of risk taking. It discusses the similarities and differences between intrapreneurship and independent entrepreneurship. Organisations employing intrapreneurial strategies have a competitive edge, which also boosts economic development. Clear reward systems and strategies must be in place to ensure that the intrapreneur is adequately compensated for their innovation.
2012
Purpose: The purpose of this paper was to identify and establish the relationship between intrapreneurs and the Dynamic Capabilities (DC) framework in a company. This relationship aided us in exploring whether intrapreneurs could positively influence the sensing, seizing and transforming of innovations. Findings: This paper explored and identified a possible applicability of intrapreneurial theory and dynamic capabilities in the Innovation Value Chain. Ten intrapreneurial skills that could be carried out by an Innovation Agent (IA) in various parts of the innovation chain were identified. The results showed how these intrapreneurial skills could positively influence the dynamic capabilities and contribute to an improvement in sensing, seizing and transforming of idea in full-scale innovations. Although it was shown that intrapreneurs positively influence the sensing, seizing and transforming as separate elements of the dynamic capabilities framework, it was also discovered that intr...