Top Skills of an Intrapreneur
No, it’s not a spelling mistake. Intrapreneurs are a thing.
Like entrepreneurs, they are responsible for developing new ideas that will benefit the organization through creativity, relationship building, and a sober dose of risk-taking. Unlike entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs work on developing new ideas and garnering support within the organization of which they are a part.
In order to achieve this, great intrapreneurs often exercise the following skill-sets.
Stakeholder Relations: great intrapreneurs understand their audience and they seek to add value to those they meet. This is done by building rapport, engagement, and support, which allows for more seamless “buy-in” for their ideas.
Influential: the most successful intrapreneurs I’ve had the pleasure of knowing have been able to influence others to see their point of view and offer support. This doesn’t necessarily require having a fancy title or a corner office, but instead, it’s about having a certain power that comes with persuasion.
Data Driven: the fastest way to lose the confidence of your stakeholders is to ignore what experiments and data are telling you. Data driven results always garner confidence for new solutions and discoveries with much more impact than the early stages of a hypothesis.
Listens Well: it may go without saying but, it’s difficult to create a solution for something which we don’t fully understand. In order to be effective, we are always placing the “customer” in the centre of everything we build, test, and release. This requires an understanding (and listening) of our audience, partners and, of course, the customers.
Understands the Corporate Strategy: intrapreneurs, like other creators, have a firm grasp on strategic goals and priorities and, not only that, but they also let that strategy guide their approach to creation. They use this understanding as a compass for pushing boundaries, as well as testing and pivoting on outcomes and solutions.
Problem Solves: intrapreneurs have a heavy toolkit of potential approaches and practical tools that they apply to overcome challenging obstacles. These tools are used interchangeably and are mixed-and-matched for optimal impact.
Experiments with New Ideas: dogma is the enemy of creativity and experimentation that can lead to breakthrough ideas. So that’s why, at it’s very core, intrapreneurs are (calculated) risk takers, willing to test convention in the name of progress.
Authentic: the quickest way to gain the confidence of your sponsors is to be forthcoming and transparent, especially when the news is bad. This builds great relationships and also makes us trustworthy and relatable; all great qualities when building an idea from the ground-up.
Everyone has great ideas. The trick is to understand which levers to push and pull and at what time.
Recommended Books: My Top Three Reads for Summer 2022
Manitoba summers always flash before my eyes, which is why I’m so careful in how I spend those precious moments. One of my consistent pastimes is coming back to books. Old books, new books, ugly cover books, books that move me, vintage books, fiction, biographies, self help books; you name it. This summer, though, since I find myself with even less time for hobbies, I have been extra careful with selecting my stack. The three that I have chosen have been carefully identified to widen my horizons around organizational culture, relationships and leadership. Here is what I chose and why.
1) Dare to Lead (Brené Brown)
Brené is now a household name that is synonymous with empathy and all-things-human. We know her the best through her work on vulnerability. I chose her because of the practical take-aways around daring greatly, empowering teams, and leading with authenticity.
2) The Infinite Game (Simon Sinek)
I was a bit unsure about this one, at first, because I don’t always love everything Sinek says. But this one is worth the read for me because of the way it portrays competition. He talks about organizations in terms of not having winners or losers but rather an infinite path with players that “come and go.” It’s a liberating way of thinking about success.
3) Imagine it Forward: Courage, Creativity, and the Power of Change (Beth Comstock)
I’m in the business of innovation, which is almost entirely about culture change. It’s a sticky topic, for most of us, because it doesn’t have a clear check list of how best to approach. Comstock is inspiring as she talks about how transforming the mindset and culture of large organizations is messy, while also offering insights on how to take smart risks and test ideas boldly.
I have so many more hard-covers that I’ve thought about picking up but I will focus on these three for now. I know that I’ll keep coming back to them many more times.
Tell me, what are you reading these days? I’d love to hear from you.
Sandra