406 ENTREPRENEURSHIP
- Avoid using the term “innovation.” It can ignite hostility from other departments
and managers. If you appropriate the term innovator for yourself, what are the rest
of the managers doing? - Use a buddy system. Find a partner, someone whose strengths match your weak-
nesses and vice versa. It is hard to change things by yourself. - Set the metrics in advance. You need different measurements than those used for
the existing corporate products/markets. Get these approved before you begin. - Aim for early successes. Top executives often have short time horizons and lack
patience. Quick wins will buy you time for longer-term processes later. - Get data. Intuition is useful and sometimes reliable, but back up your gut reaction
with quantitative data to justify your decisions.
Lessons from the world’s most creative companies:^53 - Bring together specialists in a cross-functional design, research, and innovation cen-
ter. Cross-pollination will occur. - Think character as well as metrics. In evaluating innovators, look for courage and
imagination. - Include subordinates in big decisions. The young guns below the top executives
should be able to present their ideas along with senior management. - Preserve innovation values and practices. Use senior management to tell and repeat
stories of intrapreneurs who succeeded at the company. - Get the CEO involved from the beginning. The innovation culture starts at the top.
Marissa Mayer is the vice-president for search products and user experience at
Google. She works for one of the world’s most innovative companies at the core of its
innovation mission. She has nine ideas about what makes a great corporate venturer and
intrapreneur. - Expect great ideas to come from anywhere—even finance!
- Share ideas, information, and processes to stimulate thinking within the firm.
- Favor intelligence and character over experience when hiring.
- Approve slack time and resources (skunk works) for employees. Google gives
employees a free day once a week, and half the new launches originate from this
slack time. - Instant perfection is not possible. Innovate first, improve later.
- Use data, not politics, to get your projects approved.
- Creativity loves constraint. For every new idea, provide structure and guidance.
- Simplify and make it easy to use. Money will follow.
- Don’t play the devil’s advocate, wear the black hat, or kill projects. Morph, modi-
fy, alter, and evolve them into something better.
These recommendations and suggestions demonstrate that personal initiative, creative
leadership, and corporate policies are all required for corporate venturing. No single pre-
scription will always work, and context is critical.