Page 157 - Grow from Within Mastering Corporate Entrepreneurship and Innovation

144 grow from within

tial collaboration and ideation at the grassroots level, the
Enabler Model can provide clear channels through which con-
cepts can be considered and funded. For companies that are
seeking cultural transformation, Enabler processes in combi-
nation with new hiring criteria and staff development can
result in a number of employees becoming effective change
agents. The Enabler Model is particularly well suited to envi-
ronments in which concept development and experimentation
can be pursued economically throughout the organization. At
Google, for instance, a Web application prototype might
require only a few engineers. In companies with self-managed
communities of practice and expert networks, as at many con-
sultancies and technology companies, Enabler programs can
accelerate the commercialization of ideas that arise from net-
works of knowledge workers.
(We will not discuss the Opportunist Model here, since that
is the default when none of the deliberate forms of corporate
entrepreneurship is selected.)
In all these cases—new platforms, renovation, or transfor-
mation—it is important to specify the time frame for change
and to consider how specific the objectives should be. Are
immediate, bold results required to solve a particular problem,
or is the objective an evolutionary program aimed at “blue
ocean” discoveries? Crash programs need centralized, strong
leadership to move quickly past technical and particularly
bureaucratic barriers. Crash programs may even involve mul-
tiple parallel efforts, to increase the probability of success. If
accomplishing the goal is believed to involve extensions and
refinements of known approaches and understanding, then
what is wanted is a team of developers and business builders.
If a fundamental breakthrough or a highly innovative new
approach is required, then scientists and engineers working
together with experts in new markets may be needed.