Managing Corporate Culture, Innovation, and Intrapreneurship

In this chapter we provide a detailed method for determining the nature and timing of new product developments. Since new product developments can not be planned without also considering new market and new process developments, strategic planning must be performed in an integrated manner.

When we speak of high-level leadership or high-level management, we are referring to the executives at the top of an enterprise, including the president or general manager as well as the heads of major functions (marketing, operations, engineering, finance, human resources, etc.) and other people reporting directly to the president. In the traditional company of the past, leaders primarily exercised command authority. Managers were technical experts who defined the jobs of their employees. In many cases, they literally wrote out job descriptions for them. In doing so, these managers asked their employees to park their brains at the door. Most of the time, the employees had no idea how their efforts fit into the bigger picture.

The innovative company and the role of the leader in it are dramatically different. Innovative leaders' success will hinge largely on their ability first to plan and then to empower other people to implement the plans. An innovative organization must be led by a leader who develops and aligns the organization with the mission and vision, develops and maintains trust, ensures that coordinating and communicating occur, and encourages creativity and learning. What truly makes an organization innovative and keeps it that way, though, is innovative intent. Only the leader can infuse the organization with this intent and keep it burning brightly no matter what the circumstances.

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