A manager complains about the limited opportunities for development in a corporation: “Eh, if it weren’t for the CEO (shareholders, board of directors), I would…”. He looks enviously at the entrepreneur, who seems to be free to do whatever he wants. This is true, but only in part. In fact, the founder meets just as many, and some would say more, barriers along the way. I think it’s just different barriers.
In a large corporation many things may be arranged stupidly, weirdly and even crazy, but at least there is some structure there to lean on. Like a medieval castle, the organization protects its citizens with a stone wall and moat against a number of dangers, like barbarians, wild beasts, etc. In this metaphor, the founder acts far beyond the city wall and wanders alone where sometimes no other man has set foot. He is supported by his entrepreneurial instincts, his experience of past mistakes, and his tools, mostly mental models.
Even the most reasonable structure inevitably deteriorates over time and becomes inadequate to the changed environment. Unfortunately, corporate rulers often notice and recognize problems too late, when the castle wall has already been breached and the Hun crowds have made their way in. All of this could have been avoided if there had been someone who perceived the growing negative signals in the organization differently than everyone else. The company is like a whale caught in fishing gear, begging with all its might to be released. Perhaps you are in this company here and now for a reason. Maybe you are the one destined to defeat the Lernaean Hydra. All you have to do is research at your own pace the problems of your organization, find accomplices, develop a plan for step-by-step change, and then take responsibility for implementing it. If you do this exercise carefully and wisely, you will be surprised at how grateful corporate management will be to you in every way. Congratulations, you are now not a manager, but an intrapreneur, i.e., an entrepreneur inward.
Yours sincerely,
-Alexander
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