Social Intrapreneurism and All That Jazz

Grayson, David; McLaren, Melody; Spitzeck, Heiko

Can business save the world? The question might distract business leaders from more immediate concerns, such as making a profit. Starting a conversation about sustainability, for instance, could even mark you down as an obstacle to success in some people’s eyes.This is the dilemma facing so-called “social intrapreneurs”, desc­rib­ed in this insightful new book as the people in a corporation who put themselves forward to come up with innovations that address social or environmental challenges while generating revenue.The authors have done well to uncover dozens of social intrapreneurs at big businesses around the world, and to get them to tell their stories. The businesses involved include Vodafone, GSK, Accenture, Danone and DHL, among many others, and the individuals have been responsible for significant business activities, which are described at some length in the book.It turns out that techniques required by social intrapreneurs to advance do have some parallels in jazz that are not so far-fetched. Like a jazz musician, the intrapreneur must go in for “woodshedding” (solitary practice to improve technical skills), “soloing” (putting your ideas forward), “being a sideman” (contri­buting to a group in which you are a supporting team member), and “paying your dues” (contributing to your im­mediate team/community, and earning trust). In other words, social in­tra­pren­eurs must find and construct ensembles to prosper.The authors are guardedly optimistic. Their successful witnesses have mastered balancing the roles of risk-taking entrepreneurs and rule-following employees within a large organisation. They are “tempered radicals”.“Don’t change companies, change the company you’re in,” advises one social intrapreneur. But this radicalism, too, is tempered by the book, which reminds any aspiring social entrepreneurs of a question they should ask themselves: “Am I prepared to lose my job if this doesn’t work out?”  - STEFAN STERN, Visiting Professor in Management Practice, Cass Business School, London

• ForewordIntroduction1. How social intrapreneurs are rising to global business and social challenges2. Understanding individual social intrapreneurs3. How companies react4. Enabling environment inside companies5 External enabling environment5. External enabling environment6. Impacts of social intrapreneurism7. Recommendations and practical tips8. The way aheadConclusion: Towards a new way of doing businessAppendix: Our researchReferencesIndexAbout the authors