An exploration of corporate entrepreneurship : venturing signatures and their underlying dynamics

Abstract

The primary goal of this work is to broadly explore the factors influencing corporate entrepreneurship and to examine how its many elements can be linked together. A broad reading of the published literature on corporate entrepreneurship provides numerous frameworks and recommendations. When gathered together many of the recommendations are inconsistent or conflict with one another. The concept of a "venture signature" which evolves into a detailed look at the underlying dynamics of venturing is proposed as a way to examine corporate entrepreneurship and better identify critical influencing factors. This work consists of an extensive review of published material which forms the basis of a set of recommendations, trade-offs, and dynamics from which a "venture signature" is created. This is followed by a series of interviews with personnel from eight corporations with venturing histories that were both successful and mixed (some successes and some failures). The venture signatures for each are constructed and then compared and contrasted element by element. Key lessons and advice from the interviews are captured as part of this analysis.

(cont.) The recommendations, trade-offs, and dynamics from the literature review are combined with the interviews and the venture signatures for the eight companies. These results show that an appropriate high-level model for corporate entrepreneurship should be a dynamic one. Discussion of what a dynamic venture signature would look like and several of the dynamics of corporate entrepreneurship are developed and explained in detail. A set of "must-haves" are separated from the "choices" available to corporate entrepreneurs. A "top ten" list of organizational dynamics that affect corporate entrepreneurship is proposed for consideration when making those choices. Finally, summary findings, four questions every corporate entrepreneur should know the answers to, and next steps are provided.