Developing An Intrapreneurial Organisation; A Drive For Nation Building

Introduction

1.1 Background to the Study

Pinchot (1984) defined intrapreneurs as “dreamers who do. Those who take hands-on responsibility for creating innovation of any kind, within a business”. In 1992, The American Heritage Dictionary acknowledged the popular use of a new word, intrapreneur, to mean “A person within a large corporation who takes direct responsibility for turning an idea into a profitable finished product through assertive risk-taking and innovation”. The researcher is of the opinion that such risk taking and innovation coupled with the profitability accrued from it will make an intrapreneural organization a veritable for nation building.

Koch (2014) goes further, claiming that intrapreneurs are the “secret weapon” of the business world. Based on these definitions, being an intrapreneur is considered to be beneficial for both intrapreneurs and large organizations. Companies support intrapreneurs with finance and access to corporate resources, while intrapreneurs create innovation for companies. Such organizations can be described as intrapreneurial organizations.

Intrapreneurial organizations are known to be operated with practice of a corporate management style that integrates risk-taking and innovation approaches, as well as the reward and motivational techniques, that are more traditionally thought of as being the province of entrepreneurship.

The first written use of the terms ‘intrapreneur’, ‘intrapreneurial,’ and ‘intrapreneurship’ date from a paper written in 1978 by Gifford Pinchot III and Elizabeth Pinchot. Later the term was credited to Gifford Pinchot III by Norman Macrae in the April 17, 1982 issue of the Economist. The first formal academic case study of corporate entrepreneurship or intrapreneurship was published in June 1982, as a Master’s in Management thesis, by Howard Edward Haller, on the intrapreneurial creation of PR1ME Leasing within PR1ME Computer Inc. (from 1977 to 1981). This academic research was later published as a case study by VDM Verlag as Intrapreneurial Success: A PR1ME Example. The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language included the term ‘intrapreneur’ in its 3rd 1992 Edition, and also credited Pinchot as the originator of the concept.

Intrapreneurial organization will bring about an era in which jobs were so many that employers go to schools to recruit young graduate with a view of making good use of their skills, potential and innovative capability to bring about productivity. This will go a long way in reducing unemployment and contribute to the growth of the organization. The Pinchotts (1985) refer to intrapreneur as someone who possesses entrepreneurial skills and uses them within a company, instead of using them to launch a business of his or her own. This will reduce the rate at which small and medium scale companies crumble. The individual can make use of its skill and innovation under an already established organization with a strong capital base and higher level of technology. This can be a tool for nation building as these intrapreneurial organizations will give job opportunities to unemployed youths with skills and innovative capability who doesn’t have the capital and the corporate experience to start a business of their own.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

The biggest concern for in an intrapreneurial organizations is dealing with the “Corporate Immune System”. This expression means that corporate organizational structures such as bureaucracy, hierarchy, rules etc. do not support intrapreneurial culture and behaviour. Many companies struggle with applying the concept of intrapreneurship into their daily routines due to high levels of defined tasks and schedules that deter opportunities for serendipity and for new ideas to be recognized. Kawasaki (2006) also highlights the lack of rewards for entrepreneurial behaviour of employee in intrapreneurial organizations as a demotivating factor to search for new ideas.

Failure, or fear of failure, is another reason for organizations in developing countries like Nigeria not becoming more intrapreneurial. Wladawsky-Berger (2010) found that firms act to protect resources by avoiding risk and penalizing failure. Due to the setback of entrepreneurial organizations in Nigeria, the researcher is examining an intrapreneurial organization development as a tool to drive nation building.

1.3 Objectives of the Study

The following are the objectives of this study:

To examine the process of developing an intrapreneurial organization.

To determine if intrapreneurial organization development can be used as a tool to drive nation building.

To identify the factors limiting the development of an intrapreneurial organization.

1.4 Research Questions

What is the process of developing an intrapreneurial organization?

Can intrapreneurial organization development be used as a tool to drive nation building?

What are the factors limiting the development of an intrapreneurial organization?

1.5 Hypothesis

HO: Intrapreneurial organization development cannot be used as a tool to drive nation building.

HA: Intrapreneurial organization development can be used as a tool to drive nation building.

1.6 Significance of the Study

The following are the significance of this study:

The outcome of this study will educate the general public especially young graduate on the need to key into the scheme of intrapreneurship and get employed into intrapreneurial organization to put into use their skills and innovations with a view to gain corporate experience in order to become a future entrepreneurs.

The findings from this study will form a useful guide for government to formulate and implement policies that will encourage intrapreneurial organization to reduce unemployment and produce better skilled youth that will contribute to the growth of the nation.

This research will be a contribution to the body of literature in the area of the effect of personality trait on student’s academic performance, thereby constituting the empirical literature for future research in the subject area.

1.7 Scope / Limitations of the Study

This study will cover the concept of intrapreneuship within the context of an intrapreneurial organization to identify the merits and the demerits.

Limitation of Study

Financial constraint

Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).

Time constraint

The researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work. This consequently will cut down on the time devoted for the research work.