Research on entrepreneurial culture in large and established organizations is a field that has been growing more and more recently. With foundational research dating as far back as 1970, there was a significant acceleration in corporate entrepreneurship research in the 1990s. We have entered a new era in the years 2000-2012 with explorations of topics such as corporate venturing and efficient opportunity recognition (Zahra, Randerson, and Fayolle, 2013). We will present here results that are relevant to our question, starting by defining the characteristics and advantages of a strong entrepreneurial culture, then we will present research on the process of implementing such a culture

Ameisen, Emmanuel

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How to Create Entrepreneurial and Innovative Culture and Sustain 
it in a Large Organization? 
Emmanuel Ameisen 
Cornell University 
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How to Create Entrepreneurial and Innovative Culture and Sustain it in a Large 
Organization? 
Abstract 
Research on entrepreneurial culture in large and established organizations is a field that has been 
growing more and more recently. With foundational research dating as far back as 1970, there was a 
significant acceleration in corporate entrepreneurship research in the 1990s. We have entered a new era 
in the years 2000-2012 with explorations of topics such as corporate venturing and efficient opportunity 
recognition (Zahra, Randerson, and Fayolle, 2013). We will present here results that are relevant to our 
question, starting by defining the characteristics and advantages of a strong entrepreneurial culture, then 
we will present research on the process of implementing such a culture. 
Keywords 
human resources, innovation, entrepreneurial 
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ILRHR6640 
Case #3 
Emmanuel Ameisen  
April 11th, 2014 
 
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 
 
RESEARCH QUESTION 
Entrepreneurial and innovative culture---How to create it and sustain it in a large organization?  How to 
move from concept to execution? 
 
INTRODUCTION 
Research on entrepreneurial culture in large and established organizations is a field that has been 
growing more and more recently. With foundational research dating as far back as 1970, there was a 
significant acceleration in corporate entrepreneurship research in the 1990s. We have entered a new 
era in the years 2000-2012 with explorations of topics such as corporate venturing and efficient 
opportunity recognition (Zahra, Randerson, and Fayolle, 2013). We will present here results that are 
relevant to our question, starting by defining the characteristics and advantages of a strong 
entrepreneurial culture, then we will present research on the process of implementing such a culture. 
 
ENTREPRENEURIAL ORIENTATION 
In the field of Corporate Entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial orientation defines how innovative an 
organization is. Research has found persistent links between a strong entrepreneurial orientation and 
solid performances in large companies (Harms, 2013). An important notion to understand is that 
corporate entrepreneurship takes various shapes in different firms: a company that is “leadership 
dominated” will have to use different management tools to implement a strong innovative culture than 
a company that is “structurally dominated “(Miller, 1983). As such, the steps that have to be taken to 
implement a strong innovative culture depend heavily on the underlying organizational structure of the 
company, and have to be customized accordingly. 
 
 
A DETAILED METHOD 
The implementation of an entrepreneurial and innovative culture can be separated in three distinct 
steps: the assessment of the current strategy for entrepreneurial activity, the implementation of an 
entrepreneurial climate, and the control and evaluation of corporate entrepreneurship (Kuratko, 
Hornsby, Naffziger, Montagno, 1993). 
 
 
 
ASSESSMENT OF CURRENT STRATEGY 
As our second paragraph suggests, the first step to any implementation is an assessment of the current 
strategy for entrepreneurial activity. This process can also be broken down in four key questions: 
• What is the current organizational structure (Are the resources needed to try new ideas made 
available to employees by the company? Does it promote risk taking? How easy is the formation 
of autonomous project teams?) 
• What is the type of innovation that the company wishes to achieve, and how is management’s 
perspective universally understood within the company? 
• Are the three main conditions needed to achieve an innovative vision according to Moss Kanter 
(1985) present: An absence of insurmountable roadblocks to the flexibility needed for 
innovation, the implementation of incentives and tools to facilitate entrepreneurial projects, 
and the research of synergies across different business areas? 
• Are managers ready to understand and reward entrepreneurial spirit and to give 
“intrapreneurs” sufficient freedom? 
After these questions have been answered, the insight they provide will allow us to move on to the next 
stage of the process. 
 
PRACTICAL IMPLEMENTATION 
The key elements for a successful implementation of an intrapreneurial environment depend on the 
assessment that was made of the company, but they can be broken down in 4 categories: 
• Presence of explicit goals agreed on by workers and management so that specific steps can be 
taken. 
• A feedback system with strong positive reinforcement to provide acceptance and rewards to 
potential intrapreneurs. 
• An emphasis on individual responsibility to create confidence, trust and accountability. 
• A reward system based on results, which promotes successful risk taking (Scanlan, 1981). 
Once these elements have been implemented, a rigorous control process is required in order to 
guarantee the sustainability of the company’s entrepreneurial orientation. 
 
CONTROL AND EVALUATION 
It is important to note that contrary to some other performance measurements, entrepreneurial 
behavior should be encouraged with financial rewards and company recognition and not mandated by 
rules and procedures. Another important notion is to try to implement a “selected rotation” program for 
managers where they are exposed to different aspects of a unique field, in order for them to gain 
enough knowledge to have insight in venture development. A sustained commitment to projects is 
required in order to encourage projects that might not be profitable at first. Finally it is important to rely 
on people instead of analysis, and use past failures to help the involved employees grow, and shape 
them into successful entrepreneurs (Sathe, 1988). 
 
CONCLUSION 
The development of an Entrepreneurial Orientation within a company is something that takes time and 
dedication to implement, as well as a thorough assessment of the current state of the company, and can 
sometime be quite counter-intuitive: it relies on performance management systems that are riskier than 
traditional ones, but if properly implemented, has been shown to be a recipe for success. 
Works Cited 
 
1. Zahra, Randerson, Fayolle. (2013). The Evolution and Contributions of Corporate 
Entrepreneurship Research. M@n@gement Vol.16. 
 
2. Harms. (2013). From Entrepreneurial Orientation to Performance: inside the black box of 
corporate entrepreneurship. M@n@gement Vol 16. 
 
3. Miller, D. (1983). The correlates of entrepreneurship in three types of firms. Management  
Science, 29 
 
4. Kuratko, Hornsby, Naffziger, Montagno. (1993). Implement Entrepreneurial Thinking in 
Established Organizations. S.A.M. Advanced Management Journal. 
 
5. Moss Kanter. (1985). Supporting innovation and Venture Development in Established 
Companies. Journal of business venturing. 
 
6. Scanlan. (1981). Creating a Climate for Achievement. Business Horizons 
 
7. Sathe. (1988). From Surface to Deep Corporate Entrepreneurship. Human Resource 
Management. 
 
8. Zahra, Randerson, Fayolle. (2013). Corporate Entrepreneurship: where are we? Where can we 
go from here? M@n@gement Vol.16. 
 
 


How to Create Entrepreneurial and Innovative Culture and Sustain it in a Large Organization?

Research on entrepreneurial culture in large and established organizations is a field that has been growing more and more recently. With foundational research dating as far back as 1970, there was a significant acceleration in corporate entrepreneurship research in the 1990s. We have entered a new era in the years 2000-2012 with explorations of topics such as corporate venturing and efficient opportunity recognition (Zahra, Randerson, and Fayolle, 2013). We will present here results that are relevant to our question, starting by defining the characteristics and advantages of a strong entrepreneurial culture, then we will present research on the process of implementing such a culture.Entrepreneurial_and_Innovative_Culture_How_to_Create_it_and_Sustain_it_in_a_Large_Organization.pdf: 1132 downloads, before Oct. 1, 2020

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