GUEST POST from Arlen Meyers
Intrapreneurs are employed people trying to act like entrepreneurs. Some call them rebels at work, others disruptive physicians and most refer them as troublemakers, a pain in the neck or former employees. All are trying to create change and survive the process. Intrapreneurship is harder than entrepreneurship because intrapreneurs have to fight a two front war: one against the obstacles to new product or project development and launch and the other against the corporate immune system. Academic intrapreneurship is, in several ways, harder than non-academic physician intrapreneurship because of the culture, politics, motivations and multisided missions.
However, intrapreneurs can’t be successful alone.
In many instances, rocking the boat will sink you because your boss gets seasick.
When it comes to a “how to do it” , though, there are few resources for physician intrapreneurs, despite the fact that their numbers are growing. Here’s what the table of contents of the Textbook of Physician Intrapreneurship should include:
Chapter 1: Assessing your organization’s innovation readiness
Chapter 2: How to manage your boss
Chapter 3: Survival strategies
Chapter 4: Communications and Corporate Politics
Chapter 5: Negotiation and Persuasion
Chapter 6: Conflict Resolution Strategies
Chapter 7: Managing People Who Fear You
Chapter 8: Finding scarce and uncontrolled resources
Chapter 9: Leaderpreneurship
Chapter 10: Exit strategies
Chapter 11: The politics of innovation
Chapter 12: Status, power, influence and sponsors
Here are some other chapters:
10 Opportunities for Patient Experience Intrapreneurs
Why you should hire physician intrapreneurs…and what to do with them
There are four psychological reasons for intrapreneurial failure:
Physician intrapreneurs wage guerrilla warfare against a formidable foe-bureaucrats and members of the C-site protecting the status quo. You need a tactical operations manual that changes almost every day and turns you into a good rebel.
There are four models of intrapreneurial innovation
Try to avoid these 5 intrapreneurial rookie mistakes:
You fail to prioritize your ideas.
You go solo.
You flunk the pitch meeting.
You give up too soon.
You ignore personal danger signals.
But, at least The Textbook of Physician Intrapreneurship is a start that you can read prior to your deployment.
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