Entrepreneurs within the Company

Who wouldn't wish for this: leaders and employees who think for themselves and drive topics forward – people you have to rein in rather than push. People who make decisions on their own responsibility – and deliver good results in the end.

What supervisory board member, entrepreneur, or managing director does not long for employees who act like true entrepreneurs within the company?

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Have you created the conditions for it?

The decisive question is: have you created the conditions in your company for your employees to be able to act entrepreneurially in the first place?

Or does a culture of fear prevail – the fear of not being allowed to make mistakes – paired with bureaucratic structures that systematically prevent independent work?

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It can be done differently

The good news: there are companies that have achieved exactly this – an entrepreneurially shaped culture in which it is a joy to contribute every day and to make the company better step by step, each person in their own area.

But: for this, you as the entrepreneur or managing director must create the conditions. Without them, it will not work.

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Building blocks of an entrepreneurial culture

We see five central building blocks that form the foundation for entrepreneurial thinking and acting within the company.

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1. Organizational design

The basic prerequisite is a clear structure of responsibilities. And it starts at the very top: is there a CEO or chairman of the management board who acts with ultimate responsibility – or a "dual leadership"?

Our experience: shared responsibility is no responsibility.
The same applies to subsidiaries.

In many larger companies with a strong regional structure and various business units, clear assignments are lacking: is the regional managing director responsible for the success of his company, or merely the executing arm of the business units?

There is no "right or wrong" here – but one thing is decisive: it must be clearly settled who is ultimately responsible for what.

This clarity must run through the entire organization – down to the individual clerk or shop-floor worker. Every employee must know:

• Who is my superior? (Tip: the person who sets salaries or is allowed to hire and fire.)
• What am I personally responsible for?

I myself have witnessed what happens when a mid-sized company with clear responsibilities is taken over by a corporate group with a complex matrix organization. The result: around half of the leaders – particularly in sales and development – left the company after the retention period. The damage from the loss of know-how was enormous.

What had made these leaders entrepreneurs within the company beforehand?

The freedom to make decisions independently within their responsibility. To act autonomously, set priorities, unlock potential – whether in revenue, in technology, or in cost reductions.

All of that was suddenly no longer possible – squeezed into regulations and directives that no longer allowed any entrepreneurial action.

Ask yourself:
Are responsibilities and decision-making latitude clearly defined in your company – and do they fit the dynamics of your market?

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2. Controlling structures

Entrepreneurial freedom needs control.
And specifically, one that protects – not paralyzes.

Every leader needs an individual set of key performance indicators (KPIs) to be able to steer their area of responsibility objectively. These include:

• Revenue, gross profit, cost, and productivity data
• Deadline adherence and deviation analyses
• Daily, weekly, and monthly data – as close to "real time" as possible

Only when this data is available and the organizational design is coherent do the necessary foundations for entrepreneurial action emerge.

But these conditions are not sufficient. More is needed – namely a corresponding cultural setup.

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3. Culture

It begins with clear goals. These must be ambitious but realistic – despite an environment shaped by crises and uncertainty. Goals may be adjusted when external factors change drastically – but a shared expectation must be formulated.

After that, it is up to the "entrepreneur within the company" how to reach the goal. Creative freedom within clear responsibility is the lever.

The personal pride of reaching or even exceeding ambitious goals is a central driver. This feeling of success creates loyalty and welds strong teams together.

But what if things do not go well?
What if mistakes happen or goals are missed?

That is when it becomes apparent how resilient the culture really is. If culprits are sought publicly and heads roll, the entrepreneurial culture is over.

A true culture of learning from mistakes means:

• Analyzing setbacks
• Identifying causes
• Initiating learning processes

In this way, leaders become more robust, more resilient – and that feeds directly back into motivation.

In the end, it comes down to trust. When employees sense that they can count on backing even when mistakes happen, they give everything to fulfill their tasks as well as possible.

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4. The view of people

A difficult but central part of the transformation: not all employees fit into an entrepreneurial culture – and that is okay.

Many joined the company in a different context. For some, "performance" was never the criterion for trust or recognition.

A few basic rules:

• Do not build the organization around people.
• Those who do not fit the entrepreneurial mindset will become unhappy in the long run.
• Part ways professionally – it saves energy and protects the culture.

Give the change time, but communicate clearly: "business as usual" is not an option.

What helps is a shared understanding of leadership that defines values such as:

• Openness
• Personal responsibility
• Clarity of goals
• Ability to handle conflict

in a binding way.

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5. Compensation

When the culture described is anchored and the results are right, above-average special payments follow – because the company achieves above-average results.

And from this, a positive cycle emerges:

• Talent applies because word of the success gets around
• The best candidates are there to choose from
• Those who join deliver performance – because performance is recognized

The measurability provided by mature controlling ensures that performance becomes visible early – as do development potentials.

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Recommendations

So much for the blueprint. Yes – demanding. But doable.

If you work through the individual stages in a structured way, you will be rewarded.

My assessment: from the start to visible impact, 6–10 years pass. Depending on the starting position. The biggest hurdle is often the lack of reliable KPIs – especially when ERP and CRM systems are not maintained.

But I assure you: the effort is worth it. I have accompanied companies from a wide range of industries that, with this approach:

• became crisis-proof
• developed highly motivated teams
• and achieved results well above average

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I wish you every success – and staying power.
It is worth it.

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Further articles:

• Peak Performance through Transparency – Part 2 / 2 (Link)
• The Leadership Control Loop (Link)
• Restructuring: Turning Problems into Opportunities (Link)

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