Nono Bokete, CEO, Data Sentinels, Empowering Businesses to Lead Digital Change—Beyond Just Technology.
Some of your best leaders will never have “Chief” in their title—and that’s okay. What’s not okay? Losing them because your system wasn’t built to hold people who think differently, move fast or question the way it’s always been done.
We’re in the era of the intrapreneur—the bold, often slightly rebellious internal change agent who sees opportunity where others see bureaucracy. These are the people who redesign workflows in their sleep, pitch fresh solutions before lunch and casually fix a decades-old problem while you’re still on coffee number one. They’re not waiting for permission—they’re waiting for oxygen.
Traditional Leadership Is Choking Out Innovation
In too many companies, leadership is still defined by control. Hierarchy. The “who signed off on this?” mindset. That model worked when stability was king. But now? Agility, creativity and resilience are the crown jewels—and those qualities don’t thrive in command-and-control environments. They suffocate.
I’ve coached teams across mining, finance, tech and government. The pattern is always the same. Leaders want innovation, but their systems reward obedience. They want initiative, but their culture punishes risk. It’s like asking someone to run after tying their shoelaces together.
If your top talent has to escape your organization to be fully themselves, you’ve got a problem.
Who Are Intrapreneurs?
Let me paint a picture. Intrapreneurs are not just “high performers,” they’re high-creativity, high-agency, low-patience individuals who:
• Challenge outdated processes (respectfully, but relentlessly)
• Prototype and test new ideas quickly
• Influence across teams without formal authority
• Thrive on ownership, not oversight
• Often get labelled “difficult” (when they’re often just “ahead”)
They are your internal entrepreneurs. And if nurtured, they can become your most powerful asset.
What Happens When You Don’t Empower Them
Here’s the part no one likes to admit: If you don’t give intrapreneurs space, they will most likely leave—and they’ll take their unfinished ideas, their loyal networks and their institutional memory with them. Worse, some will stay and disengage. That’s when you get quiet quitting, passive resistance and low-key sabotage disguised as compliance.
Innovation doesn’t die with a bang. It dies in staff meetings where people stop caring.
What Empowering Intrapreneurs Actually Looks Like
Let’s get practical. This isn’t about free snacks and bean bags. Empowering intrapreneurs requires real structural and cultural shifts.
1. Redefine success metrics.
Stop measuring performance only by adherence to KPIs. Create space to evaluate initiative, creativity, collaboration and strategic experimentation.
2. Build internal labs or “safe-to-fail” spaces.
Designate areas of the business for experimentation. A sandbox for testing without red tape. Give a budget. Set parameters. Then step back.
3. Create dual career ladders.
Not everyone wants to be a manager. Some want to lead ideas, not people. Establish parallel growth paths that reward innovation and value creation—not just team size.
4. Assign transformation partners or coaches.
Intrapreneurs need sounding boards. Assign a transformation partner or coach who helps navigate office politics, build influence and scale impact. That’s part of what we do at Transformation Leader—and I’ve seen it change retention overnight.
5. Celebrate (not just tolerate) disruptive thinking.
When someone points out a crack in your system, don’t defend it—get curious. Reward those who question the norm. It’s how you future-proof your culture.
A Final Thought
The intrapreneurs inside your company already know what needs to change. They’ve drafted the pitch. They’ve scoped the risks. They’re just waiting for you to unlock the door or watch them walk out of it.
In today’s economy, where change is the only constant, you don’t necessarily need more managers—you need movement makers.
So here’s the call: Stop asking for innovation while upholding systems that strangle it. Let your intrapreneurs lead, build, break and try again. Because the companies that win the future? They’re the ones who make room for rebels.
Even the ones without the title.
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