Young innovators set on improving the world
should recognize that working for a large company
isn’t “selling out”—it can maximize their impact.
Corporate leaders must critically examine the
degree to which their companies’ environments are
hospitable to the work of catalysts.
Employees who find their innovation environment
inhospitable should consider whether another
company would provide more-fertile ground for
catalytic work.
Catalysts who have just started their efforts
should grit their teeth, because the work will not be
easy. Asked to give advice to fellow catalysts, Unilever’s
Yuri Jain advises having purpose and persistence.
“It is a daily struggle,” he says. “If you don’t
believe in the project, the barriers are going to be
enormous.”
Entrepreneurs will continue to give birth to great
businesses, and nonprofits will continue striving
to build a better society. But the people changing
the world today are as likely to be in corporate cubicles
and conference rooms as in Silicon Valley or at
social-impact conferences. Welcome to innovation’s
new era. HBR Reprint R12