In many situations, promising ideas emerge from the
lower levels of an organization, only to be discarded
before they can be implemented. It was only extraordinary
tenacity (and indeed, disregard) for the policy
of selling only corporate-approved drinks that permitted
the Frappuccino to “bloom” within Starbucks (see
Strategy Highlight 2.2).
Some scholars have suggested that companies set
aside up to 2 percent of their budgets for any manager
with budget control to be able to invest in new
ideas within the company. 47 Thus, someone with a
$100,000 annual budget to manage would be able to
invest $2,000 in cash or staff time toward such a project.
Multiple managers could go in together for somewhat
larger funds or time amounts. Through such a
process, the organization could generate a network of
“angel investors.” Small funds or staff time could be
invested into a variety of projects. Approval mechanisms
would be easier for these small “seed-stock”
ideas, to give them a chance to develop before going
for bigger funding at the top levels of the organization.
What would be some problems that would need to
be addressed to introduce this angel-network idea into a
firm? Use a firm someone in your group has worked for
or knows well to discuss possible issues of widely distributing
small funding level approvals across the firm.