There is a very interesting on-going discussion on disruptive thinking, entrepreneurship, and intrapreneurship in the U.S. military. Small Wars Journal’s latest piece makes the argument for intrapreneurship, which is not only compelling, but necessary, given today’s global strategic climate and budget cuts.  

“Those of us still in uniform can learn from the many great examples of intrapreneurship, where individuals accelerated beyond bureaucratic inertia in practice, but stayed true to the core objectives and principles of their respective organizations.”

…

“In conclusion, innovation, driven by critical, disruptive thinking, is essential for the military to meet the myriad ’complex, ill-structured problems’ of the 21st century. Strategy must be more concise, procurement more efficient, and human resources management more pertinent, with everyone inside and outside the institution working to learn the right lessons from the last decade. To make these changes, we must soften our bureaucracies and lessen our propensity for centralization of power and risk-aversion, encouraging dissenting views as much in conference rooms as we do in the face of enemy fire. But disruptive thought and innovation cannot come at the expense of executing the Commander’s Intent. By focusing on intrapreneurship vice entrepreneurship, we can better reach a common ground between Disruptive Thinkers’ advocates and critics. The future of our military depends on it.”

Here is the article, which also links to other pieces on the topic. 

Intrapreneurship vice Entrepreneurship in the U.S. Military