Hannah Toberman had enjoyed her engineering job at Allstar Electronics, but she was beginning to grow restless.
Most of her work for the past 5 years had involved designing minor adjustments to existing products. She worried she would lose her edge in a fast-changing industry, and work just didn’t engage her imagination or problem-solving skills the way it once did.
In her spare time, she found herself pursuing new ideas, researching some of the latest technology, and testing out some possible inventions. Hannah became increasingly interested in one idea: an e-reader made with flexible materials that could be rolled up and stuffed into a backpack, briefcase, or purse. At first she doubted it could be made, but with some investigation, Hannah began to develop a design for the device. She called it the Soft Scroll.
The more Hannah considered the Soft Scroll, the more she thought it would be an exciting new product for Allstar to offer.
It would open up a whole new area of sales for the company, which was experiencing slower growth in recent years. Hannah collected a few of the drawings she had created, estimated the manufacturing costs, and prepared a proposal. She invited her supervisor and two of her colleagues to a meeting, saying only that she had an idea she wanted to share.
As Hannah began her presentation, she could see the other engineers’ excitement to explore the concept.
However, her manager sighed. “Hannah, you know our situation, right? In the present economy, we can’t get financing for risky new projects. We have to focus on enhancements to current products that will increase our profit margins.”
Disappointed, Hannah could tell the discussion was over.
That weekend, Hannah spent hours at her desk at home, beginning to plan her escape from Allstar Electronics. She perused the Small Business Administration website, looking for advice on writing a new business plan, and explored her LinkedIn network, looking for contacts who might give her advice—and possibly funding—for her start-up, Soft Scroll.
By the end of the weekend, nervous but also more excited than she had been in years, Hannah had completed the outline of her business plan.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1. What actions could Allstar Electronics take to foster intrapreneurship? What consequences does it suffer from failing to do so?
2. What information should Hannah include in her business plan?
3. Describe three nonfinancial resources likely to be important for the future of Soft Scroll. How can Hannah ensure that her business has those resources?