Why Corporate Startups Fail: The Salary Safety Net Problem

The Corporate Startup Paradox

I recently heard the opinion of a former corporate manager: you can’t build a startup inside a corporation.

What struck me, though, is that I know for a fact that this very manager was being paid a salary by the corporation — and a very good one — to work on that startup.

What 20+ Years in Corporations Taught Me About Intrapreneurship

Over my 20+ year career in corporations, I’ve seen every possible outcome: from successful corporate startup launches to complete failures. But not once — not a single time — did a corporation say: “Hey, this is a startup, so how about you work for food in a garage until we see the first revenue?”

The Real Reason Corporate Startups Don’t Take Off

And that makes me wonder: is this actually the root cause of why so many corporate startups never get off the ground?