Corporate innovation sounds great in theory. But in practice? It’s slow, messy, and often fails before it even gets off the ground.
Big companies know they need to launch new businesses to stay ahead. But internal red tape, risk aversion, and slow decision-making make it nearly impossible to move at the speed of a startup.
So how do you actually build a new business inside a corporation?
To answer this, we sat down with Ron J. Williams, Partner at Co-Created and an expert in corporate venture building. Ron has built, invested in, and advised startups and Fortune 500 companies across industries—from finance and media to machine learning and social commerce.
In this episode of Faces of Innovation, Ron breaks down the realities of corporate venture building, the mistakes most companies make, and what it takes to build something that actually scales.
WHY INNOVATION INSIDE CORPORATIONS IS SO HARD
Startups and big companies approach innovation in completely different ways.
Startups are built for speed..
✅ They take risks
✅ They move fast
✅ They focus on survival
Corporations are built for stability..
✅ They avoid uncertainty
✅ They focus on existing revenue
✅ They rely on structured decision-making
This creates a major problem. Most corporate leaders want innovation, but they are not comfortable with risk. They hesitate to take resources away from what is already working, even when they know they need to prepare for the future.
This means even when great ideas exist, companies struggle to act on them.
The result? They lose market opportunities to faster-moving startups or fail to launch anything at all.
This is where venture studios come in.
WHAT IS CORPORATE VENTURE CREATION?
Venture creation is the process of building a completely new business from the ground up.
For a startup, this is the only focus. But for a corporation, it is a complicated process that requires answering key questions:
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How does this fit into our company’s strategy?
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Who will lead this venture and take ownership?
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How much risk are we willing to take?
Many corporations want to innovate, but they struggle to decide where venture creation fits into their long-term growth plan.
The key to getting it right? A structured approach.
At Co-Created, Ron and his team work with corporations to:
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Uncover real market opportunities. Instead of blindly brainstorming, they dig deep into industry shifts and consumer behavior.
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Test business ideas quickly. They don’t spend years building something that may not work. Instead, they validate ideas fast with real-world testing.
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Align ventures with corporate strategy. If a new business doesn’t fit within the company’s broader goals, it won’t get internal buy-in.
"Companies fail at venture creation because they don’t have a structured way to take an idea from concept to execution,” Ron says. “That’s what we solve.”
THE KEY TO SUCCESSFUL VENTURE CREATION
Corporate venture building isn’t just about coming up with big ideas. It’s about making those ideas happen within a system designed to resist change.
The best venture builders have a rare mix of skills:
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Curiosity: They constantly learn and question the status quo.
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Restlessness: They’re never satisfied with “good enough.” They push for progress.
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Grit: They navigate resistance, setbacks, and long approval processes without giving up.
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Empathy: They understand both corporate stakeholders and end users, ensuring ventures actually solve real problems.
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A growth mindset: They don’t see failure as a roadblock - they see it as data.
Ron’s advice for breaking into venture creation? Start proving you can execute. Work on side projects, advise startups, or join an internal innovation team. Don’t just talk about innovation - build something.
INNOVATION DIES WITHOUT EXECUTION – BUILD THE RIGHT TEAM TO MAKE IT WORK
The bottomline: Coming up with ideas is easy. Turning them into real, scalable businesses inside a corporation? That’s where most companies fail.
The ones that succeed don’t just brainstorm. They commit resources, move fast, and build a culture where new ideas don’t die in approval cycles.
But execution isn’t just about processes - it’s about people. You need the right talent to build, test, and launch new ventures before the market moves on.
Bamboo Crowd helps companies close that gap. We find the builders, operators, and strategists who know how to take an idea from concept to execution, without getting lost in corporate red tape.
If you’re serious about making innovation work, it starts with the right team. Let’s talk.
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