Friday, October 5, Cedar Rapids, IA – Five teams from across Eastern Iowa joined NewBoCo’s second Intrapreneur Academy cohort in order to spark innovative change within their organizations. Brucemore, Eco Lips, Grinnell Mutual, Rockwell Collins, and Woodward Communications Inc. will spend the next year together focusing on the four competencies of innovative organizations: Culture, Strategy, Agile, and Methods.
“I thought the first cohort was an eclectic group, but we’ve almost duplicated the types of companies participating in this second cohort,” Director of Innovation Mandy Webber said. “Rockwell is sending another team of engineers, and we have another ESOP and a nonprofit. The learning they will derive from each other is an invaluable benefit. It’s been interesting to see the first cohort learn that they all have similar struggles when it comes to innovation despite being in different types of organizations.”
Each quarter will focus on one of the four innovation competencies through workshops, networking groups, expert-led sessions, and immersive tours as well as access to other NewBoCo events.
“We have been thrilled to see the impact that Intrapreneur Academy has already had with the first cohort,” NewBoCo Chief Operating Officer Aaron Horn said. “The teams have been doing amazing work, and we are super excited to see a new group of motivated intrapreneurs kick off their innovation experience within their companies.”
NewBoCo launched Intrapreneur Academy as part of its innovation services to help established companies build a culture that embraces experimentation and rapid iteration. Six teams joined the inaugural cohort in April.
“The traction we’ve made in such a short amount of time with Intrapreneur Academy has been really exciting,” Webber said. “We have 10 companies, 11 teams, and 47 people participating – not to mention tour hosts and guest speakers – with organizations joining us from Coralville, Cedar Rapids, Marion, Dubuque, Grinnell, Des Moines, and Hiawatha. The reach we have both to people in and working with the program, as well as getting companies to join outside of the Corridor, is definitely aligned with our mission as a nonprofit.”
The teams in the cohort all have their own motivations and objectives and why they’re looking forward to the next year of Intrapreneur Academy.
“NewBoCo has a great reputation of knowledge and quality programming,” Eco Lips, Inc. President/Founder Steve Shriver said. “I’m looking forward to Eco Lips employees gaining some perspective from experts in entrepreneurship while also learning about tools such as Agile.”
“Brucemore has benefited from an entrepreneurial spirit from the time it was a residential home in the early 1900s to its role as a model for historic house museums nationally today,” Brucemore Director of Community Engagement Tara Richards said. “Continuing that tradition begins within the organization through the staff who are challenged with evolving to be relevant and innovative on a daily basis. Sending a team to participate in NewBoCo’s Intrapreneur Academy will be a great opportunity to learn new skills, ask questions, work together, and continue to lead change within the organization and for the community. Of even greater value is this resource is available to us in the Cedar Rapids area.”
“We’re looking forward to the opportunity to step away from our desks, learn about who we can be as an organization, and how we can continue to fuel Brucemore’s impact on the community as a museum and cultural hub.”
If you are interested in joining NewBoCo’s next cohort, please email innovation@newbo.co for more information – the next cohort will begin second quarter 2019.
Media contact: Jessalyn Holdcraft, jessalyn@newbo.co
About NewBoCo
The New Bohemian Innovation Collaborative (NewBoCo) is a 501(c)(3) organization located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. NewBoCo’s programming supports entrepreneurship, innovation, and tech education to help Iowans become more resilient and thrive in a changing economy.
About NewBoCo Intrapreneur Academy
Intrapreneur Academy is a new training program to identify and support intrapreneurs. This year-long academy for cross-functional teams includes trainings, events, tours, and guest speakers through themed quarterly opportunities. The quarters will focus on our four key innovation competencies: Agile, Methods, Culture, and Strategy.