Juggling a full-time job while building a side business has been one of the most formative experiences of my life. It has taught me grit, time management, and the raw mechanics of creating value from scratch. But the most unexpected lesson was how this entrepreneurial spirit transformed my performance at my day job. Every new skill I learned for my business, from speaking to clients to handling projects (small and large), I consciously applied to my role within the company. I was becoming an entrepreneur on the inside.
This powerful mindset is what many speakers, especially at events like “The Platform Nigeria,” call Intrapreneurship. It’s about being an employee who thinks and acts like an owner. It’s about seeing problems as opportunities and taking the initiative to innovate from within. The story of Tom Monaghan, the founder of Domino’s Pizza, is a testament to the power of an intrapreneurial spirit. While his journey to building a billion-dollar empire is incredible, the real magic started long before he bought his first pizzeria. It began when he learned to be an intrapreneur.
What Does an Intrapreneur Look Like?
Before we discuss Tom’s story, let’s define what an Intrapreneur is. An intrapreneur is essentially an internal entrepreneur, someone who drives innovation within an existing organisation. They possess key traits that set them apart:
- Proactive and Self-Starting: They don’t wait to be told what to do. They identify needs and start building solutions.
- Resourcefulness: They know how to navigate corporate structures to find the people, budget, and support for their ideas.
- Calculated Risk-Taking: They risk their professional reputation and time on projects they believe in, understanding the potential rewards for the company.
- Innovative Vision: They are always looking for better ways to do things, whether it’s improving a product or streamlining a process.
An intrapreneur treats their role not just as a job, but as a training ground. They understand that the company’s resources provide a unique platform to learn, experiment, and grow without the personal financial risk an entrepreneur faces.
The Training Ground for a Pizza Empire
Tom Monaghan’s early life was marked by immense hardship. By the time he was a young adult, he was trying to save money for college, taking on various jobs to make ends meet. One of these jobs was at a newspaper distributor. This is the often overlooked chapter of his story, but it’s where his intrapreneurial spirit was forged.
He wasn’t just another employee. Tom actively looked for ways to improve his work. Magnates Media notes that he gained a lot of customers by offering to deliver the papers directly to their doorstep, a simple but effective innovation. He took ownership of his role. His boss noticed this initiative and began teaching him the business side of the operation: bookkeeping, dealing with suppliers, and the fundamentals of running a business.
This was Tom’s real-world MBA. He didn’t just earn a paycheck; he absorbed the principles of logistics, customer service, and financial management. By the time the opportunity to buy a small pizzeria called “DomiNick’s” came along, he wasn’t just a guy buying a shop. He was an operator with a foundational understanding of how a local delivery business works, all thanks to the initiative he showed as an employee at the newspaper. He had practised being an owner long before he was one.
From Employee to Innovator: A Modern Example
This principle is timeless. Think of a project manager at a logistics company who notices that delivery routes are consistently inefficient. Instead of just complaining, she uses a free software trial on her own time to map out more optimal routes for a small cluster of drivers. She collects the data on fuel savings and delivery times and presents a clear, concise proposal to her superiors. She took the initiative, used available resources, and created a solution that directly benefits the company’s bottom line. That is pure intrapreneurship. She is honing skills that will serve her whether she stays and rises through the ranks or eventually starts her own logistics consultancy.
Your Job is Your Greatest Classroom
Looking back at my own journey, I now see the immense value in that dual perspective of being both an employee and a business owner. The lessons flowed both ways. My 9-to-5 gave me structure and access to professional tools, while my side hustle taught me agility and the art of sales. This synergy made me a more valuable asset to my employer and a smarter entrepreneur.
Tom Monaghan’s path proves that the spirit of entrepreneurship doesn’t have to wait until you have a business plan and startup capital. It can begin right now, in your current role. See your job as more than a set of tasks. See it as a laboratory to experiment, a platform to learn, and a stage to demonstrate the value you can create. By adopting an intrapreneurial mindset, you’re not just being a better employee; you’re actively building the person capable of achieving whatever sensational thing you dream of next.
