Big business is being encouraged to adopt the entrepreneurial spirit of startups and SMEs in the aim of boosting the UK’s economic growth.

In a recent study carried about by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development has found that encouraging a culture of ‘intrapreneurialism’ could help bigger business to follow the same innovation and growth trends as smaller businesses.

Intrapreneurs are those who work in larger organisations and are given the responsibility of developing new ideas and concepts in the same way that an entrepreneur would.

This report outlines the recent successes that have been experienced within the small business world amongst entrepreneurs. Sales in the small business sector have been growing by an estimated 20 per cent year-on-year with SMEs contributing 52 per cent of private sector gross value that has been added to the UK economy.

From the study, the CIPD are now encouraging employers in larger companies to adopt a more entrepreneurial approach to business, by letting intrapreneurs have a larger place within their companies.

“There’s no doubt that a successful business depends on innovative ideas and sound market strategy, but this report shows that good people management is crucial to the long term success of any business,” says Claire McCartney, research advisor at the CIPD.

“As startup companies grow, it can be easy for the entrepreneurial spirit that made it so successful in the first place to wane, but the companies we’ve spoken to have proven that even the largest organisations can retain an innovative edge if they pay close attention to attracting, retaining, engaging and developing the right talent to live and breathe the values of the founders.”