Cross Border Leadership Patterns:
A Pattern Language for Social Intrapreneurs at the Early Stages
Hideo Miura
Wilson Learning Worldwide, Inc.
Takashi Iba
Keio University
Eri Shimomukai
Abstract
Social intrapreneurs are individuals who take initiatives to solve social problems with utilizing
resources within a company they belong to and building networks among professionals not justin their own organization but also outside of it and their business stakeholders. This patternlanguage is created based on results of interviews with 15 social intrapreneurs in Japan who
have experienced all of the early stage business development process of cross border leadership,
which we defined. The aim of building this pattern language on social intrapreneurship is toencourage individuals ,who are willing to initiate a project, to tackle social issue while they
belong to a corporate organization, to take action and create social impact by using all theavailable resources in a company.
1. Introduction
In the century, the majority of corporations, including Japanese companies, that are at
the stage of start-up and growth encourage their employees to establish solid establish businessmodels that are able to sustainably generate profits. However, after they came to the stage ofsteady, which they successfully found the financially stable models and systems, many ofcompanies, especially large corporations in Japan, are eventually facing challenges, such as
slowed- down productivity and profitability due to standardization and bureaucratization within
an organization and culture of not taking risks to preserve existing models. In order to lead themto the breakthrough, they are required to shift their mindset to create new value by utilizing
resources they have already owned and collaborate with professionals even in the different
sectors.
Along the paradigm shift in the process of creating new business, how each
employee performs is changing. While each individual was expected to complete their own
tasks and roles that their boss assigned when a company was at the phase of steady, they are
now required to initiate new projects that are linked to both of the mission of a company andtheir own passion.
A new approach to innovation may be exactly what is needed amongst Japanese
corporations. What may help corporate leaders, who tend to depend on scientific numbers andresearch, change their mindset is to seek out the common good and not just improving theirbusiness (Nonaka & Takeuchi 2011).
We found a group of Japanese professionals who are called social intrepreneurs.
They work inside major corporations or organizations to develop and promote practicalsolutions to social or environmental challenges where progress is currently stalled by market
failures. They are also someone who applies the principles of social entrepreneurship inside amajor organization, and characterized by an ‘insider-outsider’ mindset and approach(SustainAbility 2008).
Interestingly, we found the passionate individuals who create new project which
gives tremendous impacts on social problems by using a variety of existing resources in thecompanies that they belong to in Japan. Also, we realize that there are a number of individuals
who struggle with starting such a project. That motivated us to create a pattern language forthose social intrapreneurs still at the beginning stages.
2. Method
We conducted an individual interview with 15 social intrapreneurs in Japan for 120
minutes each. Each participant had developed a new business within each of their respective
corporations. The interview questions were based on an essence model created by Wilson
Learning Worldwide, a company focused to improve human performance (Wilson Learning,1990). The questions focused on 5 categories: 1. Events Leading Up to Begin, 2. Essence(Core, Intent), 3. Form (Process, Action), and 4. Impact (Value), and 5. Message.
In the early stages of business development process, many obstacles must be
overcome to achieve any vision. Each question in the interview examined various actions taken
in a business development process. Events Leading Up to Begin asked the participants
background story. Essence discussed the intent and reason for their passion towards their social
issue of choice, vision. Form questioned the process, obstacles experienced and how they
resolve it, and knowledge gained. In Impact, participants discussed their results and its impact
on society, corporation and self. And in Message, we asked participants their vision andconcept for professionals working under what they have created, and the significance ofactualizing their goal.
3. Results
As we reviewed our results, we found there were underlining common issues andproblems between all participants, especially in the early stages of the intrepreneurs’ businessdevelopment process. We broke down this early stage in 5 critical steps, and organized thecommon behaviors as 20 different actions. The 5 steps are: Discovery, Determination, Concept
Sharing, Linkage, and Result. Table 1 shows the 21 patterns in this pattern languages. These are
identified as: 0. Foundation Building, 1: Moya-moya Dialogue, 2: Ambitious Circle, 3: Network
Building, 4: Feasible First Step, 5: Shared Value, 6: Executive Supporter, 7: Passionate
Proposal, 8: Exit Plan, 9: Negative Comment Translator, 10: Multi-Perspective Sharing, 11: CoCreation Ecosystem, 12: Other Things to Do? 13: Story-Telling, 14: Leverage Point on
Decision-Making, 15: Realizing their Vision, 16: Execution Team, 17: Small Success, 18:
Establish Outside Reputation, 19: Best Alternative, 20: Opportunity Loss Proposal. Each pattern
was placed in 3 separate categories as Concept Actualization, Leading (progressive actions), or
Against (overcome adversities).
Further, in recognizing that each action had a context, problem, and solution, wewere able to create a pattern language. We developed this pattern language as a common
language to help anyone who wants to become a social intrepreneur and succeed in his/her
process (Iba, 2013). After reorganizing the actions as 20 pattern languages, we asked the 15
previously interviewed participants to review their actions based on the 20 patterns we created.
Results showed that they had experienced each pattern 50% to 92% of the time.
In this paper, we present five patterns, 1. Moya-moya Dialogue, 2. Ambitious Circle,
11: Co-creation Ecosystem,14: Leverage Point on Decision-Making, and 15: Realizing their
Value.

Table 1. 21 Patterns on Cross Border Leadership Patterns

Patterns
Moya-moya Dialogue"Moya-moya" is a word that means feeling of uncertainty and frustrations about the fact you are not sure
about something. Start telling your idea rather than feeling frustrated about the fact that your idea for the
project is not clear.

Context
You have some ideas and questions that might lead you to start up a new project.
ProblemYour ideas of detailed actions are not clear yet neither feasible, so you miss chances to polishthem.
At the first place stage, ideas are usually too vague to be implemented, so you do not haveconfidence to share it with others.
・ Whenever people do not have confidence about quality of ideas, they hesitate to talk about it
to others.
・ If you do not share your ideas with others, you have mush fewer opportunities to polishthem.
Solution
Meet with a variety of people from diverse background to set up opportunities to tell your ideas.
Express your ideas as if you are just talking to your friends instead of contemplating what you
say
Even if you have not come up with specific solutions yet, just tell what you think as a problem• Be honest about you are still not sure what exactly you would do for your project.
• Set up opportunities to meet up with professionals in diverse backgrounds to make sure whichpart of your ideas can gain empathy and support from them.
Consequence
Talking out your ideas make your thoughts organized.
This leads you to feel more confident about your approach to the issue.
・ Feedbacks can polish your ideas.
・ People listening to you may tell you that your idea is not worth implementing because they
are not well-formed; this may disencourage you from taking next step.

Ambitious Circle
Find comrades who plan and take actions
Context
You have motivation and ideas for your cross border project.
ProblemSince you are the only one who designs a project, your idea for the project is not sophisticatedenough to be implemented.
• Ideas for a project tends to be one sided when only one person brainstorms for something new.
• Since resources that you can tap into for a project are limited, your creativity to come up with new ideas
also gets limited.
• Seeing a big difference between your ideal plans and what kind of resources you actually have makes
you think that you have to do things that you are not good at in order to fill the gap.
• When you do not have someone to ask for feedbacks and advices for your project, you feel lonely andthat leads you have less creative ideas.

Solution
Find your comrades who you can share your ambition with in your organization, andinvite them to your project as team members.
• Share significance of your project and your passion with people who might be interested.
• Listen to their thoughts on the project and what they are interested in.
• Discuss the meaning of the project for society and impacts you would like to create for society
and yourselves with those new members.
ConsequenceYour project can be more feasible since it has more diverse perspectives from your comrades.
Your goal would become your team’s goal by achieving a consensus among your teammembers on the social impact and vision of the project.
Having multi perspectives from diverse group of people may lead you not to be able to reflect
your ideas that you initially think that is important.

Co–Creative Ecosystem
Create the eco-system with multi stakeholders that bring a wide variety of perspectives andresources to your projectContext
You are attempting to solve complex social issues by a for-profit approach
ProblemSince inspirations and ideas based on the existing business model barely lead you to come up
with great ideas to make solid income models, the impact of your plans of your project would
be small.
It is almost impossible to run the business with a service that is provided with people who
cannot afford it.
Solving small parts of the issue would not make you to accomplish your goal
Even if you have passion and ideas to solve the problem, having solid business model isalmost that you commit to the project voluntarily.
Solution
Create an eco-system with multi stakeholders that take action on the same issue as yours so thatyou can have wide variety of resources and creativity for a solution.
・ Rather than struggle with creating the perfect solution which involves only yourorganization, find other stakeholders that share your passion and goal towards the issue(No.10 Multi Perspective Sharing)・ Create a community with those stakeholders and then brainstorm the ideal cycle around theissue. In this process, some of existing technology to cerate a solid community, such as
dialogue, future session, and system thinking, would be beneficial.
・ In the process of exchanging deep thoughts and feelings on each other’s current situation,
keep it mind that everyone always share their approaches from micro perspectives, and thenothers should use those details as clues for map out the larger picture.
• With your members of the co-creative ecosystem, consider ideas for an adequate financial
flow, and business model that lead the issue to be solved.
Consequence
・ Looking at the situation from birds' perspective makes you clear with what has actuallytriggered the issue, and what is missing in the project.
・ Having a variety of organizations in diverse sectors as stakeholders promote your project tobe able to establish a financially benefitable business model even if the recipients of theservice cannot afford it.
・ Because there are so many different stakeholders are involved, it may become difficult toshare benefits and profits with them.

Other Things to Do?
Acquire credibility on you to get a chance for your projectContext
You have some ideas of the cross border project, which is out of your responsibility or role, inyour mind, and seek opportunity to make it happen with your No.7 Passionate Proposal.
Problem
When the results of your mandatory roles do not meet the goal, you can rarely havean opportunities to do something different from compulsory tasks from your organization.
・ Whenever the quality of the result on your mandatory tasks goes down, your boss andcolleagues would say to you that you have other things to do before doing something new.
・ If you insist on what you want to do besides your role in the organization under the situationthat you are not meeting the given goal, other people might think that you are just avoidingfrom the tasks.
・ Managers tend to push out things that hinder your organization from accomplishing the goalon the tasks and responsibility.
Solution
Fulfill all of your tasks and responsibilities that you are given by an organization to acquire trustfrom all the stakeholders within your organization
・ Aim to gain better results than your goal on mandatory tasks so that you would not create
any space for your bosses to point out that your project hinders you from achieving theminimum goal on the mandatory role.
・ Try not to do everything by yourself. Ask your boss and colleagues for help whenever you
are not sure about your tasks.
・ Willingly take tasks that other people hesitate to do, such as something your colleagues
complain of, or something takes time for them.
・Consequence
You will have more possibilities to gain chances to initiate your project when you bring morethat what your boss and organization require you.
Creating trust on your mandatory responsibility encourage your boss to listen to what you
want to initiate besides your minimum role in the organization.
・ Your boss might be convinced to let you use wide variety of resources for your project.
・ This approach may cause you to be so busy that you do not have time to do other things.

Realize their Vision
Connecting the mission of your project to the vision of your organization
Context
You feel like that the domain of your project does not fit that of your organization's current
business model
Problem
Decision makers of your organization are not convinced that your project deserves investing
resources of the company
Valuable projects for the society do not necessarily mean that your organization have toimplement them
It is hard to understand the importance of your organization's commitment to your project
when its domain is different from the organization's or the process of developing the project is
not the familiar way.
Organizations consist of highly specialized and fixed structure tend not to embrace diverse
ideas.
・ You cannot get an agreement on your project without explaining the importance of theorganization's involvement in it even though you show its value as business.
Solution
Connect the vision of your organization to the mission of your project, and make its social
impact overlap with its value as business.
・ Research the history of your organization to learn the founder’s initial motivation andmission when starting it. If there is a book telling the history of your company or the
autobiography of the founder, read them. If there is not, find people who used to work withthe founder and interview them.
Link the explanation of your project itself to more conceptual vision of your organization.
・ It is easier to reach an agreement about significance of your organization's commitment to
the project among with your sponsors and supporters, when you present your plans as closely
related to the vision of the organization which represents their social importance and purposesof their business.
Consequence
The significance and importance of your project would be understood not as "a means" ofbusiness but as "a purpose" of the reason why your organization have to be involved in it.
Since the vision of the organization is "the basis for decision making", you can have aconstructive conversation with your comrades
It becomes more possible to obtain powerful supports from founders of organizations andbusinesses because they already have experiences of realizing projects started from their vision.

REFERENCES
Fitzpatrick, M. (2013 Aug 21). “Can Japan re-boot its anti-innovation start-up culture?,”Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20130820pluggig-japans-start-up-gap
Iba, T. (2013), “Pattern languages as media for creative society,” Johokanri, vol.55, no.12, 865873.
Murui, M. (2014, Dec 7). “Successors to company founders in Japan lack the necessary insightto nurture talent and innovation,” Retrieved from http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2f6de1c8-73d211e4-92bc-00144feabdc0.html#axzz3SvcjBR6a
Nonaka, I., & Takeuchi, H. (2011). “The Wise Leader,” Harvard Business Review 89, no.5
(May 2011).
The Social Intrapreneur: A Field Guide for Corporate (1st ed.). (2008). SustainAbility. Oxford,
UK. Leading from Within. (1990). Wilson Learning Worldwide, Minneapolis, MN.

Appendix
Patlets of the Cross Border Leadership Patterns for Social Intrapreneurs
Table 2 introduces all 20 patterns from the Cross Border Leadership Patterns as patlets. It willshow the pattern name, along with a short summary of the solution section. This will give thegeneral idea of the pattern.
Table 2. All 22 patterns from the Cross Border Leadership Patterns as patlets
No.

Pattern Name

Solution / Summary

1

Moya-moya
DialogueStart telling your idea rather than feeling frustrated about the factthat your idea for the project is not clear.

2

Ambitious Circle

Find your comrades who you can share your ambition within your organization, and invite them to your project as teammembers.

3

Network Building

Build network with a group of diverse people who empathize withyour vision and possible have different background and skills.

4

Feasible First Step

Instead of getting a consensus on the whole idea of the project,
start with breaking down the plan into small pieces of feasible
ideas with short time goals.

5

Shared Value

Convey what kind of outcomes and results your project would
bring to your organization and how you would accomplish it.

6

Executive Supporter

Find opportunities to advertise your project to executives or
people who could influence people with authorities in order tomake them understand what you try to achieve

7

Passionate Proposal

Create a balanced proposal that include both logical plans andyour passion towards your project8

Exit Plan

Contain some pages for objective "Withdrawal Conditions" whichshows situations to suspend the project in your proposal.

9

Negative Comment
Translator

Change your understanfing on negative comments and accept
them as opportunities to step forward

10

Multi-Perspective
Sharing

Set up opportunities where all of the stakeholders can share theirthoughts and perspectives on the issue you are tackling in the
project

11

Co-Creation
Ecosystem

Create the eco-system with multi stakeholders that bring a wide
variety of perspectives and resources to your project

12

Other Things to Do?

Fulfill all of your tasks and responsibilities that you are given by
an organization to acquire trust from all the stakeholders withinyour organization

13

Story-telling

Create a story that motivate potential supporters to empathize withyour idea by reflecting on why you initiated a project, what kindof approaches you would actually take, and the impact you aim
to achieve

14

Leverage Point on
Decision-Making

Be selective about who and when you present your project tocollect resources and permission for the project

15

Realizing
VisionConnect the vision of your organization to the mission of yourproject, and make its social impact overlap with its value asbusiness

16

Execution TeamPut an end to a concept-making phase of your project, andcarefully select suitable members for the next implementation
phase.

17

Small SuccessIn the beginning phase of implementing the project, focus on
making a number of small success that can be seen andevaluated easily

18

Establish
OutsideReputation

Get supports and recognitions from the outside of yourorganization first19

Best Alternative

Present that your project is the best alternatives

20

Risk for Not-DoingShow the risk that an organization would make unless they do not
do a business out of your projecttheir