Success Factors in Corporate Venturing: Achieving Excellence in Establishing and Operating Corporate Venture Units

Corporate Venture Units (CVUs) appear to be a promising vehicle to strengthen the future competitiveness of corporations by focusing on ambidexterity, i.e., exploiting core strengths and business activities while exploring new business models. Due to their exploratory focus, CVUs operate more independently to circumvent the (organizational) difficulties that incumbents may have when attempting to innovate. In order to address a persistent disparity in the organizational setup and maturity of CVUs, the present study identifies relevant success factors for achieving excellence in establishing and operating Corporate Venture Units. While there are differences in the success factors depending on the strategic mandate, innovation horizon and innovation vehicle, this study identifies eight overarching recommendations that can be observed across multiple successful CVUs. By incorporating these recommendations, the odds of successfully establishing and operating a CVU may be increased.