#8 - The Corporate Venturer: Diplomat, Therapist, Magician w/ Patricia Kroondijk (Canon Marketing Japan)

🎙️ Welcome to a new episode of The Corporate Venturing Podcast!What does it take to lead Corporate Venturing in a global organisation, when the rules are shifting, and the real challenge is not building ventures… but making them stick?In this episode, I sit down with Patricia Kroondijk, Head of Corporate Venture Capital and Venture Building at Canon, to explore what it means to drive innovation inside a company known for excellence and legacy, but hungry for transformation.Patricia shares her personal framework of the three roles every corporate venturer must master:🎩 The Diplomat — navigating power structures and getting buy-in🧠 The Therapist — helping the organisation unlearn old habits🪄 The Magician — creating value where no one thought it was possible+ Of course, The Entrepreneur (quite obvious)We also discuss:🧭 Why venturing is ultimately a cultural transformation tool⚖️ The power dynamics between core business and new ventures🚫 Why pushing too fast can trigger antibodies — and how to pace the journey🌐 How her team thinks globally but executes in alignment with local units🧱 The invisible work behind aligning stakeholders before a venture even launchesWhether you’re building a venture unit, managing a CVC fund, or trying to bring real innovation into a complex organisation, this episode is a masterclass in the nuance, realism, and persistence it takes to make it work.Resources:• ⁠Open Road Ventures⁠• ⁠Bundl Venture Club⁠🎧 Follow the podcast for more grounded stories from inside the world of Open Innovation and Corporate Venturing.