Adopting an Entrepreneurial Model for Growth

David Reid, CTO & CMO at NOV, shares how enterprise leaders grow by combining near-term cashflow discipline with long-horizon innovation. He explains why corporate groups often reject ideas they did not create. He shows how trust and relationships win complex deals. He closes with practical ways to build healthier, higher-performing teams.

David Reid, CTO and CMO at NOV, explains that sustainable enterprise growth depends on balancing today’s cash flow with tomorrow’s vision. He describes a split-brain mindset where one side focuses on near-term execution while the other commits to long-horizon innovation. Over three decades, David has applied this balance to help NOV scale while staying agile and people-centered.

His perspective challenges leaders to pair disciplined revenue with experimentation, to simplify decisions, and to build trust inside and outside the company. The result is a practical model for growth that is both ambitious and grounded in reality.

“The difference between good and bad strategists is that some people understand this concept, or recognize it as a weakness and compensate for it. You’re always doing something that pays us now so that we can do the big stuff later. It’s a split brain that you need.” – David Reid

Key Takeaways:

Balance near-term execution with long-term innovation.
Build ownership to overcome common corporate rejection patterns.
Lead through trust so relationships drive complex outcomes.

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Article: Adopting an Entrepreneurial Model for Growth

This article is based on an interview with David Reid, CTO & CMO at NOV

The Split Brain Approach to Strategy

David describes how many leaders overinvest in vision while starving the business of what it needs now. As he puts it, “You’re always doing something that pays us now so that we can do the big stuff later.” This principle guides NOV’s use of smaller, entrepreneurial units that keep velocity inside a large enterprise. The aim is to sustain the present while investing in the future, so long bets are not funded at the expense of operational health.

He cautions that neglecting sustainability can erode the foundation before long-term bets mature. Practical discipline is not the enemy of innovation; it is the engine that powers innovation over time. By protecting cash flow and simplifying decisions, leaders create space for ideas to prove themselves. That balance lets teams iterate without risking the core of the business, which keeps strategy ambitious and execution dependable.

Ownership That Makes Innovation Stick

Corporate innovation often fails because people reject ideas they did not create. David explains that giving teams genuine ownership prevents this reflex. In his renewable energy work, he removed constraints and invited accountability. As he says, “We gave them freedom to innovate.” He asked for evidence of learning, not only results. “Show me failures. Tell me that you’re failing all the time. If you can make it fail, then we have a business.”

This freedom reframes failure as data and turns experiments into enterprise value. Once concepts showed promise, manufacturing partners were brought in early so that knowledge could transfer with pride of authorship. That step reduced the common rejection of external ideas and increased adoption. When teams build and own the solutions, they defend, refine, and scale them. Ownership does more than motivate; it smooths the path from prototype to reliable revenue.

Trust That Wins Complex Deals

David emphasizes that trust is the cornerstone of lasting partnerships. “Selling has become a dirty word,” he says. “But the best deals are built on trust and alignment.” For him, credibility comes from integrity and presence with customers and teams. He believes authenticity and integrity cannot be “dialed up,” they must be lived. That stance changes the conversation from pressure to service and from tactics to outcomes.

Trust also shapes internal leadership. Healthy teams require leaders who protect balance, invite feedback, and care about people. When leaders model steadiness, customers feel it during long cycles and stressful moments. Complex deals move forward because the relationship can carry the weight of inevitable problems. The sale follows trust, not the other way around. That truth turns trust from a soft idea into a core growth strategy.

Conclusion

David Reid’s message is clear. Growth that lasts requires a steady split between near-term cash flow and long-term innovation. It involves ownership that converts experiments into adopted solutions. It requires trust that carries relationships through complex decisions. By pairing discipline with curiosity and authenticity with accountability, leaders create cultures that sustain innovation and outperform over time.

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Steven MacDonald

Steven MacDonald is the founder of Content Strategies, CEO of a MarTech SaaS Company, fractional CMO consulting with leading B2B companies and former Director of Strategy and Client Service at top ten digital marketing agencies.

Follow Steve on LinkedIn.

Steven MacDonald

Follow Steve on LinkedIn.