Affinity, an IT consultancy, is on the hunt for entrepreneurs within its own ranks. Through an intrapreneurship model, the company has spun off six autonomous “Affinity Companies” (AfCs), some generating over €3 million in annual revenue. But as CEO Carlos Pais Correia stresses, “We’re not looking for more businesses; we’re looking for more leaders.”
How do they decide which units become independent companies? It boils down to three criteria: leadership maturity (a visionary leader who fits Affinity’s culture), clear market opportunity in a niche with strong demand and margins, and the ability to manage the full business cycle from hiring to client retention.
Once these align, the unit becomes an AfC, complete with its own brand, management team, and business plan — operating like any standalone company but still within Affinity’s ecosystem.
Currently, there are six AfCs — two in Porto and four in Lisbon — including Nexus AfC and Mamba AfC, each with over 50 employees and multi-million euro revenues. Each unit maintains its own identity and strategic vision, yet shares the common culture of Affinity.
Affinity’s approach is people-first, not department-first. They seek intrapreneurs eager to create and scale new ventures under Affinity’s wing, whether as internal spin-offs or startups born from scratch. The CEO sums it up: “We give a platform to those who want to make things happen — transforming talent into impactful corporate leadership, with freedom to grow and responsibility to deliver.”
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