We use a microfoundations lens to challenge the assumption of a simple relationship between organizational-level context (subsidiary entrepreneurial orientation) and entrepreneurial outcomes (initiative realization). Drawing on middle manager and subsidiary literature we argue that the strategic activities of the subsidiary's central actor, the subsidiary CEO (referred to as the subsidiary manager), translates the benefits of subsidiary entrepreneurship for initiative realization. We test this mediating effect of subsidiary manager micro-level activities on data from 186 individuals. The results of our multilevel mediation analysis show that micro-activities of subsidiary managers mobilize subsidiary entrepreneurship for initiative realization, ‘downwards' through facilitating subsidiary adaptability, and ‘horizontally' through enabling embeddedness in the local environment. Our findings also challenge the accepted value of ‘upward' championing alternatives. Revealing the centrality of subsidiary-manager activities for unlocking entrepreneurship demonstrates the value of adopting a microfoundations lens for understanding organizational phenomena.