Sustainability-oriented business model development: principles, criteria and tools

Dynamic business modeling for sustainability: Exploring a system dynamics perspective to develop sustainable business models

“…With the distinction between the different dimensions of sustainable value (i.e., social, environmental, and economic), as well as the division of the value proposition into three clear‐cut subsections (e.g., value drivers, outputs, and outcomes), any communication on the BM may become more rigorous and transparent. Therefore, the underlying dynamic nature of the proposed DBMfS approach attempts to address major gaps found in the literature such as, for instance, the lack of proper tools for active stakeholder engagement (Rouwette, ; Voinov & Bousquet, ) and the expansion of organization boundaries with a view to incorporating the perspective of other stakeholders and different types of internal and external resources (Breuer et al, ).…”

“…Alongside, perspectives of all relevant stakeholders in the business space and the alignment of their interests are also fundamentally considered, as opposed to favoring specific short‐termed expectations of limited shareholders (Evans et al, ; Lüdeke‐Freund et al, ; Stubbs & Cocklin, ). As such, several scholars and practitioners agree in considering the multitude of sustainability challenges—for example, climate change, waste generation, poverty, and inequality—as engines of sustainable value creation (Adams, Jeanrenaud, Bessant, Denyer, & Overy, ; Breuer et al, ; Jay & Gerard, ; Lüdeke‐Freund & Dembek, ; Schaltegger & Wagner, ).…”

“…The fundamental requirement underlying the rationale of all these operational tools for designing BMfS relies on the idea that the ultimate innovation must be geared towards generating social and/or environmental benefits in business operations, therefore shifting the focus of value proposition to the society and the environment (Bocken et al, ; Porter & Kramer, ; Stubbs & Cocklin, ). In addition, Breuer et al () identify a set of theoretical prerequisites, guiding principles and process‐related criteria to develop BMfS, that currently are totally or partially neglected in the extant BMfS design tools. Their research underlines the need to reframe conventional BM components by spanning the organizational boundaries of the firm according to a systemic perspective, with the intent of facilitating the integration of stakeholders and of internal and external resources (including information, knowledge, etc.).…”

“…Recent studies highlighting the relevance of BMfS explored the state of the art in this research field, thus bringing out principles, criteria, and tools related to BMfS development, as well as design requirements, methodological gaps, and shortcomings of the extant modeling approaches (Breuer, Fichter, Lüdeke-Freund, & Tiemann, 2018;Dentchev et al, 2018;Lüdeke-Freund et al, 2019). Attempts to deal with these requirements and criticisms have resulted in valuable approaches for designing BMfS, such as the triple layer BM canvas (TLBMC; Joyce & Paquin, 2016) and the value mapping tool (Bocken, Short, Rana, & Evans, 2013).…”

Sustainable entrepreneurship, innovation, and business models: Integrative framework and propositions for future research

“…In contrast, sustainable entrepreneurs try to solve ecological and social problems through their business activities and aim at value creation for various stakeholders, which adds further complexity to the task of designing business models and aligning them with the manifold and even conflicting interests of a firm's diverse stakeholders (cf. Breuer, Fichter, Lüdeke‐Freund, & Tiemann, ; Upward & Jones, ). In addition, sustainable entrepreneurs often face a lack of complementary assets, resources, or competencies to align their business models with existing or new markets and to develop a solid positioning towards competitors (Kiefer et al, ; Schaltegger & Wagner, ).…”