Sustainable business models: a literature review

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (7) ◽  
pp. 2028-2047 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lidiane Cássia Comin ◽  
Camila Camargo Aguiar ◽  
Simone Sehnem ◽  
M.-Y. Yusliza ◽  
Carla Fabiana Cazella ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Business Models ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Sustainable Business ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sustainable Value ◽  
New Business ◽  
Sustainable Business Models ◽  
Operational Practices ◽  
High Level ◽  
Positive Results

Purpose The demand for resources for development also increased corporate pressures for sustainability. Consequently, it is necessary for organizations to adopt measures addressing the need to implement a new business model, which allows a management team concerned about the economy and the optimization of resources to make sustainable business models a strategic interest of the organization. The purpose of this paper is to analyze sustainable business models and the applied practices to operationalize them. Design/methodology/approach This study was conducted through a systematic review of the literature to identify the sustainable business models addressed in the literature, and what practices are applied to operationalize these models. Findings The data show that sustainable business models have an approach centered on the direct participation of stakeholders, especially the user, in the process of creating sustainable value. Overall, they offer a high level of technology-based business models that prioritize the use of clean energy, material maximization and energy efficiency, with an emphasis on repair and maintenance rather than on disposal and scheduled obsolescence, as well as an emphasis on natural and renewable processes, the reuse of waste, environmental stewardship, product transformation into technological artefacts for users, and products for services and results. Research limitations/implications The study’s contributions provide a more detailed understanding of sustainable business models and what practices can be adopted by companies to make the business truly sustainable. This paper contributed to the discussion of the research on sustainable business models and their operational practices. Originality/value The analysis promotes insights into new opportunities for companies to integrate their traditional business models with sustainability, contributing to the application of sustainable practices within the managerial scope. Companies that operate sustainable business models need to be aware that collaborative, sharing and networking models can deliver positive results for sustainable business models.

scholarly journals Backcasting for desirable futures in Finnish forest-based firms

foresight ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Annukka Näyhä
Keyword(s):  
Business Models ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Sustainable Business ◽  
Strong Basis ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Theoretical Contribution ◽  
New Business ◽  
Participative Approach ◽  
Sustainable Business Models ◽  
New Business Models

Purpose In Finland, new forest-based sector (FBS) businesses are seen as important for the transition to the circular bioeconomy. The purpose of this study is to explore the transition of Finnish FBS companies to new business models. The aim is to understand how FBS companies define their ideal future states and related business models for the year 2030. Design/methodology/approach This study uses thematic interviews with managers from various FBS firms and companies from interfacing sectors. In the interviews, the key idea of backcasting was pursued when respondents discussed the desirable future states of their business. Findings The effort to achieve growth of the business and the appearance of new products characterize the company-specific desirable future states. In these desirable futures, expanded businesses will be based on strong knowledge. Resource efficiency and collaboration create a strong basis for the desirable future state of the whole FBS to create a sustainable and innovative “Wood Valley.” Research limitations/implications The key limitations are that the backcasting process has been conducted only through interviews and a participative approach with stakeholder dialogue is lacking in the process. This means that the desirable futures are created by the FBS companies only. Originality/value As a practical contribution, the study shows the future-oriented thinking and goals of FBS firms. As a theoretical contribution, it extends research on sustainable business models and discussions on the novel field of corporate foresight.

Intertwining CSR with strategy – the way ahead

2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 211-219 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shital Jhunjhunwala
Keyword(s):  
Business Strategy ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Corporate Strategy ◽  
Sustainable Business ◽  
Socially Responsible ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sustainable Business Models ◽  
Corporate Social

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to emphasize the importance and means of making corporate social responsibility (CSR) an integral part of corporate strategy with the help of case studies. Design/methodology/approach – The article explores the transformation of business from being egocentric to socially responsible. With the use of examples it demonstrates how integrating CSR into strategy can create sustainable business models. Findings – Firms need to develop a framework for integrating CSR into their business strategy for long term successful survival. Social implications – Corporates and society are intertwined and mutually dependent. Business cannot survive without society's acquiescence nor succeed without its active support. Originality/value – The article explains the benefits of CSR and how to make it an integral part of business strategy to gain a competitive advantage.

Proposal for sustainability action archetypes for higher education institutions

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Francisco Elíseo Fernandes Sanches ◽  
Matheus Leite Campos ◽  
Luiz Eduardo Gaio ◽  
Marcio Marcelo Belli
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Scientific Literature ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Sustainable Business ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sustainable Business Models ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose Higher education institutions (HEIs) should assume their role as leaders in the search for a sustainable future. Consequently, such institutions need to incorporate sustainability into their activities. However, this needs to be done holistically and not with isolated and independent actions. Therefore, this study aims to develop a structure of sustainability action archetypes to help HEIs holistically incorporate sustainability in their strategies. Design/methodology/approach A systematic review of the literature was conducted focusing on the subject of sustainability in HEIs. Findings A structure of sustainability action archetypes for HEIs was proposed. Further, based on scientific literature, examples of actions were presented within each archetype. Practical implications This study provides HEI administrators and other organizations with a practical structure to enable the systemic incorporation of sustainability objectives and actions into institutional activities. Originality/value This study adapts the tool “sustainable business model archetypes” for a new purpose. This tool was initially developed to classify innovations of sustainable business models.

scholarly journals Surviving the Energy Transition: Development of a Proposal for Evaluating Sustainable Business Models for Incumbents in Germany’s Electricity Market

Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 730 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oliver Wagner ◽  
Thomas Adisorn ◽  
Lena Tholen ◽  
Dagmar Kiyar
Keyword(s):  
Electricity Market ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Sustainable Business ◽  
The Past ◽  
Future Challenges ◽  
New Business ◽  
Sustainable Business Models ◽  
Energy Companies

In the light of Germany’s chosen path towards the energy transition, the regulatory framework has changed considerably. New players have succeeded in entering the market, and renewable energies have become increasingly competitive. Greater electrification of the transport and heating sectors will be needed in the future to achieve national climate targets. Against this background, Germany’s big energy companies need to be sure that their sales will increase. However, they were unable to anticipate this development, and made strategic mistakes in the past. The development of sustainable business models in line with the energy transition failed to materialize. Now it is becoming increasingly clear that companies must create new business models to survive in the long term. These business models have to keep with the tradition, whilst meeting the needs of low-carbon power supplies. In this paper, we will examine the past and future challenges of the four energy companies and develop a proposal for evaluating sustainable business models. For this purpose, we use the multi-level perspective to categorize developments in the electricity market over the last 50 years, and then apply a multi-criteria analysis to derive five suitable business models from the results.

scholarly journals A Networked Analysis and Engineering Framework for New Business Models

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (21) ◽  
pp. 6018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wolfgang Vorraber ◽  
Matthias Müller
Keyword(s):  
Network Effects ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Design Science ◽  
Science Research ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Practical Case ◽  
Analysis Tool ◽  
Sustainable Business ◽  
New Business ◽  
Sustainable Business Models

New technological possibilities and paradigm shifts from product-centered to service-centered offerings are one of the main drivers of business models. Business ventures today are more and more networked. Often, various partners are needed to deliver a service or product to frequently cross-linked customers with sometimes bi- or even multi-variant roles. Furthermore, business models are embedded in socio-technical systems where different kinds of needs and values of all actors, including social, ecological, technical and economic values, have to be balanced. The resulting complex network of actors, needs and values requires continuous management in order to create and operate viable and sustainable business models. This paper proposes a multi-layer framework to analyze existing business models as well as to shape new business ventures in a networked and values-based way and to support the identification of tacit network effects within business ecosystems. Based on an existing multi-layered analysis toolkit, focusing on legal and business dynamics aspects, an enhanced visualization and analysis tool is proposed that focuses especially on ethical, social and environmental aspects to foster the creation of (strongly) sustainable business models. The research process to create the presented approach followed the Design Science Research paradigm by applying argumentative-deductive analysis (ADA) and first applications in real-world case studies. A practical case from an international Open Source Software (OSS) project serves as an example to illustrate this values-based visualization and analysis layer and its benefits for managers and decision makers in the area of business model and information system management.

scholarly journals Transformation towards Sustainable Business Models in Production

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 224-231
Author(s):  
Shahban Ali Shah ◽  
Philipp Url ◽  
Wolfgang Vorraber ◽  
Thomas Janics ◽  
Matthias Katschnig
Keyword(s):  
Business Models ◽  
Small And Medium Enterprises ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Transformation Process ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Sustainable Business ◽  
Practical Applications ◽  
Sustainable Value ◽  
Sustainable Business Models ◽  
Medium Enterprises

A global transformation from Industry 4.0 towards Industry 5.0 will soon take place. Such transformations are intrinsic to human and sustainable value creation. An increasing number of companies, recognising this imminent trend, will need to transform their current classical, solely profit-oriented business models into sustainable business models that also target human, social, and environmental aspects. Various frameworks already exist that support the design of sustainable business models. Practical applications of these frameworks and research on the transformation process in the production domain, which places a special focus on small and medium enterprises, is still scarce. This paper presents the first results from a sustainable business model transformation project on a European SME, which produces 3D printers. The research method applies a single case study design. The study was based on publicly available information and qualitative data, obtained through interviews and workshops carried out on an executive management level.

The role of business advisers in supporting social entrepreneurship

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cecilia Dalborg ◽  
Yvonne von Friedrichs
Keyword(s):  
Social Entrepreneurship ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Social Innovation ◽  
Policy Instruments ◽  
Social Enterprises ◽  
Social Entrepreneurs ◽  
Sustainable Business ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Sustainable Business Models

Purpose In many regions, the potential of social entrepreneurship and social innovation are not fully used. The purpose of this study is to explore issues and challenges in the business advisory support offered to social entrepreneurs and, from this background, give suggestions on how the advisory process to social entrepreneurs could be modified to better gain society. Design/methodology/approach Representatives from 15 business advisory organisations in Sweden were interviewed to examine how their support to social enterprises meets the needs of the companies, and to discover possible problems encountered regarding the business advice available to social enterprises. Using thematic analysis, six different overarching themes were identified that characterise issues and challenges in the business advisory support offered to social enterprises. Findings The results show that many advisers lack experience in social entrepreneurship, yet they consider that social enterprises are not “genuine” entrepreneurs, and that they, therefore, refer them to advisers focussing on co-operative enterprises. Furthermore, the absence of sustainable business models, the lack of financial resources and the existence of municipal monopoly are identified by the advisers as challenges. Practical implications This paper reveals an Achilles’ heel in the business advisory support offered to social enterprises, namely, the lack of experience and knowledge of social entrepreneurship amongst current business advisers, as well as a prioritisation of advice to more “commercial” entrepreneurs because of policy instruments and the expectations from the public funders of increased profitability and growth in the companies that receive advice. The mainstream business advisory service could play a key role by bringing together the various stakeholders in this shared value process. This would, however, require increased knowledge and new government policies and directives that ensure that social entrepreneurs are prioritised in the business advisory situation. Originality/value This paper demonstrates that the current advisory system is not adapted to fit the needs of social enterprises. It also proposes the need to include participation and proximity in the business model design.

How smart technologies can support sustainable business models: insights from an air navigation service provider

2020 ◽  
Vol 58 (8) ◽  
pp. 1715-1736 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raffaele Fiorentino ◽  
Francesco Grimaldi ◽  
Rita Lamboglia ◽  
Alessandro Merendino
Keyword(s):  
Business Model ◽  
Service Provider ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Adoption Process ◽  
Sustainable Business ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sustainable Business Models ◽  
Navigation Service ◽  
Smart Technologies

PurposeAlthough research on smart technologies explains their critical importance in sustainable business models (SBMs) (Mikalef et al., 2017), it remains unclear how organisations can embrace smart technologies to create and/or improve their sustainable business models. The purpose of this paper is to unravel and address the challenges of smart technologies to build and maintain a sustainable business model for organisations.Design/methodology/approachThe research develops an empirical analysis through a case study approach. We have investigated the case of ENAV – an Italian air navigation service provider – and how this firm uses smart technologies in the creation of its successful SBM. After constructing a basic theory, the authors moved to evidence collection. The data analysis has adopted a qualitative approach based on a thematic analysis of the transcripts and related documents.FindingsThe findings from the case study support the idea that the business value and the strategic relevance of smart technologies still remain largely underestimated in SBM adoption (Mikalef et al., 2017). Case study findings suggest that until today smart technologies have played a minimal role in SBM adoption. However, the smart technologies show the potential to inform the SBM adoption process by contributing to corporate communication for external stakeholders and to the main dimensions of SBMs such as safety and security or the respect for social and environmental criteria in the supply chain.Practical implicationsThis study seeks to support organisations and their directors to build and improve sustainable business models through smart technologies to maintain their competitive advantages. Specifically, our findings suggest that smart technologies can help organisations bridge the design–implementation gap of sustainable business models.Originality/valueThis research advances our understanding of the role of smart technologies by explaining how they can enhance sustainable business model adoption. Indeed, we offer a comprehensive view of the integration of insights from three different but related literature streams such as sustainability strategies, smart technologies and change management studies.

scholarly journals Prevailing theoretical approaches predicting sustainable business models: a systematic review

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
João J. Ferreira ◽  
Cristina I. Fernandes ◽  
Pedro M. Veiga ◽  
Mathew Hughes
Keyword(s):  
Cluster Analysis ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Hierarchical Cluster ◽  
Intellectual Structure ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Sustainable Business ◽  
Scientific Publications ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Theoretical Approaches ◽  
Sustainable Business Models

PurposeThis study aims to map scientific publications, intellectual structure and research trends in the sustainable business model (SBM) field. Specifically, it attempts to (1) identify the fundamental contributions of research in this area of knowledge; and (2) determine the research lines that constitute the most prominent intellectual structure. We leverage these insights to formulate and propose a future research agenda for SBM.Design/methodology/approachThe authors made recourse to the bibliometric, co-citation and cluster analysis techniques. To evaluate potential patterns among articles, we analysed how articles are jointly cited. We further applied hierarchical cluster analysis to the articles and used co-citation analysis to group the interrelated articles into distinct sets.FindingsThe results enable the identification and classification of the prevailing theoretical foci in the domain of SBM: (1) SBM implementation; (2) SBM challenges; (3) institutional SBM; (4) circular SBM; and (5) emerging SBM.Originality/valueThis study identifies, explores, analyses and summarises the main theoretical approaches and themes surrounding SBM research to date, contributing to deepening the literature by identifying the priority areas concerning sustainable business models and encouraging future research of an internationally excellent standard.

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