Joan E. Ricart

Business Model Innovation and Sources of Value Creation in Low-Income Markets

We explore different business ventures in low-income markets in order to understand the factors influencing business model innovation in this context. Grounded in the rich data obtained from multiple case study analyses and in the received theory in strategy in low-income markets and business models, we identified a set of contingency factors that permitted us to distinguish between isolated and interactive business models. Isolated business models widen its entrance into new markets by leveraging firms current resources and capabilities for taking advantage of existing opportunities. Interactive business models require a firm to combine, integrate and leverage both internal resources with ecosystems capabilities to create new business opportunities. Finally, we discuss the main implications on value creation from these business models.

Business model innovation – state of the art and future challenges for the field

Business model innovation is receiving increased attention in corporate practice and research alike. We propose in this article a role‐based approach to categorize the literature and argue that the respective roles of explaining the business, running the business, and developing the business can serve as three interrelated perspectives to present an overview of the current business model innovation field and to accommodate the selected contributions of this special issue. We refer to contributions from entrepreneurship, innovation and technology management, and corporate strategy to explicate the three elaborated perspectives and to summarize the main contents of the special issue articles. We conclude by reflecting on main theoretical challenges for studies on business model innovation which stem from the uncertain boundaries of the phenomenon, and we propose some theoretical stances and analytic levels to develop future avenues for research.

Using Stakeholder Dialogue as a Source for New Ideas - A Dynamic Capability Underlying Sustainable Innovation

This paper attempts to gain a deeper understanding of the firms ability to integrate stakeholder insights into the process of organisational innovation within the context of sustainable development. Given the early stage of empirical research on the topic, we used an exploratory case study of two Spanish companies that have successfully learned from stakeholder dialogue and have generated innovations that are beneficial both to the company and to sustainable development in general. The evidence from the two case studies suggests that there are two simple capabilities - stakeholder dialogue and stakeholder knowledge integration for generating innovations in accordance with stakeholder needs. Whereas stakeholder dialogue leverages organisational resources that promote two-way communication, transparency and appropriate feedback to stakeholders, stakeholder knowledge integration relies on non-hierarchical structures, flexibility and openness to change. The paper sheds some light on the under-researched issue of linking stakeholder dialogue and sustainable innovation, and contributes to opening the black box of dynamic capabilities and advancing in the understanding of this fundamental organisational concept.

Sustainable Development and the Sustainability of Competitive Advantage: A Dynamic and Sustainable View of the Firm

Does the need for sustainable development hinder businesses’ ability to create value? Is a firm’s competitiveness negatively affected by considering that need? After quickly reviewing the main literature contributions on the relationship between business and society, and drawing from resource-based view of the firm and sustainable development literature, this paper presents a proposal for a dynamic and sustainable view of the firm. It shows how considering the changes introduced into the competitive landscape by sustainable development influences the way in which companies develop their resources, capabilities and activities, fostering the persistence of competitive advantages based on knowledge and innovation.

Sustainability in the boardroom

Purpose – Although an extensive body of research treats the fields of corporate governance and sustainable development separately, less attention has been paid to the interaction between both fields. This paper attempts to bridge this gap by examining how corporate governance systems are evolving in order to integrate sustainable development thinking into them.Design/methodology/approach – Drawing from corporate governance, sustainable development, and stakeholder theory literature, an analysis is performed of the governance systems of the 18 corporations that are leading the market sectors considered by the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index.Findings – The results of our in‐depth analysis of the 18 cases are presented and the sustainable corporate governance model that emerges from that analysis is proposed.Research limitations/implications – This model does not attempt to question or replace the previous recommendation and frameworks suggested in the literature on corporate governance and codes of gov...

Competing Through Business Models

In this article a business model is defined as the firm choices on policies, assets and governance structure of those policies and assets, together with their consequences, be them flexible or rigid. We also provide a way to represent such business models to highlight the dynamic loops and to facilitate understanding interaction with other business models. Furthermore, we develop some tests to evaluate the goodness of a business model both in isolation as well as in interaction with other business models of different organizations, be those competitors, complements, suppliers, partners, etc.

Competitiveness: business model reconfiguration for innovation and internationalization

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to reflect on competitiveness by using the business model concept and to understand the need to adapt business models to changes in the environment.Design/methodology/approach – Using Catalonia as a context, the paper derives recommendations by presenting and analyzing examples of companies, referred to as “new generation companies,” that have innovated in their business models. The case studies illustrate the contributions of the business model notion to the competitiveness debate.Findings – Reviewing the history and contemporary practice of Catalan firms, examples of “new generation” companies are analyzed to derive recommendations for managers seeking to reconfigure their business models to support innovation and internationalization. Since business models sit at the core of competitiveness, they must be the focus of managers aiming to create efficient firms that foster sustained competitive advantage.Research limitations/implications – The analysis is based on a ...

Process Innovation: Changing Boxes or Revolutionizing Organizations?

Centering change programs around the concept of ‘business process’ helps to focus on the client and emphasizes cross-functionality. BPR, in addition, seeks radical improvements. Although powerful, these ideas are insufficient. Important dimensions are often omitted in both the design and the implementation of process-based improvement projects. One of them is the learning that individuals and organizations need to undertake in order to make new designs really effective. Based on field research, this paper proposes conceptual frameworks that: (1) suggest the relevant dimensions in the design and implementation of process improvement projects, (2) make the learning considerations explicit, and (3) explain why a more holistic approach to BPR is necessary. This helps to explain why the cases in a series of 13 studied in depth are individually so different and yet they fit a common underlying pattern.

Corporate strategy: an agent‐based approach

In this paper, we explore the application of the construct exploitation and exploration at the level of the corporate strategy of the firm. For that purpose, we operationalized and formalized the analysis through the development of a set of agent‐based simulations which capture and describe the evolution of firms led by exploitative and explorative corporate strategies in business environments showing different levels of complexity. Results indicate that the relative performances of exploitative strategies vs those characterized by an opportunistic combination of exploitation and exploration, are contingent on the characteristics of the environment in which the firm operates and the quality of the corporate strategic plans that determine the initial strategic positioning of the firm.

The Open Kimono: Toward a General Framework for Open Data Initiatives in Cities

The article presents a framework for exploring the drivers, structure, and dynamics of open data initiatives in the city context. Drawing on a case study of the city of Barcelona complemented with other cases, it develops a stepwise framework that can serve as a practical guide for both urban and private leaders to implement open data strategies. Following this model can enable managers to minimize risk and effectively harness the power of open data.