How to use analogies for creative business modelling

摘要

Business model design frameworks will enable creative design when used as part of a wider design strategy. Using business cases as analogies is a useful method to stimulate new ideas. However, the issues that business cases are used to solve, as well as the solutions we find in those cases, are influenced in part by industrial and organisational norms. By being aware of this and adopting a reflexive methodology, managers can achieve greater creativity when using analogies in business modelling. This paper puts forward one such technique, multi-analogy modelling, the key steps of which are: ■ Search for business cases that are different from your firm: Look across industries, across geographies or throughout history for interesting cases. ■ Interpret the case: How does the business create, deliver and capture value? ■ Reinterpret the case: Try looking at the case from a different perspective. Do you find any new insights? ■ Get an external perspective: Ask others to interpret the case. Look for media descriptions or analyses. ■ Revise the issue: Did you learn something unexpected in the case that makes you want to solve a different problem or chase a different opportunity? ■ Select and apply: Highlight those insights that are most interesting. How might they be applied to your firm? ■ Check for consistency. Do the business model elements fit together? In order for business model design to encourage creativity, techniques should enable managers to confront their assumptions and reframe the task at hand without neglecting their pre-existing expertise.