In this article, we cover the Business Model Navigator Methodology, which in my opinion, is among the most effective ways to craft a businessmodel. The BMI Lab gave us the opportunity to feature all the Business Model Navigator Patterns identified by the research of Oliver Gassmann, Karolin Frankenberger, and Michaela Csik.
All the materials and resources suggested are not linked to affiliations. I didn’t earn anything from those suggestions, and I decided to feature the Business Model Navigator Methodology because I think it is an extremely valuable framework for anyone interested in business modeling.
Business modeling has become a critical topic that rose of interest in the late 90s until it became ubiquitous after the rise of digital businesses and the dot-com era:
How the terms “business model” and “business models” grew exponentially after the 1990s
The reason business modeling has become such a popular topic is that with the rise of tech companies and digitalization, a competitive advantage isn’t captured anymore with products and processes.
Instead, the ability to assemble a unique business model has become a key element.
In this article, we’ll take into account the Business Model Navigator methodology developed by Oliver Gassmann, Karolin Frankenberger, and Michaela Csik.
Indeed as explained in “What is a business model?” there is a single way to assess, understand and describe a business. There are several methodologies, each with a set of assumptions about the critical components of any business. Among those on FourWeekMBA, we covered:
Each of those tools is quite useful from several standpoints. For instance, a business model canvas is an excellent place to start a complete framework of any business by looking at components such as key customers, partners, channels, and so on.
The lean startup canvas is a variation of business model canvas based on the concept of lean startup, and it is a good starting point for smaller businesses and startups.
Instead, a framework and tool like Blitzscaling canvas (I created this canvas by starting from the Blitzscaling book) is an excellent place to start if you need to assess whether your company or startup has all the key ingredients to scale up.
We’ll focus now on the business model navigator, which I found among the most effective tools to dissect any business, given its simplicity and effectiveness.
What’s a business model according to the Business Model Navigator Methodology?
In short, a business model is how the different bits and pieces of a company come together to form a whole, a sort of organism, which grows, survives and thrives in the marketplace.
Therefore, as defined in the book Business Model Navigator “a business model provides a holistic picture of how a company creates and capture value.“
The Business Model Navigator Methodology
The Business Model Navigator Methodology uses a simple framework to dissect a business model which looks at who, what, how and why of a business.
Those four dimensions allow you to map any company’s business model by having a complete picture of its engine. For instance:
The What helps to map the value proposition or the products and services offered and how they compel your target customers
The How defines the value chain or the set of activities the company undertakes to execute the value proposition
And the Why is about financial viability and how the company can balance between cost structure and revenue generation to achieve profitability
What is a business model pattern?
A business model pattern is a blueprint to creating new ideas and achieve business model innovation as a mean to create a lasting competitive advantage.
The BMI Lab gave us the opportunity to feature all the 60 Business Model Navigator Patterns identified by the research of Oliver Gassmann, Karolin Frankenberger, and Michaela Csik:
A business model is a holistic picture of a business and how its bits and pieces come together to form a whole, that becomes a financially viable organization able to serve a target audience, through a value proposition executed via a value chain. While there are several tools, frameworks and methodologies to assess a businessmodel, the Business Model Navigation Methodology by Oliver Gassmann, Karolin Frankenberger, and Michaela Csik from BMI Lab is – in my opinion – among the most valuable methodologies to assess any businessmodel.
Gennaro is the creator of FourWeekMBA, which reached about four million business people, comprising C-level executives, investors, analysts, product managers, and aspiring digital entrepreneurs in 2022 alone | He is also Director of Sales for a high-tech scaleup in the AI Industry | In 2012, Gennaro earned an International MBA with emphasis on Corporate Finance and Business Strategy.
