Archive for June, 2008

Jun 27, 2008

WANTED: Business Model Innovators

Alexander Osterwalder

I would like to conduct a series of short video/phone-interviews with high profile business model innovators for the book project I’m working on. Then I could share them with you through the web…

Please send me some ideas of who I could/should interview. Even better, tell me how I can get in contact with that person (e.g. through your network). I’m looking for business model innovators (not mere innovators ;-) in any possible industry, such as pharma, banking, clothing, … The requirement is that the person is in top management and his company has a certain size (and visibility)

examples:

  • Niklas Zennström (or Janus Friis), KaZaA:Skype:Joost
  • Michael Dell, Dell
  • Stelios Haji-Ioannou, easyJet

I would also be interested in getting your ideas on innovative business model examples in general. Particularly those with a turn-over of over 100 mio USD.

Can you help me out?

Jun 18, 2008

Business Model Innovation Book (book structure prototype)

Alexander Osterwalder

The reflections on our book on business model innovation are advancing daily. Yves Pigneur, my co-author, and I have come up with a first rough prototype book structure. We will refine our thinking this Friday and we are, of course, curious to hear your feedback.

You can check out the structure in the slidecast below. It gives you an idea where we are heading, though this first draft structure only sketches out the rough outlines.

To listen to and visualize the slidecast, please hit the play button. All the rest is automatic.

I’m looking forward to your first feedbacks…

Jun 16, 2008

"The Wall is the Desk of the Future"

Alexander Osterwalder

Last Friday I ran a workshop on business model innovation with the management of one of the 5 regions of a top Swiss bank. In the break-out session the bankers split into groups and were supposed to work on huge posters to sketch-out the business model of an innovative bank. That is when I realized how uncommon it still is for executives to think visually and use the wall/poster as a visual thinking aid.

They had lively discussions around their table, but it needed some stimulation from my side to get them to use the posters. I insisted on this because I think visualization of business issues is increasingly a requirement to tackle the complex problems of our time.

Understanding not only the issues, but also the links between issues is a must in today’s complex world. Yet, this is very difficult to achieve without a visual aid. That is where the wall is very helpful and gives all participants of a meeting a common reference point… When Dave Gray, CEO of XPLANE, was visiting us in Geneva he said one thing that I don’t stop quoting:

“the wall is the desk of the future”

Have a glance at some images I put together in a Power Point presentation illustrating the above quote:

Jun 5, 2008

Online Seminar : Introduction to Business Model Design & Innovation

Alexander Osterwalder

Date: June 26, 17 :00 CET (Geneva, Berlin, Paris, Madrid)
Price: 150.- USD
Presenter: Dr. Alexander Osterwalder
Duration: 1 hour and question & answer

Are you interested in business models and business model innovation? Do you wonder how this topic will impact you, your company and your competitive environment in the future? Then you should participate in this web seminar. It will introduce you to the fundamentals of business model thinking – a topic that is still too often poorly defined.

In this web seminar you will learn why business model thinking is so important today. You will see how innovative business models are disrupting the airline and music industry. This is likely to challenge you to reflect on the consequences for your own company and industry. To facilitate this reflection we will learn how to use the Business Model Canvas. This approach will allow you to easily sketch out your own and your competitors’ business models. Throughout the web seminar we will use interesting and innovative cases from various industries to get a better grasp on the topic of business model innovation.

Key take-away of the web seminar – you will:

  • sense why it is indispensable for you to start thinking in terms of business models in today’s competitive landscape
  • learn how you can describe your own business model based on the intuitive and pragmatic business model canvas
  • understand what business model innovation is about and how it differs from other types of innovations (e.g. product or process innovation)
  • learn about interesting and innovative cases of business model innovation

Who should participate?

Managers, entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs, business strategists, consultants, academics, venture capitalists.

Caveat

In this introductory seminar we will not go into depth regarding the business model innovation process inside companies. This particular topic is reserved for a future seminar focusing on just that. Similarly, we will not go into depth as to business model assessment, which is also reserved for a future seminar. However, we strongly recommend that people interested in the special-topic seminars scheduled at a later date, follow the introductory web seminar.

General Information

The web seminar will consist of a one hour lecture by Dr. Alexander Osterwalder based on a set of PowerPoint slides. It will be followed by a question and answer session. Within 24 hours of your online registration and payment you will receive an url by email that will allow you to access the web seminar. You will receive a reminder email the day prior to the event including the url that gives you access to the web seminar. The session will run on the webex platform by Cisco.

Cancellation Policy

For cancellations received more than 48 hours prior to the start of the seminar, we will deduct a US$50 administrative fee and refund or credit the remaining fee. There will be no refund or credit for cancellations received less than 48 hours prior to the start of the online seminar. All cancellations or substitutions must be received in writing.

Jun 2, 2008

Best Management Book 2009: "Business Model Innovation" by Osterwalder & Pigneur, produced by ULURU

Alexander Osterwalder

The title of this blogpost is probably a bit cocky and it would certainly be completely off the mark if it were just about another management book…

What will be different about this book that Professor Yves Pigneur and I are writing in collaboration with ULURU is the business model. We are launching this book based on an innovative business model, which is quite different from any other management book published to date.

However, before revealing any ideas that we have come up with during our brainstorming sessions, I would like to get some inputs from you. Please help us design a great book by telling us what you would expect from a book by us on the topic of business model innovation. What will make you buy it?

Take this survey to tell us what you would like to see in this book

An important element of this book project will be that you can buy the book in advance, during the writing process to benefit from special features & services (e.g. video-interviews, web seminars, draft book chapters). If you are among the advance buyers you can influence the book content and will be mentioned as contributor.

Interested? Stay posted to find out what the innovative business model for the book is about…