Venture Building

How ZF Brandenburg Plotted Life After Combustion Gearboxes

ZF’s Brandenburg plant makes manual and dual-clutch gearboxes, about 120 000 units a year. As demand shifts to electric drives the work will dry up. In twelve months we ran the Business Transformation Navigator with staff and external experts. Together we shaped three new business models and built full investment cases, giving the site a clear future path and protecting jobs.

How Schaidt Turned Insolvency Into an E-mobility Comeback

When its last audio-electronics contracts vanished, Schaidt Innovations filed for insolvency. Instead of closing the plant, we ran a fast business-model innovation sprint that created a new plan to build electric-vehicle charging stations. The strategy convinced Webasto to acquire the site and keep 170 jobs.

How a Refractory Leader Tripled its Recycling Rate

A global supplier of refractory products wanted to scale battery recycling and make circularity pay. In one year we used the Circular Economy Navigator to pick the right business model, test it with customers and build a roadmap. The work led to a joint venture that tripled the company’s recycling rate and cut waste costs.

Navigating Sustainability in Business

A conversation with Richard Stechow and Vera Hermes for Haufe Academy

The Characteristics of Data-driven Business Model Development and how to Succeed

The experience of recent years shows that companies often overestimate the value of their own data and their own ability to generate revenue from it. In practice, very few companies can establish a sustainable business model based on data.

Our 7 Favorite Newsletters

Newsletters have been around for many many years. Probably even for hundreds of years. We wanted to share our current most popular selection of newsletters with you.

Our 7 Podcast Recommendations about Innovation and Entrepreneurial Spirit

Did you know? The number of podcasts went through the roof in the past two years! In fact, as of April 2021, PodcastInsights recalls that there are over 48 million episodes available from over 2 million shows worldwide! We think this is just the beginning.

How to Explore the Full Potential of Digital Transformation Through Innovative Business Models

Digitization is not new – many digital technologies have been around for more than a decade now and have profoundly changed the way we live. Yet, few established businesses seem to have a clear vision of how to best navigate the change brought about by digitization.

How to Develop Innovative Ideas Together – Online

What do you miss most about working from the office? While many workers are happy to do without long commutes and fixed working hours, there is one thing many of them miss: stimulating exchanges with colleagues, jointly identifying problems and spinning wild ideas.

The Rise of Second-hand: Exploring the Opportunities of Re-commerce

The fashion resale market is booming. By 2029, it is forecasted to reach a value of $80 billion, doubling the size of fast fashion. As used clothing is taking over our wardrobes, we have decided to explore the phenomenon of resale from a business model perspective – and investigate how it can be applied to other industries.

Designing Circular Business Models: From Ideation to Implementation

In the current environment, we see that more and more companies are looking for ways to innovate their business models in order to create sustainable alternatives to current solutions. Implementing a circular ecosystem that solves an environmental problem while offering an attractive value proposition to customers is the ultimate goal.

The 5 Business Model Patterns You Should Follow in 2021

The world is digital – that is, at least since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. There are many current examples of digitization that are interesting and prove the importance of a robust business model.

Implementing New Circular Business Models with the Circular Navigator Methodology

The focus of many companies is currently on sustainability, however a big gap still exists between the actions taken and the current state of the planet.

150+ Tools to Easily and Quickly Test Your Business Model

“Which tool do we need to test this business model?” This is the most frequently asked question since we started implementing innovative business model ideas with our clients. The answer? There is no perfect tool for your test. There are a lot out there and the key is to select the one that best suits your needs.

COVID-19: The Digital Transformation Catalyst of Banking Business Models

The banking industry faces change, probably in a never known pace and relevance than before. Although COVID-19 had a positive impact on some banks due to a high increase in asset trading volumes and associated commissions, it also acts as a transformation catalyst. COVID-19 is assumed to substantially change the consumer behavior towards a cashless society. The trend towards a hybrid banking customer is continuing.

Introduction to the Circular Economy

The environmental issues humanity is experiencing on the planet nowadays are unprecedented and require new innovative solutions from businesses, which have mostly been operating in a linear manner.

4 Inspiring Ideas to Overcome Challenges when Testing Innovative Business Models

Following our recent article about the most common challenges faced by companies when testing innovative business models, we decided to highlight 4 inspiring initiatives that seem to be effective practices to overcome these challenges.

What we Have Learned About Testing Business Models

A superior business model is the base of sustainable business success. Studies show that 90% of business ideas change several times before achieving commercial success and over two new products/solutions out of three fail to meet customer expectations.

How an Ag-tech Leader set up Value-based Pricing with Farmers

A global ag-tech company wanted to sell its high-performance seeds straight to farmers. We led a one-year BMI Launchpad project, co-developed a value-based pricing model and tested it in three countries. The pilot showed that farmers gained better yields and the company captured more value when both sides shared risk and reward.