CONFERENCE TRACKS NBM2024
0. Workshops
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Besides our traditional conference tracks, our conference program will offer specialized workshops with an inter and transdisciplinary approach on Sustainable Business Models.
We are seeking workshop proposals for practitioners that are:
Engaging and interactive: Workshops should be designed to promote active participation from all participants (e.g. hands-on activities, group discussions, ...)
Relevant and timely: Workshops should focus on current challenges and issues related to Sustainable business models for the digital, green and inclusive transition
Informative and educational: Workshops should provide participants with new knowledge and skills that they can apply in their activities.
If you are interested in offering a workshop, please send an email with your proposal to: nbm2024.mgep@mondragon.edu
1. Exploring the System Level
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Track Chairs: Annukka Näyhä, Academy of Finland Research Fellow, Jyväskylä University School of Business and Economics; School of Resource Wisdom, University of Jyväskylä, Julia Planko, Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, Utrecht University, The Netherlands
The sustainability transition requires the contribution of business organizations and their business models for transforming unsustainable development paths. In addition, the transition calls for collaborative efforts by different societal actors and the alignment of different levels of change. For the sustainability transition, the organization-centric business models of companies constitute a problem since they can rarely positively influence social or environmental sustainability. Instead, sustainable business models with a broader systemic perspective and contribution to shared value creation can promote the sustainability transition. Various collaborative business models, which are closely linked to or also known as community, cross-ecosystem, and networked models, include the elements of inclusivity, shared value creation and a multi-actor approach. Such models are seen as important approaches to tackling sustainability challenges.
However, in-depth information on the impacts of collaborative business models on systemic level change is often lacking. Overall, better ways of analyzing shared value creation processes and their impact on sustainability transition should be developed. Transition studies explore large-scale societal transformation towards sustainability, thus offering more systemic and interdisciplinary approaches to management and organizational studies. Management studies, in turn, when combined with transition perspectives, can illuminate the role of actors and their agency in transition processes.
The goal of this session is to introduce studies that bring together elements from both of these research traditions. This session welcomes studies that combine research on business models and the sustainability transition, explore the role of business models in the inclusive sustainability transition and focus on various collaborative business models and their features and capacities. Bringing together these two perspectives with various 3methodological and conceptual approaches is a necessity for studying, understanding and facilitating the inclusive sustainability transition in our society.
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Track Chairs: Abel Diaz Gonzalez, School of Business Economics, Maastricht University (The Netherlands), Nikolay Dentchev, University of National and World Economy (Bulgaria), Bart Leyen, Vrije Universiteit Brussel (Belgium)
Ecosystem thinking provides insights into how different stakeholders can be aligned, interact, and collaborate to gain competitive advantage, boost innovation and increase business productivity. This session focuses the discussion on how to develop supportive and sustainable ecosystems for the new business models. We will be interested in studies that are focused on the main mechanisms, processes and elements that lead to the interconnectedness of ecosystem actors and long-lasting partnerships among them. We welcome contributions from different methodological backgrounds are welcome, including literature reviews, theoretical, conceptual and empirical papers.
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Track Chairs: Niels Faber, Research centre Bio-based Economy, Hanze University of Applied Sciences, Groningen; Centre for Sustainable Entrepreneurship in a Circular Economy, Faculty Campus Friesland, University of Groningen, Groningen, Jan Jonker, Institute for Management Research, Radboud University Nijmegen, em.
In recent times it has become crystal clear that we need to develop innovative and radical solutions to tackle wicked and pressing problems associated with our current, linear economy and the sticky societal arrangements that are formed around it. This track aims to address the contributions that sustainable business models can make in shaping transformation and transitions towards a more sustainable and inclusive society.
Problems to be addressed include among others climate change, resource use, social exclusion and biodiversity. These problems are linked and should be addressed at various levels of aggregation. Limitation of current society to tackle complex challenges become more and more visible. Efforts to address these issues thus far have only resulted in the creation of waste, pollution, depletion and extreme forms of social exclusion. A new generation of business models is needed that fosters transition towards sustainable societies.
Since many if not all of these problem stem from the way value creation is organised, it calls for a reconceptualization of how the amalgamation of sustainable, circular, inclusive, and restorative business models can bring about radical (system) change.
For NBM2024 San Sebastian, we want to explore how sustainable business models contribute to shaping transitions towards a more just, more inclusive and sustainable society. We welcome both empirical as well as theoretical / conceptual contributions. Regarding practice, we are interested in contributions that address the question where we may find examples of this in practices and/or policies, in which business models are deliberately applied to realise such transition. We are interested to learn what the impact of these business models is. Concerning theoretical / conceptual contributions we are looking for ways in which the foundations and concepts of business models foster transition. How are the connections between the concepts of transition and value creation operationalised and to what effect?
Our ambition is to organise two sessions. One on empirical observations and experiences of how business models give shape to societal transition. The second session will focus on exploring theoretical and conceptual foundations of the issue of business models for transition. All those who submit to this track are cordially invited to join both sessions, present their work and partake in the discussions.
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Track Chairs: Timber Haaker (Saxion University of Applied Sciences), Milou Derks (Orange Corners and Eindhoven University of Technology), Nguyen Hong Quan (Institute for Circular Economy Development, Vietnam National University - Ho Chi Minh City), Nguyen Cong Thanh (National Economics University, Hanoi, Vietnam), Simone Sehnem (Universidade do Oeste de Santa Catarina, Brazil), Alvany Maria Dos Santos Santiago (Federal University of Sao Francisco Valley, Petrolina, Brazil)
Worldwide our societies and economies are in transition towards sustainability and circularity. The transition requires systemic change and new business models that require collaboration and careful interplay between organisations and stakeholders in chains, networks and ecosystems. The form that these collaborative business models take depends on the societal and business context in which they are to be deployed. This track explores what collaborative, inclusive and circular business models are emerging in the Global South, what is driving and hindering such business models, and what the Global North can learn from these models.
2. Exploring the sectoral and organisational level
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Track chairs: Maya Hoveskog, Halmstad University (Sweden); Magnus Holmén Halmstad University (Sweden); Lauri Paavola, University of Eastern Finland (Finland); Luís Irgang Dos Santos, Halmstad University (Sweden); Thomas Magnusson, Halmstad University (Sweden)
This track explores and explains the relation between innovation, data-driven business models and ecosystems with sustainability. This track intends to empirically analyze and conceptualize the emergence and structure of both firms’ and ecosystems’ value propositions for sustainability. The track focuses on, but is not limited to, the interplay between products and services vs data-driven business models; digitization, digitalization and digital transformation of business models; the development and use of big data and machine learning, the use of generative AI for innovation, data acquisition strategy and new business models; the role of digital platforms for business model innovation; methods for developing data-driven business models and ecosystems.
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Track Chairs: Nancy Bocken, Maastricht University (The Netherlands), Sveinung Jørgensen, NHH Norwegian School of Economics (Norway), Laura Niessen, Maastricht University, Deanna Han, Maastricht University, and Ankita Das, Maastricht University.
The circular economy is an inspiration to many companies. Yet, established businesses and new ventures alike need significant experimentation to create desirable, feasible, viable, and sustainable business models. While companies have been quite successful at creating business models focused on resource efficiencies and ’narrowing the loop’ and closing the loop through recycling, the more challenging business models focused on regeneration, as well as slowing the loop through strategies such as sufficiency are less commonplace. This track focuses on the cases, practices and tools of experimentation with new circular business model strategies. Of particular interest are cases that focus on sufficiency or regeneration and examples that moved from experiments to scaling up impact.
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Track Chairs: Sonia Marcos, Universidad de Burgos (Spain); Jaime González-Masip, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (Spain)
The development of rural areas is at a critical juncture, facing major challenges such as low GDP per capita, lack of job opportunities, low wages, exodus of young people, rapid ageing of the population, lack of accessibility to essential goods and services (public transport, electricity, digital connectivity, health services or schools, among others) and, consequently, depopulation. This situation calls for new business models to innovate and shape stronger and more resilient rural communities, promoting more inclusive and sustainable rural societies.
Rural community-led business models are a way to engage and involve the different rural actors in the common goal of developing the economy while preserving natural resources, local knowledge, and traditions. The rural community becomes an essential stakeholder in rural entrepreneurship and new business models because it is a social network that provides access to knowledge, funding, and new opportunities.
The track explores how to build more resilient and stronger rural areas from a community-led approach and socio-spatial lens to find the most appropriate business models to address rural challenges. Literature reviews, theoretical, conceptual, empirical, and case studies are welcome, particularly in the field of social innovation in rural community-led business models.
3. Exploring the organisational impact
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Track Chair: Laura Michelini LUMSA University (Italy), Venere Sanna, University of Siena (Italy) & Cecilia Grieco, Sapienza University (Italy)
This track aims to explore the reconfiguration of business models in the sharing economy, and how to identify methods and tools for evaluating their impacts, both from the platform and the consumer perspectives.
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Chairs: Burcin Hatipoglu, School of Business & IRRG, Canberra, University of New South Wales (UNSW), Australia, Silvia Cantele, Department of Business Administration, University of Verona, Italy, Assunta Di Vaio, Department of Law, University of Naples "Parthenope", Italy
This track explores the future directions for developing managerial capabilities and accountability when innovating business models for digital, green, and inclusive transition. Engagement with sustainability and circularity involves integrating ecological and social aspects into products, processes, and organizational structures. Some avenues to explore in this track are governance and the role of boards, leadership, and managerial responsibilities; employee participation in eco-innovation processes; circular and sustainability KPIs and incentives; formal and informal organizational learning; knowledge management; and creating co-creation opportunities with employees and other stakeholders. Theories that lend themselves to exploring the managerial side of business model innovations include the resource-based view of the firm, dynamic capabilities, capability view of the firm, stakeholder theory, organizational learning, and sustainability transition frameworks. We invite research that applies some of these theories or proposes unexplored theories to examine how the managerial side of an organization can be developed when organizations innovate their business models.
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Chairs: Dorleta Ibarra, Mondragon Unibertsitatea (Spain), Juan Ignacio Igartua Mondragon Unibertsitatea (Spain)
We are facing a paradigm shift that manifests itself in multiple crises (global warming, resource depletion, access to energy and water, supply chain shortages, social inequalities, health crises, etc.). Crises stress societies, disrupt value chains and challenge organisations, often accelerating technology diffusion (e.g., digitalisation or renewable energy technologies) leading to the emergence of new, more resilient and sustainable business models. The track explores how to build more resilient business models and assess them, considering the impacts of advanced technologies and integrated and extended value chains. It focuses on the interdependencies between business models within or across value chains, including technological resources, processes and infrastructure requirements and partnerships for more resilient and sustainable business models in the context of multiple crisis. Conceptual and empirical studies (quantitative, qualitative and mixed) are welcome in particular in the fields of sustainable energy, mobility and smart manufacturing.
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Track Chairs: Florian Lüdeke-Freund, ESCP Business School Berlin (Germany) & Romana Rauter, University of Graz (Austria)
Business models for sustainability aim at contributions to sustainable development and are therefore based on the principle of multiple value creation. They aim not just to improve the performance of organizations but also to have positive ecological and social impacts beyond organizational boundaries. The aim of this track is to better understand whether and how business models can have such effects and how these can be estimated or even measured. Assessing and managing the sustainability performance of business models requires exploring and integrating various topics and concepts (e.g. business model, systems-level approaches) as well as tools and metrics (e.g. from fields such as sustainability reporting and accounting, life cycle assessment). Digitalisation might play an important role in this context too. This track is open to conceptual and empirical papers that integrate the notions of business models and sustainability performance in new and convincing ways.
Special subsection on Business Models & Life Cycle Assessment
Track Chairs: Henrikke Baumann, Chalmers University of Technology (Sweden), Dorleta Ibarra, Mondragon Unibertsitatea (Spain), Joan Manuel F. Mendoza, Mondragon Unibertsitatea (Spain)
In addition to the main topics mentioned above, for NBM2024 San Sebastian, this track aims to open a new space for debate on a novel and growing approach: applying Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodologies for business model sustainability assessment.
4. Exploring theoretical and methodological foundations
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Chairs: Florian Lüdeke-Freund, ESCP Business School Berlin & Tobias Froese, ESCP Business School Berlin
This track explores the status quo and future directions of theories on business models for sustainability. Building on and going beyond prominent approaches such as activity-based, component-based, value-based, functional, design, and other theoretical views on business models for sustainability, we are looking for research that further develops the conceptual and theoretical foundations for a better understanding of the inner workings and sustainability implications of business models for sustainability. New theoretical views that lend themselves to this endeavour include, for example, theories of social practice, Alexandrian pattern theory, or social mechanism theory. We invite research papers that make use of new and fresh theoretical lenses.
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Track Chairs: Fatima Khitous, Oulu University (Finland), Francesca Ostuzzi, Ghent University (Belgium), Katrien Verleye, Ghent University, (Belgium)
This track aims to provide insight into engaging multitude of actors – such as companies, customers, and governmental bodies – in the conceptualization, development, launch, and adoption of circular business models and circular ecosystems so that circular value is cocreated. Specific attention is dedicated to the role of design thinking practices during sustainable business model innovation, but research on other practices and tools – such as experience and engagement management – is also embraced. This track welcomes scholars from different disciplines and it is open to conceptual, qualitative, and quantitative work.
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Track Chairs: Moniek Kamm and Timber Haaker (Saxion UAS, The Netherlands), Jan Jonker (Radboud University, The Netherlands)
This track focuses on the vast expanding development of tools for incorporating sustainability and circularity in Business Models.
The transition to business models that contribute to a sustainable, circular, and inclusive society is a systemic challenge for new and existing organizations. Developing and implementing multiple value creating concepts and integrating them in every aspect of organizations in accordance with the business environment they operate in is demanding. Efforts to establish sustainable and circular business models are supported by a wide variety of grants schemes, courses, workshops, etc., and a growing variety of tools. This track addresses the contribution of tools to sustainable and circular business models, as well as the development of such tools.
We are especially interested in practice-based experience with the use of tools for the development of sustainable, circular, and inclusive business models, and tools that result from co-creation between researchers and practitioners.