Published : 6 years ago, on 27/07/2018

In today’s ever changing world, organisations are using business model design to build unique approaches to creating value that have the potential to radically disrupt industries.

A new report published today by ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants), Business models of the future: systems, convergence and characteristics, identifies 12 characteristics behind business model design, that are being combined by organisations in different ways to create new sources of value.

Jimmy Greer, head of sustainability research and policy at ACCA and author of the report said, “New tools mean that business model innovation is easier to achieve than ever and organisations are using multiple models in different ways for value creation. But the challenges of today’s world demand a wider, more systemic view.

“Organisational design disruptions do not occur in a vacuum. They play out across the complex landscape of economies and societies. While there have always been challenges throughout the course of modern economic development, as long waves of technology ebb and flow, social institutions underperform and environmental limits are tested, today these challenges are now emerging in new spaces”.

This report identifies 12 characteristics that organisations are combining as they build new business models. They are:

• Multi-layered
• Participatory
• Platform-ready
• Multi-capitalist
• Purposeful
• Data sensible
• Boundary-testers
• Open
• Potential enhancing
• Fair players
• Convening
• Restorative

“These characteristics lie behind the models creating organisations that are ready for the future” said Greer.

“The accountancy profession is well placed to support the growth of business models of the future that help build resilient, inclusive and prosperous societies.  The unique contribution that professional accountants can make to how a business model proposes, creates and captures value, means that they can play a meaningful, strategic role in building organisations that are ready for the future” concluded Greer.

The report attempts to answer fundamental questions; why does business model innovation matter? What is the shape of the world in which models need to operate and how do they come together to build future value? The full Business models of the future: systems, convergence and characteristics can be read here.