When you are creating a sustainable business model, there are some elements you can include to ensure it has a long-term viability and stability. These include competitive advantage, legitimacy, and a taxonomy for patterns in sustainable business models.

Legitimacy

Legitimacy is one of the key issues faced by sustainable business model innovation. It is a multi-faceted issue that involves both internal and external stakeholders. There are several types of legitimacy, ranging from moral to pragmatic, and each can be identified as being associated with different stages of the legitimacy process.

Generally speaking, legitimacy is an ongoing cycle of engagement between the firm and its external and internal stakeholders. Depending on the type of innovation, social enterprises adjust their legitimacy building approach.

One way to achieve this is to define a common vision of sustainability and reinforce it through organizational practices. However, this can be a time-consuming exercise.

A successful sustainable business model should integrate various aspects of the triple bottom line. This includes environmental protection, biodiversity conservation, and resource efficiency. In addition, this requires a thorough analysis of the stakeholders’ values and interests.

Competitive advantage

Developing a sustainable competitive advantage is a critical component to the long-term success of a business. A sustainable advantage can help companies add value to their products or services and increase the profitability of their businesses.

The first step is to understand your competitive advantages. This includes your company’s ability to meet the needs of your target market and your ability to provide value. For example, your brand may offer a unique experience that puts you at the forefront of consumers’ minds. Using this advantage can ensure greater staff retention and increased sales.

Other strategic assets can also provide a competitive advantage. These include good customer service, personal attention, and a great corporate reputation. Keeping these things at the forefront of consumers’ minds will increase brand loyalty.

Long-term viability and stability

A sustainable business model can be defined as one which has long term viability and stability. This is because, a sustainable business model is focused on addressing social and environmental concerns while creating value for its stakeholders.

To achieve this, companies must engage in a number of activities that include reducing waste, improving energy efficiency, and using resources in a sustainable way. They also need to adopt policies and practices that support local communities. In some cases, government incentives may be available to encourage sustainable practices.

While these are the basic building blocks, there are other factors to consider. One example is how you can effectively communicate your mission and objectives to internal and external stakeholders. The key is to establish a consistent vision of your mission.

Taxonomy for sustainable business model patterns

Sustainable business model patterns are a collection of business models that are based on a combination of social, environmental and ecological aspects. These patterns aim to protect capital, create capital and provide value. The ecosystems of these business models have gained attention in recent years.

A team of fifteen international experts studied more than 100 business models and associated related literature to develop a sustainable business model pattern taxonomy. The team used a modified Delphi card-sorting method to condense the patterns into a systematic order. They assigned 45 patterns to eleven groups and assessed the potential to contribute to sustainable value creation.

Taxonomy is a structured system that helps researchers identify and understand the underlying elements of BMPs. It is useful for scholars and practitioners in different industries. Using a taxonomy can help new and existing companies to integrate sustainability.

Future research directions

A systematic empirical analysis of the SBM literature takes stock of what has been written in recent years. This gives SBM scholars a clearer picture of the field. It also identifies several key themes and research trends.

Sustainability and innovation are important aspects of sustainable business models. For example, a company can contribute to sustainability by producing green products, generating less waste, and using fewer resources. Innovation represents a pathway to resilience. Resilience is about ensuring a system’s ability to function in the face of adversity.

The value of the tiniest of the sustainable business model has to be its co-creation by stakeholders and the firm itself. This could take the form of a new product, an improvement in a process, or a redesigned business model. In the case of innovation, a company could use the Internet of Things to create an intelligent machine to perform tasks that previously required human interaction.