Global Strategy - blog

Authors: Tikkanen, Henrikki; Lamberg, Juha-Antti; Parvinen, Petri and Kallunki, Juha-Pekka (2005). Download file: 'Managerial Cognition, Action and the Business Model of the Firm' Management Decision 43:6, pp. 789-809. Open access post-print version.

The Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of the paper was to outline a generic framework for the business model and illuminate its linkages to managerial cognition. Design/methodology/approach – The paper reviewed the focal literature focusing on the actions and evolution of a firm and built a synthesis that describes the different components of a business model.

Findings – The main finding was that a business model is essentially both a cognitive phenomenon as well as being built on the material aspects of a firm.
Research limitations/implications – The paper proposes that the business model can be scrutinized in future studies, especially from the viewpoints of cognition, thus creating new avenues for intra-firm evolutionary studies.
Practical implications – The paper found several implications for practising managers. First, the concept itself creates possibilities for self-analysis and scenario building. Second, the understanding that a business model is systemic helps managers to evaluate their actions vis-à-vis the evolutionary path of the business model. Third, the outlined business model is useful in executive education as it creates a cognitive map of the various aspects of business activities.
Originality/value – The paper offers new insights into the functions and evolution of firms and will be of interest to both researchers and practising managers.