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Strategieprozess in der Praxis: Beginn mit einer SWOT

Indem wir den ersten Workshop mit einer SWOT-Analyse (Stärken, Schwächen, Chancen, Risiken) beginnen, können wir den Erfolg entscheidend beeinflussen. Diese Methode ermöglicht es den Teammitgliedern, ihre Perspektiven zu den internen und externen Faktoren eines Unternehmens zu äussern, bevor umfassende Analysen und Marktstudien durchgeführt werden. Indem wir Strategieprozess beginnen mit einer SWOT, schaffen wir ein solides Fundament, auf dem die strategischen Überlegungen basieren.

Die Methodik der SWOT-Analyse im Workshop

In jedem Strategieprozess erste Workshop entscheidend, um das Team von Anfang an einzubinden. Deshalb starten wir diesen Workshop mit der SWOT-Analyse, selbst wenn noch nicht alle relevanten Unterlagen vorliegen. Die Teilnehmer sind aufgefordert, ihr Wissen und ihre Perspektiven zu den Stärken, Schwächen, Chancen und Risiken des Unternehmens auf Karten zu sammeln.

Dieser Ansatz fördert nicht nur den Austausch und das Engagement der Teammitglieder, sondern stellt auch sicher, dass jeder die Möglichkeit hat, seine Gedanken einzubringen. Das Ergebnis der SWOT-Analyse reflektiert in der Regel bereits 80 % oder mehr der relevanten Faktoren, und es schafft ein starkes Fundament für die anschliessende Strategieentwicklung. Durch diese methodische Herangehensweise stärken wir das Commitment der Mitarbeiter und legen den Grundstein für eine erfolgreiche Zusammenarbeit.

Vorbereitung der Teilnehmer

In den Wochen vor diesem ersten Workshop erhalten die Teammitglieder spezifische Hausaufgaben. Diese Aufgaben können Folgendes umfassen:

Durch die Bereitstellung dieser Informationen vor dem Workshop sind die Teilnehmer gut gerüstet, um aktiv an der SWOT-Analyse mitzuwirken. Es wird jedoch darauf geachtet, dass keine zusätzlichen Marktstudien oder Analysen vorab durchgeführt werden – der Fokus liegt auf dem vorhandenen Wissen innerhalb des Teams bzw des Unternehmens.

Strategieprozess beginnen mit einer SWOT

Strategieprozess beginnen mit einer SWOT heisst, im ersten Workshop wird die SWOT-Analyse als erstes in voller Form durchgeführt. Die Teilnehmer bringen ihre gesammelten Erkenntnisse ein, was zu einer dynamischen und fokussierten Diskussion über die strategischen Fragen des Unternehmens führt. Die Ergebnisse der SWOT-Analyse bilden die Grundlage für die identifizierten Hauptherausforderungen bzw. für die strategischen Fragen des Unternehmens.

Nach der gemeinsamen Erarbeitung der SWOT steht eine wichtige Frage auf der Tagesordnung: „Welchen zusätzlichen Analysebedarf haben wir?“ Wir machen nur notwendige Analysen, die zur Vervollständigung dienen und die strategischen Fragen schärfen.

Vorteile dieser Vorgehensweise

Die Nutzung von Workshops zur SWOT-Analyse bringt mehrere Vorteile mit sich:

  1. Mitarbeiterengagement: Alle Teammitglieder können von Anfang an ihren Beitrag leisten und ihre Anliegen äussern. Diese Offenheit fördert eine positive Arbeitsatmosphäre.
  2. Commitment erhöhen: Durch die aktive Teilnahme an diesem Prozess fühlen sich die Mitarbeiter mehr mit dem Unternehmen verbunden. Sie sind damit auch motivierter, die erarbeitete Strategie auch umzusetzen.
  3. Fokussierte Analysen: Der Prozess bleibt zielgerichtet. Nur notwendige Analysen, die direkt zur Klärung strategischer Fragen beitragen, werden durchgeführt. Dadurch wird eine Überfrachtung mit Daten vermieden.

Die Rolle des Beraters

Der Berater hat in diesem Prozess eine zentrale Rolle. Er agiert nicht nur als Moderator, sondern sorgt auch dafür, dass die Methode stringent eingehalten wird. Widerstand oder unerwünschte Einflüsse müssen neutralisiert werden. Alle Mitglieder müssen bereit sein, sich aktiv in den Prozess einzubringen, andernfalls passt es möglicherweise nicht in das Team.

Fazit

Der Beginn des ersten Workshops mit einer SWOT-Analyse stellt einen kraftvollen Ansatz dar, um eine engagierte und fokussierte Strategieentwicklung zu ermöglichen. Mit diesem klaren Rahmen bieten Sie Ihren Mitarbeitern die Möglichkeit, Verantwortung zu übernehmen. Damit werden sie sich mit der Unternehmensstrategie zu identifizieren – ganz im Sinne unserer 10 Thesen: «Mitarbeiter sind die besten Strategen«.

Wenn Sie diesen Ansatz in Ihrem Unternehmen ausprobieren möchten, lassen Sie sich von Strategy.app unterstützen. Die Plattform bietet eine strukturierte Möglichkeit, die Ergebnisse Ihres Workshops zu dokumentieren und auszuarbeiten.

Besuchen Sie www.strategy.app und erfahren Sie, wie Sie Ihre Strategieentwicklung optimieren können!

Das möchte ich auch versuchen

«StrategieKompakt» ist eine erprobte Methode, mit der Sie in nur zwei Tagen Ihre Unternehmensstrategie erarbeiten. Mit diesem Vorgehen gibt es keine endlosen Diskussionen über Monate hinweg, aber auch keine spontanen «Hauruck-Aktionen» mit einer Liste von «Issues», die am nächsten Tage wieder auf die Seite gelegt werden. Stattdessen erhalten Sie nach zwei Tagen das Gerüst einer konsistenten und robusten Strategie, mit der Sie direkt in die Umsetzung gehen können.

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update #04 Strategieprozesse

update #04 Strategieprozesse

Strategieentwicklung: Ein systemischer Ansatz

Die Entwicklung und Umsetzung von Strategien ist zentral für den Erfolg von Unternehmen, besonders in einer sich ständig wandelnden und unsicheren Welt. Unsere neueste Ausgabe von «Update» konzentriert sich auf «Strategieprozesse» und liefert Einblicke in die Bedeutung und Komplexität eines strukturierten strategischen Planungsprozesses.

Der strategische Planungsprozess: Drei Teilprozesse

Die aktuelle Ausgabe beleuchtet den strategischen Planungsprozess, der in drei Teilprozesse gegliedert ist: Strategieentwicklung, strategisches Controlling und Umsetzung. Jeder Bereich ist entscheidend, um sicherzustellen, dass eine Strategie nicht nur theoretisch existiert, sondern auch real umgesetzt wird und messbare Ergebnisse liefert.

Strategieentwicklung: Basis für den Erfolg

Die Strategieentwicklung ist das Fundament, auf dem alle weiteren Prozesse aufbauen. In dieser Phase werden die Visionen und Ziele festgelegt, die den zukünftigen Weg des Unternehmens bestimmen. Die Bedeutung von Flexibilität bei gleichzeitiger Verfolgung eines klaren Plans, der alle Unternehmensaspekte umfasst, wird hervorgehoben.

Strategisches Controlling: Überwachung und Anpassung

Strategisches Controlling folgt auf die Planung. Es überwacht die Umsetzung der Strategie und nimmt bei Bedarf Anpassungen vor. Von der Entwicklung eines Frühwarnsystems bis zur regelmäßigen Überprüfung der Strategie dient dieser Prozess dazu, die Relevanz und Wirksamkeit der Strategie zu gewährleisten.

Umsetzung: Realisierung der geplanten Maßnahmen

Die Umsetzung ist der Schritt, in dem die Strategie in konkrete Aktionen überführt und die gesetzten Ziele erreicht werden sollen. Die Herausforderung liegt in der konsequenten Durchführung und der Anpassungsfähigkeit an Veränderungen.

Lesen Sie «Update»

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Der nächste Schritt

Wenn Sie Ihre strategische Planung verbessern und verstehen möchten, wie Sie Ihre Strategien effektiv entwickeln, umsetzen und überwachen, dann ist jetzt der richtige Zeitpunkt für ein Update. Erkunden Sie mit unserer neuesten Ausgabe die Welt der Strategieentwicklung.

Handeln Sie jetzt: Entdecken Sie die neueste Ausgabe von «Update» und starten Sie damit, Ihre strategischen Ziele zu erreichen.

update #04 Strategieprozesse

Whitepaper Controlling of Assumptions

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Controlling of Assumptions

In each strategy definition, assumptions are made on which the development of the strategy is based. Such an assumption may be technological advances such as the digitization. Others are a certain customer behavior towards increasing service demand, economic activity or certain expectations regarding market growth.

The Tasks of assumption controlling are:

Assumption controlling implements a early warning system that detects possible deviations in order to counteract in time.

Creating an assumption controlling:

1. Working out the assumptions

First, we compile those assumptions / premises that play a role in the future development of the company. We assign these premises as follows:

We have put together a list of topics. It is the same list from which we also compile the main trends for the SWOT:

Figure 1: Environmental and stakeholder issues

Economic environment:

Technological developments

Ecological environment:

Politics:

Legal Development:

Demographic development:

Social development:

Customers:

Suppliers:

Employees:

Investors:

Public institutions:

Media / NGOs:

Competitors:

We select the trends from this list and evaluate them with relevance: How important is this trend for our company? A short description will help you later to understand exactly what is meant.

Figure 2: Weighting trends with relevance

Notice::

The rule plus/minus seven also applies here. Limit yourself to one page, and if you write a little larger, it will be full with 10 trends. We want to limit ourselves to a number that is manageable and therefore controllable. The art of selection is to determine the essential trends that make up the majority of possible changes. It is a matter of selecting those influential variables which, from today’s perspective, are the significant drivers for the future development of the environments, markets, products, customers and suppliers.

2. Measurands and assumptions

Now we form the assumptions and define the measurement parameters – how to measure or assess – and provide them with assumptions for the planning period. The time horizon here is three to five years, sometimes even less, depending on the industry or assumption. An example from one of our projects looks like this:


Figure 3: Determine measured variables and make assumptions

3. Precision, method and instrument for controlling

We prepare the controlling by refining the templates and describing the procedure. We will give you a few hints, which you can fill in and define as required.

Data collection

Data analysis

4. Controlling of assumptions / early warning system

The current status of all assumptions is recorded periodically and evaluated with regard to the strategy. The system also checks whether new or other external factors or events affect strategy implementation.

This raises questions such as:

Figure 4: Periodic evaluation of developments

From assumption controlling to early warning system

It may well be that certain assumptions have been out of date since the last adoption of the strategy, or that new conditions have emerged that are relevant to the strategy’s implementation.

The 360° radar serves to keep a comprehensive eye on developments around the company, but also within it. The process responsibility for this task lies with the corporate development or the department that we call strategic planning. To ensure that all relevant facts are recorded and taken into account, however, the entire company must be involved. This can be done, for example, by systematically requesting or delivering market-related information from the sales department. A monthly feedback round serves as an instrument to keep the flow of information from the market going. For example, a company holds an open telephone conference every Monday. Sales staff can share their news for one hour. The procedure is organized in such a way that everyone joins in when and as soon as they can. There is no agenda and no discussion. Information is passed on as in an informal coffee break. After some time, this has meant that employees are eager not to miss this «meeting» because it is here that the most important news is exchanged.

Strategically relevant information is systematically collected and tracked in order to make any necessary adjustments or initiate measures.

Figure 5: Observing unexpected events

Systematic market, competitor and customer research is part of this process. In addition, technological topics and news from the field of innovation management can be included.

The capture, filtering and exploitation of the information is then the responsibility of the strategy planning department. For events that require immediate response, the early warning system is turned on (see below); further facts are recorded and incorporated into the strategic review meeting.

5. Development of corrective measures

If deviations relevant to the strategy have been identified, the effects on the strategy must be assessed and the need for action evaluated. The same applies to new influencing factors which have been identified and analyzed in these assessment and evaluation steps.

Figure 6: Capture of corrective actions

The deviation is documented for each premise and the new influencing factors requiring action are evaluated and proposals for corrective measures are developed.

This work is carried out periodically, e.g. every three months or once a year. This ensures that strategy implementation is always based on relevant assumptions and that new influencing variables are identified in good time.

Basic remark

The growing complexity and uncertainty of market and industry developments presents strategic controlling with new challenges. Focusing on a detailed situation analysis and high-level preview methods is only one part of the work. So-called future scenarios are not used to illustrate what will be, but, what could be. The aim is not to predict a future as accurately as possible, but to form the scenarios that are decisive for the implementation of the strategy with the targeted recognition of external drivers and influencing variables. Using new scenario techniques, excellent early warning systems can be developed and introduced in a targeted manner. In addition, managers and employees are sensitized to important trends and external influences and thus to perform an additional «sensory» function for environmental changes.

We have prepared a Power-Point template for you to download here:

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Whitepaper Marketplace

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Out of the box or outside the box

We use the marketplace at the very beginning of the design phase for the development of strategic options – in a mostly full-day workshop involving the entire team, which is best complemented by additional employees from the company.

To start with, ideas are collected on cards, usually only by keywords (the classic card sticking that you all know). At the end, we have concrete options that are not only written on a flipchart but have been approved by several participants. Discussions help to capture the ideas in the minds of employees and thus become a common good.

The procedure is fun, gives the participants a lot of freedom and brings the best ideas of the organization first onto paper and then into the minds of the participants.

Ingredients

For the marketplace to live properly, at least 12 people should attend. But it can also be up to 30.

Procedure

As an introduction, we again specify the characteristics of our company. A suggestion for the dimensions are:

Dimensions of the business

Optionally, we list the existing characteristics and already have their first ideas:

Figure 1: Existing characteristics in the business

Then we systematically search for new ideas in every dimension. You can assign the participants to the dimensions. So that one group is looking for new technologies, the next for new markets and the third for new sales channels.

Figure 2: systematic search for new characteristics

To do this, we’ll go through the following steps:

Step 1

Ideas and options are written by the participants on cards and attached to bulletin boards or directly to a large wall. The cards are mixed and presented in disorder:

Step 2:

The participants briefly present their ideas and explain the background of each card.

Step 3:

To make enouch spade in the room – all the tables are pushed against the wall, and the marketplace is set up. For each 3 – 4 team members a flipchart is set up. For a team of 15 members, 3 – 5 flipcharts are placed in the room. On each flipchart are about 15 – 20 sheets prepared so that they can be filled directly. These flipcharts are now the stalls on the marketplace where ideas are sold, as follows:

Step 4:

Each member of the team has the task to concretize his ideas on a flipchart, to discuss with colleagues and to explain them. This can be ideas that it has captured on the cards, but also new ones that have emerged from the presentation of others. The brainstorming cards are not taken away but remain in their place. The reason is that the same cards can continue to be input for new ideas. Now the author sells his idea to his colleagues and tries to convince them. These testify with their signature, i.e. the currency in this marketplace are the signatures – and of course the ideas are sold. Ideas or proposals that do not convince at least three colleagues are eliminated.

Step 5:

As soon as an idea or option has received the signatures of at least 3 people, any further discussion will be stopped. This is the task of the moderator. He removes the flipchart and attaches it in turn to the designated space on the wall of the room. We recommend to number them immediately.

Step 6:

The options listed on the flipcharts are presented by the «owners» and explained again.

Step 7:

The options thus compiled and discussed are now bundled, i.e. if there are overlaps or duplicates, then we put these together.

The next step is to capture, describe, and evaluate these options:

For the evaluation of these ideas or options, we use the instrument Adjacencies.

With STRATEY.APP these options are now captured and then further elaborated.

Collect and evaluate the strategic options in STRATEGY.APP

We record all options in the program and evaluate them according to the two dimensions

As a result we get a list of options that are assigned to the respective business units.

In addition, we have the opportunity to load the flip charts into the program. With that we can see the origin at any time.

The Adjacency chart now tells us where each option comes from. From this we can select the strategic directions and then initiate the next steps.

See our whitepaper adjacencies

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White Paper Innovation Management with the «Extended Business Model Canvas» (eBMC)

From the BMC to the eBMC

If you compare the Business Model Canvas with the navigation system of Aloys Gälweiler, you will see that the innovation is positioned there on the top level, with the two components «solution-independent customer problem» and «solution technology». We then put these two building blocks on the Business Model Canvas, making this extended Business Model Canvas (eBMC) a great tool for innovation management.

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The book «Business Model Generation», published by Alexander Osterwalder, has hit the world of consulting and entrepreneurs like a bomb. The book is practical, very nicely done and above all very different from anything else in the field. And success proves the author right.

When a colleague told me about this model for the first time, something irritated me from the beginning – something was missing. It’s not like the BMC reinvented the world. Much can be found in it from known approaches and methods – or not.

What was lacking for me from the beginning is the building block «customer problem», namely the «solution-independent customer problem», as we used to call it. Based on the St. Gallen approach, we have always clearly separated the customer problem from the product or service itself.

The «Solution-Independent Customer Problem»

A watch is a product for the purpose of indicating the time. The customer problem, namely the time to know, however, is independent of the clock and can be solved differently. This applies even more clearly when the watch is offered as a luxury or status object. Then the customer problem is to make a difference, and that can be solved with completely different offerings or value propositions.

In the BMC, the customer problem is presented together with the building block product and then called «value offer» in New German. Later, a separate canvas was developed for the building block customer problem and with the help of the so-called empathy card (by Xplane).

I did not let this thought go, and I studied how the canvas model can be complemented with the customer problem without destroying the model’s logical unity and symmetry. And as is sometimes the case, the best thoughts come when you are alone: During a long run through the forest, I had the following idea: Let’s take the top level of the navigation system of Aloys Gaelweiler with the two components «solution-independent customer problem» and «solution technology,» and put them on the business model canvas. This makes this enhanced Business Model Canvas (eBMC) a great tool for innovation management.

This results in the following chain: customer – customer problem – technology – product or if you prefer: product – technology – customer problem – customer. The interesting thing is that the model remains nicely symmetrical and fits together logically.

Innovation Management with the eBMC

Supplemented with the two building blocks from Gälweiler’s navigation system, we use the canvas model mainly in the search for new businesses. This makes it an excellent instrument for innovation management. Because innovation can be driven forward from two sides: the market and the technology. Good practical instructions have been provided by Prof. Hugo Tschirky, who teaches at ETH Zurich, with his approach to innovation management. We find it in the book « Wunderwaffe Innovation «by Beat Birkenmeier and Harald Brodbeck. In the following, we will explain the two components «customer problem» and «solution technologies» in more detail so that you, too, can supplement the Business Model Canvas accordingly and use it as an innovation tool

Figure 1: The extended Business Model Canvas by Furger und Partner AG with the blocks «Solution Technologies» and «Customer Problem»

The module «customer problem»

This component stands for the customer problem that a company wants to solve – and that is about the «solution-independent customer problem». This means that this customer problem is often latent and is only solved differently and better by new products or services.

Here is an interim remark: We use the terms «customer problem» – «customer need» and «customer request» as synonyms. You are free to use your appropriate term here.

Solving a customer problem brings benefits to the customer, and it is for this benefit that the customer is ready to pay. So the product «car» is not primarily a beautifully designed machine on four wheels, but creates the ability to move from A to B at any time. It is often useful to abstract a business idea to this «problem» in order to come up with new solution techniques. Innovation, which is based on the market, is mainly concerned with it and can only work if you know the original customer problem exactly.

These may be a original problem as such like eating and drinking or secondary, derived problems such as luxury goods, holidays or other amenities that go beyond a basic elementary need.

The most important questions about this module:

Instrument Customer Value Analysis (Value Proposition)

The customer value analysis is probably the didactically best instrument to focus the company in its activities on the customer benefit. The instrument can be set up directly on the building block customer problem. This creates the logical and substantial connection between customer benefit – products – customer groups.

On the basis of purchase criteria, a strategic Value Map is created that shows which competitors bring benefits to the customer with their products. For a detailed description, the tool itself, and the tutorial, see the white paper Customer Benefits on our BLOG

The module «Solution Technologies»

This component represents the technical solutions behind a product or service. Technologies usually have a specific lifecycle and, after a certain period of time, are replaced by new technologies that solve a customer problem better and more favorably. Thus, a substitution process begins, which leads to the replacement of existing products in the market. This process normally follows the pattern of an S-curve.

An example of this is the substitution of horse-drawn carriages by automobiles. Innovation always takes place in the interplay between the knowledge of the original customer problem and new solution technologies. The timeframe of substitution varies and can go on for years. The first presentation of a new solution concept is called invention, while innovation only exists when the product prevails in the market. Solution technologies can be incremental improvements or implement completely new concepts like the laser printer or the fax technology that has substituted the telex. Such completely new approaches often turn the existing business model upside down, which is described by the term «disruption».

The most important questions about this module:

Instrument substitution analysis (S-Curve)

With the substitution analysis, the replacement of existing products or technologies by new offers can be shown.

This instrument helps on three levels:

eBMC in the STRATEGY.APP

For each business area, we create the eBMC with the current key elements. Each module is filled accordingly and can be adapted, printed or otherwise communicated at any time:

The individual blocks and elements are entered in the usual editing window:

In the design phase, we can now add additional key elements; here e.g. as a new technology, the «nanotechnology» applied to the coating of the glass; or a new sales channel with which customers will be served in the future:

The new elements appear in red for identification. This provides us with a basis for deriving new strategic options and developing strategic directions and measures.

These are then listed in parallel with the options derived from the SWOT.

Here, too, options can be added, added, stopped or deleted at any time.

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White Paper Competition Analysis

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Competitive analysis shows our relative advantages over the competition. We compare the strengths of the competitor with our weaknesses and their weaknesses with our strengths. Every employee must be able to recite these benefits by heart at any time!

In the process described here, we first summarize the essential characteristics of a competitor into a profile. Then we create a profile of the strengths and weaknesses that every salesperson and every employee who deals with customers has to memorize.

Additional knowledge of competitors will provide additional tools such as the value proposition.

Note : I like to use the term competition – because competition comes from the Latin «concurrere» – to run together; and that’s about it.

Procedure

1. List of current and future main competitors

List all competitors that are strategically relevant to your business. We distinguish four groups:

The competitors from other industries are the most dangerous. For example, the «Enzyclopedia Britannica» by PC with the Encarta displaced – and that was very fast and none of the former typewriter manufacturer has considered the entry of PCs. The most dangerous competitors today for the automotive industry are not the other manufacturers, but new providers we Google, Apple or Uber.

2.     Overview

For each competitor, create an overview on a sheet by template (this is to be memorized):

3. Key data

The key data is used to record the essential characteristics of the competitor. Do not write novels, but not just embroidery, but try to make one or two clear statements. Above all: do not just copy the details from the website of the competitor! First, these are mostly inaccurate and not very specific, and secondly, any learning effect is lost – and that’s a pity about your time.

We’ve listed a list of topics below so you can customize the template as needed.

4. Strategic Comparison

The strategic comparison presents the 3 main strengths and main weaknesses of the competitor against the 3 main weaknesses and main strengths of your company. Enter a maximum of 3 topics here and formulate them in such a way that they can be memorized by your employees. Ask them in between or distribute them on colored cards, which have space in the wallet.

5. The analysis topics

We have listed some topics for you in the template. You can supplement, adapt or replace these. The following list should give you some ideas or hints:

Ownership Structure

Financials

Strategic key figures

Basic strategy

Customers

Sales and marketing concept

Product and service portfolio

Core competencies

Production and production concept

Technologies and Innovation

Competitive Analysis in STRATEGY.APP

In the setup we enter all competitors that occur during the strategy development. The basic data usually relate to the same level as our own company; i.e. you describe an entire company or the division of a group.

Then we assign the competitors from the overall list to the individual BU. The question is, where does a competitor in the market compete with us? With a simple click, a record is created for the corresponding BU. Only the name of the competitor is taken over. All other and further data are dealt with in the BU-strategy. If a competitor assignment is deleted, the record from the BU-strategy is deleted again.

We can now analyze the competitors at the corporate level and / or at the business field level and derive SWOT elements for the SWOT. Here we show the procedure at the company level.

All competitors we’ve covered are listed at the company level. The description fields are taken from the configuration.

There are two dialog windows available:

For each competitor, the 3 strengths are contrasted with our weaknesses and the 3 weaknesses are our strengths

The same procedure can also be used for every business field.

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Whitepaper The eBMC as an Implementation Tool for the Innovation Architecture

The innovation turbo

We started a trial once and filled the results from the innovation architecture into the eBMC. And lo and behold, now we had a stable basis on which to derive innovations, directions and measures; almost like in a real strategy.

That works as follows:

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The innovation architecture as a basis for the delimitation of strategic focus areas

The «innovation architecture» serves to increase innovation success while taking social trends and the use of new technologies into account, by enabling simultaneous consideration or coordination of market, product and technology aspects.

Figure 1: The innovation architecture

The various levels of architectural observation are logically linked from both the market and the technology point of view and are mutually dependent: On the one hand, trends affect the markets and the behavior of current and potential customers. In concrete terms, the influence of trends is expressed in specific customer tasks and needs. Satisfying these is the primary objective of shaping the market offering, i.e. products, services or business models. In order to provide this service, you need to click on of the other side requires competences or technologies. They fulfil – abstractly formulated – those functions which are necessary for the satisfaction of the customer needs are necessary.

For a Approach «from the market «, in marketing also known as «Market Pull«, we therefore try to optimize our own market offer as much as possible. to meet the needs of the markets. An essential feature of this The point of view is that the customers you want to serve are at least are known to the public to some extent. When looking at «from the technology or Competence her«, also known as «Technology Push«, this is not the case. must be the case. Rather, the question is in the foreground here which Needs in new markets on the basis of available competencies could be satisfied.

If one now fills the individual levels of the «innovation architecture» with concrete content, one obtains a suitable basis for deriving so-called «strategic focus fields» for innovation. In a somewhat abstract formulation, these are search fields for raising innovation potentials, which serve as a source for new market services or offers over a longer period of time. Within these fields, active search is now made for innovation opportunities and solutions are sought . Or something more concrete: Fields within which a company wants to innovate.

The limitation of a strategic focus field is not absolute, but it gives every company a framework to increase the chances for successful innovations and to minimize the risks.

What do we do with the result?

The identification of strategic focus areas forms the basis to fill the eBMC:

The procedure step by step

Step 1: Creating the innovation architecture

When creating the innovation architecture, the aim is to fill the above-mentioned levels with concrete content that is relevant for your own company. The following procedure has proven itself:

Before further work is started, the innovation architecture should be adopted by the management as a suitable basis for the next steps. This includes a check of the completeness and quality of the content as well as of the granularity. The following figure shows an approved innovation architecture of a manufacturer of chemical laboratory equipment:

Figure 2: Derivation of focus fields

Step 2: Identification of strategic focus areas

To identify and delineate a strategic focus, a single content, such as a trend, is selected from the innovation architecture, which, from the company’s point of view, opens up opportunities for differentiating innovations. This content then serves as a «driver» or «nucleus» for the strategic focus field. Each content can already be seen as a strategic focus field on its own or, if necessary, supplemented by further contents from other levels, which should sharpen the task in a suitable manner. Since the demarcation of strategic focus areas should be in line with the corporate strategy, appropriate content should already be incorporated here. This procedure is repeated until the most attractive strategic focus areas have been identified. A number of five to a maximum of ten strategic focus areas has proven to be appropriate. The most important facts about each focus field are summarized in a profile.

Figure 3: Profile focus field

Depending on the content of the focus fields, we then either enter the eBMC via the customer problem or the technology.

Step 3: Solution-independent customer problem and solution technologies

As part of a first «exploration» of the focus areas, it is about sounding out possible innovation potentials. This primarily includes the concretization of solution-independent customer problems in the sense of articulated or inarticulate customer needs. In doing so, it is possible to fall back on proven methods of innovation management in the early stages. Possible meaningful approaches include: lead user workshops with selected customers and sales partners, customer process analyzes, customer observations, in-depth interviews with customers, critical event method (CIT), frequency relevance analysis of events / problems and complaints, internal ideas competitions, open innovation Activities (eg public competitions), benchmarking days, business model confrontation or trend scouting. These are entered in the corresponding field of the eBMC. At the same time – as far as possible – ideas for solution technologies are developed and also recorded in the eBMC. Here, too, can be built on proven methods and concepts such as the S-curve, the Gartner hype cycle or technology radars.

Figure 4: Customer benefit analysis – result as a value map

Step 4: Customer Groups and Products

In the next step, the idea will be given further contours by, on the one hand, sharpening the profile of potential customers and, on the other hand, putting the offer together. Osterwalder’s «Value Proposition Design» approach provides valuable assistance in this regard. He assumes that the customer profile can be derived from the «jobs-to-be-done» of the customer as well as the pains and gains in the fulfillment of the tasks. From the considerations to possible «pain relievers», so solution elements for the reduction of the Pains and «Gain-Producers, so solution elements, which are able to donate a customer use, finally the product can be designed. By a product we mean everything that the company «produces» and donates to the customer for money. This includes haptic products, services, services and everything that is today called New German word creations such as «value proposition», «value proposition» and other terms

Complete the remaining fields for the eBMC

On the basis of technologies, customer benefit and offer, the other fields of the eBMC are filled up according to the already classic pattern.

Figure 5: The Enhanced Business Model Canvas (eBMC)

Step 5: Partners, Resources, Activities

No company is alone in the market. List the partners you work with here. This is best done along the value chain; So from the purchase of materials and services on the service to sales; Marketing and communication with the customers, also record the services provided by the partners.

The resources used to create the market offer the following categories: the physical resources (premises, production machines), the intellectual resources (knowledge, patents, partnerships, customer base), the human resources (employees) and the financial resources (available capital, securities).

The key activities describe the processes and competencies needed to ensure service delivery. Again, we cover the entire value chain, which we serve from – to marketing and sales.

Step 6: Customer Groups, Customer Relationship, Sales Channels

Customers can often be divided into groups or segments. In many cases, segmentation also serves for the division into business segments. We recommend equal quantification of these groups, i. with which groups which turnover or even better, which profit is achieved. A good instrument for this is the classic ABC analysis.

The customer relationship also determines the communication with the customer. Between intensive collaboration e.g. There is a whole range of possible relationships with joint developments and pure marketing of the products. Depending on the intensity of the marketing is adjusted accordingly

The sales channels determine how the products or offers come to the customer. Distribution, online channels and points of sale form the interfaces of a company to the target customers.

Step 7: Expenditure

The most important cost factors of a business model are summarized here.

Step 8: Revenue

Here, pricing models and pricing strategies (one-time payment, subscription) are described.

Step 9: Integrate the innovations into the corporate strategy

We can now directly derive the measures from the eBMC for the implementation. If we have highlighted the «new» elements in color, they can easily be formulated.

Alternatively, we can now embed the result in the corporate strategy and develop options, strategic directions with quantitative targets. These then lead to concrete measures and form part of the strategy that will be implemented and accompanied by strategic controlling.

eBMC in the STRATEGY.APP

For each business area, we create the eBMC with the current key elements. Each module is filled accordingly and can be adapted, printed or otherwise communicated at any time:

The individual blocks and elements are entered in the usual editing window:

In the design phase, we can now add additional key elements; here e.g. as a new technology, the «nanotechnology» applied to the coating of the glass; or a new sales channel with which customers will be served in the future:

The new elements appear in red for identification. This provides us with a basis for deriving new strategic options and developing strategic directions and measures.

These are then listed in parallel with the options derived from the SWOT.

Here, too, options can be added, added, stopped or deleted at any time.

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Literature: « Wunderwaffe Innovation «By Beat Birkenmeier and Harald Brodbeck

Learn more about « Innovation Architecture » at:

beat.birkenmeier@gronova.com +41 41 727 04 70