Business Models as a Research Program in Strategic Management: An Appraisal based on Lakatos

Abstract

The topic of business models has been flourishing in managerial literature and more recently in the academic sphere. Since 1995, its use has emerged in a multitude of arenas (Gazhiani & Ventresca, 2005). Of course, such construct may be criticized as a new fashion in the management field that could disappear in several years. In this special issue, however, the authors have tried to explore and test the potential power and interest of what seems to be more than a new concept in strategic management. The stance taken by the authors in this issue is noteworthy for two reasons. First, as far as theory is concerned, the authors postulate that talking about business models differs from drawing on traditional concepts from corporate or competitive strategy. This first point has been partially explored and supported empirically by Zott & Amit (2008). They show that the construct of the business model is imperfectly covered by the concepts of strategy. More specifically, the choice of a business model cannot be reduced to the choice of a product/market strategy. The second significant decision made by the authors is to trust practitioners. Indeed, the use of the business model is largely attributable to the practical sphere. This explains the profusion of grey literature produced by consultants, managers and journalists until the end of the 90s, which made the concept fuzzy but at the same time underlines its potential usefulness for day-to-day business. If we concur with Clegg & Starbuck (2009) in accepting recursive relations with practitioners to build knowledge, the practical use of the concept may be a good starting point. Indeed, as a design science, management can aim to put forward artefacts and engage in conversation with practitioners and users. In this introduction, we trace the emergence and development of the business model as a theme in strategic management. To this end, we use Lakatos’s view of scientific progress, and especially his concept of ‘research program’ as recently drawn upon by Edouard and Gratacap (2010) for the concept of ‘ecosystem’. In this article, the ‘research program’ is used in a broad sense because we apply it to a social science, namely management. However, although the business model is not (yet) a theory per se but rather (depending on the approach adopted) a concept or a tool which helps to describe an economic activity, or potentially a ‘framework’ (Teece, 2007), we demonstrate that it presents the features of a research program. This program is progressive in the sense used by Lakatos. Finally, we try to look ahead and envisage some avenues for the business model as a research program.