Tools for Sustainable Business Model development: a comparative case study on a non-profit organisation

There is a growing interest for sustainability-oriented business models, as they combine the advantages of business model – activity system units that can be innovated – and those of the triple bottom line approach to performance. Researchers have developed tools to help managers generate this type of business models. The first purpose of this thesis was to evaluate and compare three sustainable business model development tools at the application stage to assess their practical implementation in the specific case of a non-profit organisation. The selected tools are the Sustainable Business Canvas, the Flourishing Business Canvas and the Value Mapping Tool. The evaluation and comparison are performed thanks to an analysis framework, the SUST-BMA. The second purpose of this research is to bring suggestions for improvement about this framework to make it more practical to use. Following an extensive literature review, this thesis presents a structured analysis of the business models generated. The evaluation and comparison of the three sustainable business model generation tools yielded to two focus conclusions that differentiate the outcomes – the generated business models. Firstly, at some point, the reflection has to be specifically oriented toward the voice and power of the organisation’s stakeholders. Secondly, the goals-oriented questions led to more complete answers than the value proposition-oriented ones, which were too narrow. The Flourishing Business Canvas emerged as providing the most valuable approach for the organisation. This tool has a specific block dedicated to the Governance. It also has a broader way of questioning about the activities. Finally, the SUST-BMA confirmed its business model comparison function. A user guide concept was developed, and some adaptations were made to ease its use and make it more accessible to practitioners.