Project Module 3: Sustainable Business Model and Entrepreneurship

In this course, you are expected to build a business case for an SDG-oriented organisation. In the previous modules, the cornerstones of an SDG case were presented. The question now arises: how do you create a grounded SDG business case for your organisation? This course will support you with this challenge. At the end of this course, you will be professionally competent as an ‘SDG-model builder/ambassador/change agent’ who can describe and diagnose a real-life organisation on its SDG orientation and help it develop its attainable/challenging SDG business case.

You will work in teams, and you will follow up on the opportunities identified in Q1 around the four levels of intervention. The course begins by articulating these opportunities into business cases for sustainability  (Chapter 8), as a grounding step for transition to sustainable business model innovation. That means you will identify the current business model using a Business Model Canvas and propose a new, sustainable business innovation using a Business Model Canvas (+). Here, you will learn business dynamics and the difference between the adaptation of existing business models (Levels 1, 2, and 3), and full transition (Level 4).  Overall, we discuss an organisation's sustainable value proposition from the perspective of dealing with wicked problems by means of business within new economies. For example, we will showcase the emergence of the circular economy and its circular business model as an illustration of how actors can collaborate in shaping new business ecosystems (level 4).  Therefore, you will have an integrative view on business model innovation, the dynamics of business models, and the Circular Business Model, and consider environmental and social costs and benefits. These insights will feed your work in the Project Module 2: Integrating Legal Solutions for Impact-Driven Development for discussing partnership agreements.