Yves Pigneur

Bonazzi, R., Pigneur, Y. (2015) The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy of Dynamic Ridesharing, HICSS

Dynamic ridesharing is a form of carpooling that allows anyone in a city to hitchhike a ride on short notice. Firms like Lyft and Uber have location-based applications for smartphones that are said to revolutionize this sector of transportation. Nonetheless, this mobile service is still in its infancy and there is a constellation of alternative solutions, with no reliable way to benchmark their diffusion across cities. We propose a method that treats dynamic ridesharing like a virus and (1) collects data from Google trends, as if it were a flu; (2) monitors its viral diffusion by implementing an epidemiological model; (3) infers strategic choices of a firm and represents them on a business model canvas. Our data analysis illustrates that (a) the Susceptible-Infected-Susceptible model performs better than the traditional S-shaped curve, and (b) our method allows us to estimate the evolution of new users and dropped users in every city.

Alexandre J., Paquin, R., Pigneur, Y. (2014) The triple layered business model canvas. Building a tool for more sustainable business models (submitted)

Our research approach resembles that of a toolsmith. We seek to present and discuss the tools we have created. Our tools become our means when imagining more sustainable business models. Our objectives were similar to those of Short et al., (2013) who state that “current tools and methods lack a systematic approach for considering value for multiple stakeholders and for innovating the business model for sustainability”. In the end, our goal is to support organizations whom wish to transform their business model and guide them to reflect upon their business model with a systematic approach or tool that considers multiple stakeholders. In this article, our research question is “How can environmental and social issues be included in the business model canvas?”

Fritscher, B., Pigneur, Y. (2014) Visualizing Business Model Evolution with the Business Model Canvas: Concept and Tool. IEEE Conference on Business Informatics (CBI’2014), July 2014

The Business Model Canvas (BMC) assists in the design of companies’ business models. As strategies evolve so too does the business model. Unfortunately, each BMC is a standalone representation. Thus, there is a need to be able to describe transformation from one version of a business model to the next as well as to visualize these operations. To address this issue, and to contribute to computer-assisted business model design, we propose a set of design principles for business model evolution. We also demonstrate a tool that can assist in the creation and navigation of business model versions in a visual and user-friendly way.

Valve Corporation case study by Boris here

Fritscher, B., Pigneur, Y. (2014) Business model design: an evaluation of paper-based and computer-aided canvases. Proc. International Symposium on Business Modeling and Software Design, forthcoming.

In recent years, Business Model Canvas design has evolved from being a paper-based activity to one that involves the use of dedicated computer-aided business model design tools. We propose a set of guidelines to help design more coherent business models. When combined with functionalities offered by CAD tools, they show great potential to improve business model design as an ongoing activity. However, in order to create complex solutions, it is necessary to compare basic business model design tasks, using a CAD system over its paper-based counterpart. To this end, we carried out an experiment to measure user perceptions of both solutions. Performance was evaluated by applying our guidelines to both solutions and then carrying out a comparison of business model designs. Although CAD did not outperform paper-based design, the results are very encouraging for the future of computer-aided business model design.

PDF

Proceedings BMSD 2014 here

Ondrus, J., Bui, T., Pigneur, Y. (2014) A Foresight Support System Using MCDM Methods. Group Decision and Negotiation Journal (forthcoming).

In this paper, we demonstrate the design and use of a Foresight Support System (FSS) combining two multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) methods. Tra- ditionally, foresight activities involves Delphi, focus group, or Estimate-Talk-Estimate techniques to collect opinions of an expert panel. Often, these techniques are not com- puterized and data visualization is rudimentary. Our highly-interactive FSS solves a number of inherent issues during the data collection, analysis, and results visualiza- tion processes. Despite that MCDM methods have been recommended for technology foresight, a validation with a real field experiment was still required. To evaluate our approach and FSS, we conducted a foresight exercise for the Swiss mobile payments market. Our research confirms that the use of MCDM methods supported with a com- puterized tool can enhance the foresight processes and results.

Fritscher, B., Pigneur, Y (2014) From Business Model Ontology to Business Model Canvas (submitted)

When designing and assessing a business model, a more visual and practical ontology and framework is necessary. We show how an academic theory such as Business Model Ontology has evolved into the Business Model Canvas that is used by practitioners around the world today. We draw lessons from how this simplified canvas is used and show new ways to design and assess business models from a visual perspective. These observations provide a clearer picture of the business model as a strategic planning tool and are the basis for further research.

Fritscher, B., Pigneur, Y. (2013) Computer Aided Business Model Design: Analysis of Key Features Adopted by Users, HICSS 2014

Business model innovation comprises many theoretical models, frameworks and methodologies; however, there is still little in the way of digital support for them using Computer Aided Design software. In this paper, we present an analysis of real-world usage data from the first generation of such tools that were designed to support the business model canvas. We first present how two artifacts implement features such as colors for grouping, custom attributes and positioning of elements. An examination of how digital support brings about new opportunities in business modeling allows us to compare this with a paper-based version. We then analyze how variations of these features have been used in the real world. Finally, we examine the implications of our observations for the next generation of tools and the advancement of research for dedicated Computer Aided Design tools to support strategic objects such as business models.

Bonazzi, R., Liu, Z., Pigneur, Y. (2014) Privacy as a Tradeoff: Introducing the Notion of Privacy Calculus for Context-Aware Mobile Applications. HICSS 2014

Evidences collected from smartphones users show a growing desire of personalization offered by services for mobile devices. However, the need to accurately identify users’ contexts has important implications for user’s privacy and it increases the amount of trust, which users are requested to have in the service providers. In this paper, we introduce a model that describes the role of personalization and control in users’ assessment of cost and benefits associated to the disclosure of private information. We present an instantiation of such model, a context-aware application for smartphones based on the Android operating system, in which users’ private information are protected. Focus group interviews were conducted to examine users’ privacy concerns before and after having used our application. Obtained results confirm the utility of our artifact and provide support to our theoretical model, which extends previous literature on privacy calculus and user’s acceptance of context-aware technology.

Osterwalder, A., Pigneur, Y. (2013) Designing Business Models and Similar Strategic Objects: The Contribution of IS. Journal of the Association for Information Systems, 14(5), Special Issue on Expanding the Frontiers of IS Research: 237-244.

In this paper, we argue that information systems (IS) research has the potential to contribute to improving strategic planning, just like it has substantially contributed to improving decision making and its support in organizations in the past. Based on our work and experience in the field of business models, we outline how IS research can help strategic management researchers study the design of business models and other similar strategic notions. The paper suggests that the current research focus in strategic management could be improved and enlightened by some of the more conceptual and design-oriented research in IS. We highlight three areas in particular in which IS research has excelled that could inform research in strategic management. The first area concerns the identification, formalization, and visualization of the core constructs and models of interest related to the design and analysis of strategic business issues. The second area corresponds to the exploration of how design techniques and tools might contribute to improving the design of answers and alternatives to strategic business questions. The third area addresses the research in computer-aided design assisting the process of designing strategic management objects such as business models.

(pdf) (JAIS)

Cf. editorial (aisel) by the editors of this special issue

Tunkelo, T., Hameri, A., Pigneur, Y. (2013) Improving globally distributed software development and support processes ’ A workflow view. Journal of Software Evolution and Process (forthcoming)

We propose a new approach and related indicators for globally distributed software support and development based on a three year process improvement project in a globally distributed engineering company. The company develops, delivers and supports a complex software system with tailored hardware components and unique end-customer installations. By applying the domain knowledge from operations management on lead time reduction and its multiple benefits to process performance, the workflows of globally distributed software development and multi-tier support processes were measured and monitored throughout the company. The results show that the global end-to-end process visibility and centrally managed reporting at all levels of the organization catalysed a change process towards significantly better performance. Due to the new performance indicators based on lead times and their variation with fixed control procedures the case company was able to report faster bug fixing cycle times, improved response times and generally better customer satisfaction in its global operations. In all, lead times to implement new features and to respond to customer issues and requests were reduced by 50%.