Review Article · Journal of Technology Management & Innovation
Reviewing The Antecedents and Outcomes of Business Model Innovation in Startups
1 Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Netherlands.
* Corresponding author: [email protected]
Abstract:
Business Model Innovation (BMI) is pivotal for startups navigating dynamic business environments, allowing them to leverage opportunities arising from technological advancements and evolving consumer behavior. Despite its significance, there is a lack of comprehensive knowledge for understanding the antecedents influencing the value creation, delivery, and capture processes of startups’ BMI and its outcomes. This study addresses this gap by conducting a systematic literature review over the past decade. It presents a research framework for startups’ BMI, emphasizing the connections between antecedents and outcomes across the entrepreneurial, organizational, and environmental levels. This review highlights the central role of technology adoption and experimentation, alongside organizational capabilities, market orientation, and collaboration, in driving BMI. This study further shows how external conditions, including regulatory environments, institutional contexts, and techno-economic trends that shape startups’ BMI trajectories, particularly in emerging economies, where startups are often compelled to engage in early-stage market creation while navigating institutional voids. Furthermore, this study consolidates the operationalization of BMI outcomes into a parsimonious set of key performance indicators, providing a coherent measurement baseline for assessing the effectiveness of BMI in startups. By integrating antecedents, contextual influences, and outcome measurements, this review provides a structured foundation for future empirical research and progress in practice.
Keywords: strategyinnovationtechnologystartupsbusiness model
Introduction
In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, Business Model Innovation (BMI) has emerged as a pivotal strategy and blueprint for organizational value generation, value capture, and delivery, accelerating upscaling, and building resilience in the face of uncertainty (Foss & Saebi, 2018; Snihur & Markman, 2023). BMI is vital for organizational agility (Sahebalzamani et al., 2023; Teece, 2018) and transcends traditional organizational boundaries, offering a holistic framework for businesses to revitalize their strategies and realign with market dynamics (Khodaei & Ortt, 2019). Additionally, it plays a pivotal role in navigating the complexities of the modern global economy and in securing sustainable growth amid technological change (Demil & Lecocq, 2010; Van Tonder et al., 2024). For instance, in Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), BMI positively affects overall business performance through digital technology transformation (Van Tonder et al., 2023). In the context of startups, BMI plays a crucial role in their growth and survival (Dopfer, 2018). Startups are both beneficiaries and victims of the dynamic business environment in which they operate (Calvino et al., 2015). On the one hand, they are uniquely positioned to seize opportunities from technological advancements and changing consumer behavior. Limited resources, including financial capital and human talent, increase startup complexity (Barney, 1991). Sudden shocks, such as COVID-19 and geopolitical instability, profoundly impact startups and other business entities (Aldianto et al., 2021). Ultimately, startups are volatile and among the vulnerable organizations in the business landscape (Kézai & Kurucz, 2023).
To survive, startups must consistently adapt by adopting technology, and BMI offers a well-defined framework to guide this process. Startups can strategically position themselves to survive and achieve competitive advantages by re-evaluating their value propositions, experimenting with revenue models, and seeking novel, often digital, technology-based ways to engage customers (Dopfer, 2018; Kézai & Kurucz, 2023).
Scholars have explored the significance of the BMI in entrepreneurial ventures and the strategic evolution of startups. Recent research has highlighted the importance of agility and adaptability, influenced by technology adoption, in ensuring the success of startups (Sreenivasan & Suresh, 2023). These findings align with studies that emphasize the importance of startups experimenting with technology to assess the viability of their Business Models (BMs) and manage uncertainty effectively (N. Bocken & Snihur, 2020; Felin et al., 2020; Koning et al., 2019). Other research highlights the transformative impact of digital technologies on the development of startups’ BMI. The rise of digital technologies has catalyzed disruptive changes, enabling startups to create innovative BMs that leverage data, automation, and connectivity to offer unique value propositions (G. Gupta & Bose, 2019; Kulkov, 2021; Lamperti et al., 2023; Richter et al., 2017; Singh et al., 2022). Furthermore, a notable techno-economic trend emerging from recent studies is the growing prominence of sustainable and circular business models within startups (Han et al., 2023, 2023; Huynh, 2022a; Long et al., 2018; Richter et al., 2017; Sanasi et al., 2020a; Todeschini et al., 2017; Van Opstal & Borms, 2023). This trend exemplifies a shift towards more responsible and resource-efficient practices, enabled by technological advancements and aligned with evolving consumer preferences for socially responsible and environmentally friendly products and services (Marques Kneipp et al., 2025; Peripolli Sanfelice et al., 2024). This evolving research landscape sheds light on how startups, through technology adoption, excel at creating, delivering, and capturing value, effectively navigate the complexities of the business environment, foster innovation, and enhance their competitiveness.
However, despite such scholarly work, the current research landscape on startups’ BMI lacks a cohesive and organized structure to provide a better understanding of how various factors influence the success of the BMI process of startups in a dynamic business landscape (Farhana & Swietlicki, 2020; Spieth et al., 2025a; Wirtz et al., 2016). Consequently, the absence of a comprehensive approach prevents scholars and practitioners from understanding the critical elements and dynamics of startups in creating, delivering, and capturing value. Foss and Saebi (2017) argue that this gap must be addressed to advance the BMI literature on the unity and identification of its antecedents and outcomes. A comprehensive review of the existing literature on startups’ BMI, which explores antecedents of the dynamic innovation process and strategies, provides insights into the factors that contribute to startups’ survival and growth in a dynamic business environment.
This study systematically reviews the literature on the BMI of startups in a dynamic business environment. It focuses on the research question of which antecedents influence the value creation, delivery, and capture process of startups’ business model innovation (BMI), and what are these BMIs’ outcomes? Furthermore, it aims to unveil emerging trends within this field, providing insights for future research and practical applications.
The remainder of this paper is organized as follows. First, it explores the literature to map the existing body of knowledge, highlighting the key themes, trends, and current research methodologies. Second, the focus shifts to thoroughly investigating the antecedents and outcomes of startups’ BMI, aiming to identify factors that influence the value-creation, delivery, and capture processes and their outcomes.
This study constructs a model to visualize the research framework on startups’ BMI, emphasizing the connections between the antecedents of value creation, delivery, and capture in startups’ BMI and their corresponding outcomes. The findings underscore the pivotal role of technology adoption in enhancing business performance at the entrepreneurial, organizational, and environmental levels. Key contributors include fostering collaboration among stakeholders, engaging in market orientation, building internal and external competencies to address rapidly changing environments, and conducting business experimentation. This study also recognizes external factors, including regulatory environments, institutional contexts, and techno-economic trends that shape BMI trajectories, particularly in emerging economies where startups are often compelled to engage in early-stage market creation while navigating institutional voids. Finally, by consolidating fragmented outcome measures into a coherent set of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), this study identifies critical gaps and provides a structured foundation for future empirical research on BMI across diverse contexts.
Methodology
This study was conducted using a systematic literature review method, which follows a well-defined, scientific, and transparent approach to reduce bias by searching for published and unpublished studies and documenting the reviewer’s decision-making process, methodology, and conclusions (Tranfield et al., 2003). As shown in Figure 1, the overall process is divided into three main phases: research definition, data collection, and analysis and synthesis of results. This systematic review was guided by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) statement (Page et al., 2021). PRISMA is a standardized checklist for conducting and reporting systematic literature reviews. Furthermore, this study follows Linnenluecke’s approach, a systematic literature review method that emphasizes in-depth analysis and synthesis of the literature (Linnenluecke et al., 2020). Both approaches emphasize the importance of a systematic, comprehensive search for relevant studies and the need to evaluate the quality of those included in the review. Additionally, both approaches prioritize transparency and reproducibility in the review process, ensuring that the literature review results are comprehensive, rigorous, and relevant to the research questions.
Research Framework
The first phase involved identifying the research area, objectives, and scope of the study. The research area of this study is a systematic review of startups’ innovative BMs. Objective research refers to the characteristics of startup business model innovation in a dynamic business environment, as evidenced by empirical findings. The scope of the study was then narrowed to focus on the research area relevant to the objective. The primary research question is which antecedents influence the value creation, delivery, and capture process of startups’ business model innovation (BMI), and what are the outcomes of this BMI? This study formulated several specific review questions to guide data collection as part of determining the scope of the study, as follows:
- What is known in the current literature on startup BMI?
- What knowledge gaps exist, and how are the different research streams related?
- How do current and future research advance the understanding of the antecedents and outcomes of the value creation, delivery, and capture processes of startup BMI?
Data Collection
In the second phase, we developed a search strategy that included criteria for selecting articles. Relevant articles in academic databases were identified using search strings and Boolean operators to retrieve studies within the scope of this study. As shown in Table 1, two categories of keywords are identified associated with “Business model innovation” and “Startup.”
| Business model* | Innovation-Driven Enterprises | Number of Results | |
|---|---|---|---|
| TITLE-ABS-KEY (“Business Model Innovation” OR “innov* business model” OR “business model transformation” OR “business model renewal” OR “business model reinvention” OR “business model evolution” OR “business model dynamics”) | AND | TITLE-ABS-KEY (“Innov* driven enterprise” OR “start-up” OR “startup”) | 260 |
Search strings must identify and include synonyms and closely related concepts (Hausner et al., 2012). This study used the search strings from Foss and Saebi (2017) to identify concepts closely related to BMI. Meanwhile, closely related startup concepts are defined and characterized based on definitions and characteristics introduced by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Aulet & Murray, 2013). Since most publications use “startup” as a general term for businesses covering both SMEs and high-tech startups (which MIT calls ‘innovation-driven enterprises,’ IDEs), careful examination during the screening of the articles was carried out as part of the analysis to enhance the understanding of the current study of startups.
The developed keywords were then transformed into search strings in the title, abstract, or keywords of academic databases using Boolean operators. The inclusion and exclusion criteria are shown in Table 2, ensuring that the review results were focused and comprehensive (Linnenluecke et al., 2020). A PRISMA flow diagram (Sarkis-Onofre et al., 2021), shown in Figure 2, was created using the Shiny App to produce clear and PRISMA 2020-compliant systematic review flow diagrams (Haddaway et al., 2022). A PRISMA flow diagram visually depicts the process of identifying, screening, and selecting relevant studies for inclusion in a systematic review, ensuring transparency and replicability, which are essential to the credibility of the review.
| Criteria | Aims | Justification | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inclusion | Publication since 2013 | To compile all available knowledge regarding the topic from more than past ten years | The business environment has changed rapidly over the past ten years, representing a dynamic environment. |
| Articles on the business model innovation of startups worldwide. | To ensure that any potentially relevant findings on the business model innovation of startups are considered. | Determined based on the research question. Most publications use “startup” as a general term for businesses; therefore, careful examination is crucial to ensure that the findings are relevant to the research questions. | |
| Exclusion | Non-English language papers | To prevent misinterpretations. | Authors’ language abilities and English as a global language |
| Journals in unrelated areas Journal without SJR impact factor is excluded | To ensure that the selected publications related to the topic are of high peer-reviewed quality. | The significance of research findings | |
| Not peer-reviewed papers | |||
| Conference papers, books, working papers, and reports. | |||
| Journals not accessible online | |||
| Duplication publication | To prevent redundancy. | ||
| Articles on the business model innovation of legacy or established firms | To prevent out-of-context findings | Legacy or established firms have different characteristics, business aspirations, and trajectories than those of startups. |
The articles identified using the search strings yielded 260 results. After duplicates (39) were identified and removed, 221 articles were evaluated. First, the titles and abstracts of each article were reviewed, and the article’s relevance to the review was determined using the inclusion and exclusion criteria shown in Figure 2, which excluded 73 articles from the review. The remaining 148 papers were retrieved from the databases. Nonetheless, nine studies could not be accessed, resulting in 139 articles for complete analysis. This analysis involved extracting critical information from each study, such as the study design, object of study, sample size, research method, and key findings. Consequently, 40 articles were excluded because they focused on BMI in non-startup companies (legacy or established firms) and were therefore irrelevant to this study. Finally, the process yielded 99 articles that were selected for review (see Appendix A).
Research Analysis and Synthesis
The third phase analyzed and synthesized the data based on the final article selection. A descriptive analysis of the selected articles and a bibliographic mapping approach were used to visualize the bibliometric information and findings. Given the diversity of research methodologies and techniques across the articles, thematic analysis was used to address the study’s review questions, drawing on the insights generated by each study (Linnenluecke et al., 2020). This analysis integrates the results of individual studies to identify commonalities and differences, ultimately drawing conclusions based on the collective evidence. These findings are contextualized within the existing literature, considering the practical implications and the relevance of future research directions in the dynamic, ever-changing business landscape of startups’ BMI.
The literature was analyzed at three stages. The factors that contribute to the value creation, delivery, and capture of startups operate at three levels: entrepreneurial, organizational, and environmental (cf. Foss & Saebi, 2017). The entrepreneurial level represents the factors that influence an organization’s value creation, delivery, and capture. It encompasses the characteristics, behaviors, and attitudes of key individuals or teams involved in the innovation process, including the roles of entrepreneurs and startup founders, the entrepreneurial mindset, individual creativity, risk tolerance, and the decision-making styles of the organization’s leaders and employees. At the organizational level, researchers examine factors specific to the organization that influence their ability to innovate their BMs, including internal resources, capabilities, structure, design, culture, and the organization’s strategic orientation, which drives value creation, delivery, and capture. At the environmental level, researchers take a broader view and analyze external factors affecting value creation, delivery, and capture at the industry, sector, or national level. These include market conditions, technological trends, regulatory environments, economic factors, and supportive ecosystems for innovation.
Results
This section provides a descriptive summary of the 99 publications selected. In recent years, research on BMI, particularly in the context of startups, has gained significant importance across various academic fields, including business, management, accounting, innovation, strategy, entrepreneurship, economics, marketing, and environmental science. The growing interest in startups’ BMI research since 2017 (see Figure 3) reflects a dynamic period of innovation and investment in the global startup landscape.
Based on the analysis of geographical regions in research on startups’ BMI, there is an imbalance in the distribution of studies, with a strong emphasis on developed countries, especially in Europe, comprising over half of the total research, focusing primarily on Italy, Germany, and the Netherlands (see Figure 4).
In contrast, despite the significant rise in startups in emerging economies, research in this area across Asia, Africa, and South and Central America is underrepresented, and most research in these areas is concentrated on China, India, and Brazil. The substantial differences in business environments between developed and emerging economies suggest the need for a more comprehensive analysis of emerging economies (Zhao et al., 2022). This study also categorizes research by industry sector, with digital technology being the most represented sector, followed by circular/sustainable, energy, environmental initiatives, and logistics startups (see Figure 5).
Finally, keyword co-occurrence analysis in VOSviewer was used to identify the most representative research themes in BMI for startups ( Figure 6). A total of 15 keywords were chosen from a list of 218 that appeared in at least five publications.
Figure 6 depicts the keyword co-occurrence network, which consists of 15 keywords and 84 connections. The recurrence frequency of each keyword was proportional to the size of the item in the network. The cluster determines the color of an item, the lines between items represent linkages, and the distance between two items indicates their similarities. The shorter the gap, the closer the relationship. Among the most frequent keywords were: “business model innovation” (67 occurrences); followed by “sustainability” (20 occurrences), “circular economy” (15 occurrences), “digital startups” (11 occurrences), “lean startup approach” (10 occurrences), and “artificial intelligence” (6 occurrences) (see Figure 7).
Discussion
The literature review reveals that researchers often combine multiple factors in their studies, suggesting dynamic interactions among factors across different contextual levels that influence the value creation, delivery, and capture of startups. The subsequent section presents the antecedents and outcomes identified at each level of startups’ BMI (see Figure 8; the detailed 99 literature sources reviewed are in Appendix A).
Antecedents of value creation, delivery, and capture in startups’ business model innovation
Entrepreneurial level
At the entrepreneurial level, studies examine the processes of creating, delivering, and capturing value, with a focus on entrepreneurs and employees at the forefront of developing and implementing innovative BM. First, Entrepreneurial capability is one of the most studied factors behind startups’ BMI and is regarded as a crucial antecedent of BMI. It is defined as the unique set of skills, qualities, and competencies that entrepreneurs possess, allowing them to identify, assess, and exploit opportunities effectively (Baumol, 1993; Chen et al., 2002). It is inextricably linked to innovation (Garud et al., 2014), with entrepreneurs serving as a driving force. Multiple components of entrepreneurial capabilities, such as cognitive ability (Hou et al., 2022), founders’ creativity (Li et al., 2022), leadership cohesion (Font-Cot et al., 2025), entrepreneurial learning (Xiang et al., 2024), and founder motivation (Rok & Kulik, 2021), are claimed to have a positive impact on startup BMI.
Simultaneously, effectuation and entrepreneurial bricolage are promoted as critical mediating variables in the success of BMI (Csik et al., 2025; Hou et al., 2022; Xie & Song, 2025; Xu et al., 2022, 2023). Effectuation is an effective method for converting network resources into BMI (Harms et al., 2021; R. Guo et al., 2016; Abdelgawad et al., 2013), particularly for startups operating in environments utilizing available resources, co-creating with stakeholders, embracing uncertainty, and iterating through constant experimentation (Cai et al., 2017; Radziwon et al., 2022; Read et al., 2009). Meanwhile, entrepreneurial bricolage is considered an essential factor in the BMI of startups seeking to overcome resource constraints (Baker & Nelson, 2005; Banerjee & Campbell, 2009), particularly in the early stages of BM development, by creatively using the existing resources (Massa et al., 2017).
Second, entrepreneurial cognition refers to the knowledge structures individuals use to assess, judge, and decide how to perceive, interpret, and respond to entrepreneurial opportunities and challenges (Mitchell et al., 2002). Entrepreneurial cognition is widely recognized as having a critical and dynamic influence on BMI (Jones & Giordano, 2021; Karami et al., 2022; Konietzko et al., 2020; Sergeeva & Zott, 2025). For instance, Kulkov (2021) revealed that Artificial Intelligence (AI) healthcare startups design their BMs by targeting specific problems based on their founders’ backgrounds. This shows how entrepreneurial cognition affects entrepreneurs’ BMI development, including sustainable initiative BMs (Roshan & Balodi, 2024). Entrepreneurial cognition focuses on how entrepreneurs think, make decisions, and process information to identify opportunities and formulate corresponding strategies, including how they create, capture, and deliver value (Teece, 2010) during new venture growth (George et al., 2016; Thomas et al., 2019).
Finally, according to the resource-based view (RBV) (Barney, 1991), entrepreneurial networks are treated as external organizational resources that help BMI overcome resource constraints (Micheli et al., 2020; Osterwalder & Pigneur, 2013; To et al., 2019; Watson, 2007). Entrepreneurial networks facilitate knowledge exchange, allow entrepreneurs to learn from experienced individuals, and open doors to potential partnerships and collaborations (Jost, 2022). The power of an entrepreneurial network lies in its ability to accelerate learning, validate ideas, and create a supportive environment for startup growth (Hansen, 1995; Ostgaard & Birley, 1996). Numerous studies have shown that entrepreneurial networks provide access to vital support and are critical external resources for advancing BMI in startups (Kulkov, 2021; Xu et al., 2024, 2022; Yu et al., 2021; H. Zhang et al., 2021).
Organizational level
The literature review identifies various antecedents of BMI at the organizational level, seeking to explain how organizational processes and strategies drive value creation, delivery, and capture as essential components of BMI.
First, the most frequently observed antecedent of startups’ BMI is technology adoption, which involves integrating new technologies into a BM’s processes, strategies, and value propositions to create innovative and competitive offerings. This involves leveraging technological advancements to transform how businesses operate, interact with customers, and deliver and capture value. Several studies emphasize mastery of technology, defined as a deep understanding, skillful application, and effective use, as a leading antecedent of BMI (Cheah & Ho, 2021; To et al., 2019; Van Den Heuvel et al., 2020a). Simultaneously, numerous studies have shown that the adoption of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in startups offers a unique opportunity to reorganize value-creation processes (Saqib & Shah, 2022), especially for startups facing resource constraints (Franceschelli et al., 2018). Researchers have also highlighted specific ICT components that provide tools, capabilities, and opportunities for businesses to explore, experiment, and implement innovative BM. For instance, Sorescu (2017) revealed Big Data as a source of competitive advantage and a catalyst for successful BMs. It offers many opportunities to update BMs and create new BMs by leveraging external data through marketing research to identify unmet consumer needs. H. Zhang et al. (2018), Richter et al. (2017), and Saqib and Satar (2021) show how ICT and web technologies have enabled startups to create unique opportunities for value creation and delivery. Huynh (2022) also highlights the role of ICT in the fashion industry, which enables startups to improve the predictability of the innovation process and market trends and to change communication flows. Digitalization also has transformed the energy (Singh et al., 2022) and construction sectors (Li et al., 2025) through the adoption of new service BMs using a platform-based approach, allowing firms to create and operate a digital platform that connects different participants, enabling them to interact, and collaboratively exchange and create value. Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven technologies play a central role in value creation (Da Silva et al., 2024), as evidenced by for example their transformative impact in healthcare (Kulkov, 2021). Simultaneously, Gupta & Bose (2019), Sanasi et al. (2020) and Zhang (2019) also highlighted digitalization as one of the main driving forces of transforming BMs to create and sustain a competitive advantage. Overall, the literature analysis reveals the crucial role of technology adoption, including ICT, in driving transformative changes, fostering innovation, and enhancing startup competitiveness. ICT is an enabler that provides tools, platforms, and capabilities to support the development, implementation, and evolution of innovative BM. Proper and adequate technology adoption is an indispensable antecedent to effective and harmonious cross-functional innovation (To et al., 2019).
Second, studies have examined the crucial role of value networks as antecedents of startups’ BMI. A value network refers to the interconnected relationships and collaborations among stakeholders, including customers, suppliers, partners, competitors, and other relevant actors, that contribute to creating, delivering, and exchanging value within a business ecosystem. A value network extends beyond a single company and encompasses a broader set of relationships that influence a business’s operations and success. Wang et al. (2023) reveal that reconstructing value networks is an essential method for creating value in BMI, supporting a study by To et al. (2019) that identifies business eco-networks as contextual antecedents of BMI. Additionally, Long et al. (2018), Cheah & Ho (2021), Marcon et al., (2024), and Franceschelli et al. (2018) provide further evidence of the importance of value networks and the establishment of partnerships in the development and success of BM. Several studies have examined specific relationships and collaborations that contribute to BMI’s success. These include collaborations among startups to develop open business models and engage in value co-creation (Ghezzi et al., 2022), as well as cooperative relationships between incumbents and startups, which have been shown to be important sources of innovation (Garidis & Rossmann, 2019; Urbaniec & Żur, 2021). In addition, prior research highlights the role of specific ecosystem participants in supporting BMI, such as freelancers, who positively impact development cost reductions, shorten time to market, and increase customer satisfaction (V. Gupta et al., 2020a). Other actors identified as influential include accelerators and incubators (Braun & Suoranta, 2025), mentors (Lichy et al., 2025), research actors such as universities and other higher institutes (Guckenbiehl et al., 2024), and a broader set of stakeholders, including clients/customers, government actors, and business partners, who function as external drivers of BMI (Van Den Heuvel et al., 2020b). These findings support the study by Reinecke et al. (2023), who identified three sets of value network activities that support a firm’s continuous growth of its value proposition: value networks between businesses, the creation of political agendas, and the rallying of end users. In summary, the role of a value network in BMI is significant because it influences how businesses collaborate, create, deliver, and capture value within their ecosystem. These networks are pivotal in shaping and enabling successful BMI efforts in startups.
Third, business experimentation influences the process and outcomes of innovation in a BM by providing a systematic approach to testing, validating, and refining the assumptions and elements of a BM, followed by further actions such as additional experimentation, scale-up, or pivoting (Leatherbee & Katila, 2020; McDonald & Gao, 2019). Business experimentation inspired by the Lean Startup (LS) has grown in popularity as a framework for conducting effective business experimentation that emphasizes a systematic approach to testing assumptions and hypotheses while minimizing waste and maximizing learning (Blank, 2018; Ries, 2017, 2011). Experiments are used in LS to identify and understand customers by rapidly testing assumptions and enabling real-time corrections (Tang et al., 2025), thereby supporting incremental adaptation and strategic pivots, even during crises (Jabeen et al., 2025), through reactive iteration (Lichy et al., 2025). For instance, Bocken et al. (2018) found that experimentation creates internal and external engagement that helps test assumptions across every building block of the BM. Becker and Endenich (2023) also note that LS allows for scientific experimentation that transforms intuitive entrepreneurial processes into transactions. Furthermore, Silva et al. (2021) found that technology startups can address various constraints by leveraging LS tools and practices for BM validation in the pre-seed, seed, and early stages of development. Several studies also highlight the role of LS as an iterative learning process in testing BM (Baldassarre et al., 2017; Reinecke et al., 2023) through customer involvement (C. Wang et al., 2023) and feedback (BMI-supporting agility development) (Ghezzi & Cavallo, 2020), allowing businesses to respond to changing requirements and deliver value effectively (H. Zhang et al., 2018). Experimentation also encourages startups to pilot prototypes early by simultaneously considering desirability, sustainability, feasibility, and viability (Baldassarre et al., 2020). Another study by Cavallo et al. (2023) supports running BM experiments for startups that are engaging in BMI before committing to significant investments during the scaling phase. Overall, studies have shown the pivotal roles of business experimentation and LS in BMI by providing a systematic framework for startups to develop, test, and refine their business models dynamically and in a customer-centric manner.
Fourth, market orientation provides a strong foundation for BMI as an antecedent by sensing unmet customer needs (Yang et al., 2020). Market orientation is defined as understanding and satisfying customers and other relevant stakeholders (Day, 1994), putting customers’ interests first, and developing a long-term, profitable enterprise (Deshpande et al., 1993). By understanding customer needs, a firm can identify customer value propositions and promote BMI (Zott & Amit, 2010). To create unique value propositions, businesses must scan, search, and explore customer needs to identify new opportunities (Teece, 2007). These capabilities refer to dynamic capabilities (DCs), defined as a firm’s ability to integrate, build, and reconfigure internal and external competencies to address rapidly changing environments (Teece et al., 2023). This stream in the literature agrees that sensing, seizing, and transforming DCs are needed to achieve BMI (Mezger, 2014; Saidi et al., 2025; Teece, 2018) In a recent study, Yang et al. (2020) emphasized that firms should build DCs to leverage market orientation for BMI. Randhawa et al. (2021) found that startups align their deployment of DCs with market orientation to pursue BMI, where the key to startups’ BMI in highly competitive environments lies in their ability to meet changing demands (Bell, 2022). Oliveira-Dias et al. (2022) also pointed out that DC is considered the internal driver that stimulates BMI, in which startups with the most disruptive BM are those with the best DCs. DCs enable organizations to sense, seize, and transform their BMs to revitalize their competitive advantage (Elia et al., 2022). In summary, firms should engage in market orientation to identify unmet customer needs to promote BMI, and should build DCs to leverage market orientation for BMI (Yang et al., 2020).
Fifth, Wang et al. (2023) stressed that entrepreneurial orientation encourages BMI. Entrepreneurial orientation refers to the processes, practices, and decision-making activities that lead to new entries (Lumpkin & Dess, 1996), including value proposition innovation (Antonio et al., 2024). By introducing new products, services, technological innovations, markets, or BMs (Covin & Wales, 2019), entrepreneurial orientation enables startups to leverage unique resources and capabilities to address challenges (Mormile et al., 2025). Innovativeness and competitive aggressiveness as dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation (Kiyabo & Isaga, 2020; Lumpkin & Dess, 1996) are critical factors in the development of BMI (Bell, 2022; Long et al., 2018). Another study by Ruggiero et al. (2021) found that entrepreneurial opportunities are an external driver of BMI in Finnish technology startups. Entrepreneurial opportunities are defined as circumstances in which new products, services, resources, and organizational strategies are introduced to the market to provide value (Casson & Wadeson, 2007; Gonzalez-Alvarez & Solis-Rodriguez, 2011) and serve market demand that is not currently being met. Furthermore, Bell (2022) finds that openness to new opportunities is essential for businesses to develop and innovate their BMs in highly competitive markets. Meanwhile, other studies accentuate the role of management control systems that positively contribute to startups’ innovativeness, focusing on BMI (Becker & Endenich, 2023; Endenich et al., 2022) and exploiting distinct antecedents of BMI, such as organizational behavior and culture (von Kolpinski et al., 2022), organizational design (B. Guo et al., 2018; Van Den Heuvel et al., 2020a), and learning orientation (Iyiola et al., 2023; Jin & Chorda, 2025).
Environmental level
Numerous studies distinguish the regulatory environment as a critical factor that can either drive or hinder the BMI of startups. To et al. (2019) identified rules and governance as contextual antecedents of BMI that regulate how organizations operate, interact with stakeholders, and make decisions within the entire business ecosystem. Rules and governance should be tested and reviewed regularly to ensure a successful BMI in the complex business ecology (Zott & Amit, 2007; Chesbrough, 2010; To et al., 2019). Other studies indicate that legislation, as an external driver, has either hindered or helped a startup’s BMI (Ruggiero et al., 2021; Van Den Heuvel et al., 2020; Jain, 2014). For instance, Van Den Heuvel et al. (2020) demonstrate that slow regulatory recognition prevents firms from conducting business experimentation, whereas Jain (2014) illustrates how institutional voids in emerging economies have created opportunities for startups to innovate their BMs. However, most studies have listed regulatory and government involvement as the predominant barriers to sustainable and circular BMI studies (Biancuzzi et al., 2024; Geissdoerfer et al., 2023; Guldmann & Huulgaard, 2020; Huynh, 2022b; Lit et al., 2024; Long et al., 2018; Nunes et al., 2022). In summary, the regulatory environment comprises rules, governance, regulations, laws, standards, and guidelines established within business ecologies that significantly influence the development of startup BMI, either in a stimulating or obstructing way.
Second, techno-economic trends encompassing the intersection of technological advancements and economic shifts have created new opportunities for businesses to innovate their BMs. For instance, technological advancements have transformed startups’ BMs in the healthcare and automotive sectors by fostering new technological capabilities and distinctive value propositions (Kulkov, 2021; Rask & Günzel-Jensen, 2020a). In sustainability-oriented contexts, technological developments have supported circular and sharing economy logics, thereby fostering sustainability-oriented BMI, particularly in the fashion industry (Todeschini et al., 2017). Huynh (2022) further shows that circular BMs are enabled by digital technologies that enhance market predictability, product traceability and transparency, consumer awareness, recyclability, and communication flows. Similar techno-economic influences have reshaped BMs in the food and beverage and energy sectors (Long et al., 2018; Singh et al., 2022). Moreover, the rise of the sharing economy has driven BMI in the mobility sector by leveraging ICT to enable the sharing of underutilized assets (Richter et al., 2017; Saqib & Satar, 2021). These techno-economic trends are closely intertwined with market behavior, in which technological advancements shape consumer preferences and usage patterns (Rangaswamy et al., 2022), while evolving market demands guide the direction of technological innovation (Cicellin et al., 2019; Singh et al., 2022; Todeschini et al., 2017).
Additionally, recent literature indicates that artificial intelligence (AI) represents an advanced stage of these techno-economic trends, expanding firms’ analytical and predictive capabilities. Studies show that AI adoption supports BMI by enhancing value creation, delivery, and proposition design across sectors, including sustainability-oriented startups (Jorzik et al., 2024) and the circular agri-food sector, by leveraging predictive analytics, digital platforms, and biotechnology (Ranjbari et al., 2025). The rapid diffusion of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) since mid-2023 marks a further shift in techno-economic trends. GenAI enables BM reconfigurations that fundamentally alter startups’ cost structures and scalability by automating routine tasks, reducing the marginal costs of experimentation and content generation, and allowing firms to scale innovation and market engagement with substantially lower capital intensity (Rezazadeh et al., 2025). Recent evidence indicates that GenAI adoption strengthens organizational learning in manufacturing startups, thereby driving sustainable BMI (S. Wang & Zhang, 2025). This emerging literature indicates that GenAI intensifies existing techno-economic trends by lowering experimentation costs, amplifying learning feedback loops, and reshaping entrepreneurial search processes, thereby enabling startups to adapt and achieve high innovation performance in evolving environments. (Donaldson et al., 2025). Overall, GenAI alters techno-economic trends by shifting the BMI from predominantly efficiency- and scale-driven digitalization toward rapid, low-cost experimentation, accelerated learning, and continuous reconfiguration of value creation, delivery, and capture.
Finally, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, recent studies have analyzed how changes in the business environment caused by the crisis affect startups’ BMI. Sanasi and Ghezzi (2022) developed a conceptual model of the three stages startups face in a crisis: reaction to shock, response, and retrospection, leading to a long-term strategic reorientation. Startups respond to crises through BM changes, driven by crisis-induced opportunities and adversity, leading to specific startup archetypes (Tanveer et al., 2024; Guckenbiehl & Corral de Zubielqui, 2022). Rodrigues and Noronha (2022) found that the pandemic negatively affected startups, whereas digital BMI had a positive effect. These studies demonstrate how crises disrupt the status quo and require businesses to adapt their BMs to survive and thrive under challenging circumstances.
Outcomes of value creation, delivery, and capture in startups’ business model innovation
BMI outcomes refer to organizational performance implications, including outcomes, effects, and impacts that result from value creation, delivery, and capture in BMI (cf. Foss & Saebi, 2017). The findings from the studies in this review indicated that BMI has a significant positive impact on business performance. For instance, H. Zhang et al. (2018) highlighted the importance of BMI as an effective way to promote startup growth driven by exploratory orientation. Simultaneously, Rask and Günzel-Jensen (2020) show that the ‘innovation-imitation’ balance between BM and value proposition affects the performance of startups in nascent markets. However, compared with studies on the antecedents of BMI, research on the outcomes of value creation, delivery, and capture in startups’ BMI is relatively scarce. Nevertheless, these studies have significantly advanced an understanding of how innovation influences businesses. The scarcity of research in this area can be attributed to various constraints, including the considerable time lag between BMI implementation and its impact on organizational performance, as well as the intricate relationship between BMI and organizational performance (Foss & Saebi, 2017).
The analysis concentrates on the operationalization employed in the current literature to measure the outcomes of value creation, delivery, and capture in startups’ BMI. By exploring the existing literature, this study systematically assesses these outcomes across three contextual levels: entrepreneurial, organizational, and environmental (cf. Bashir et al., 2020; cf. Huang & Ichikohji, 2023; Medina Molina et al., 2023). This evaluation aligns with the contextual perspectives acknowledged in prior studies, indicating that the antecedents of value creation, delivery, and capture in BMI operate across these levels (cf. Foss & Saebi, 2017; cf. Spieth et al., 2025b; cf. Teece, 2010).Entrepreneurial level
Entrepreneurial level
The outcomes of value creation, delivery, and capture in startups’ BMI at the entrepreneurial level encompass tangible results, and performance indicators assess startups’ ability to monetize created value by measuring financial metrics such as revenue, sales, and profitability. These financial metrics serve as indicators of value-capture innovation, assessing how effectively startups translate their value propositions into revenue and achieve profitability (Elia et al., 2022). As highlighted by H. Zhang et al (2018), the role of BMI is critical in driving the growth of new enterprises, as evidenced by financial performance metrics. However, recent evidence indicates that although BMI is a strong driver of long-term growth, its short-term financial impact is often negligible (Jo, 2025), particularly for startups that typically operate without immediate profitability in their early stages (Garidis & Rossmann, 2019). Therefore, complementary measurements are needed to comprehensively evaluate the outcomes of value creation, delivery, and capture in startups’ BMI, providing a holistic assessment that encompasses diverse dimensions beyond financial criteria.
Organizational level
At the organizational level, the outcomes of value creation, delivery, and capture in startups’ BMI are reflected in a range of key performance indicators that assess the effectiveness of the innovation process within the organization. These outcome measures use various non-financial metrics rooted in operational, innovation, and market perspectives, offering a more comprehensive view of organizational performance that extends beyond monetary considerations. Gilbert et al. (2006) introduced the growth rate of employees to measure the growth rate of new ventures, indicating the expansion of firm operations or changes in business strategy. Meanwhile, To et al. (2019) highlighted the significance of resource capabilities as an outcome metric, assessing a startup’s ability to dynamically respond to emerging challenges by effectively utilizing business resources and actions. Other studies using market-based metrics, such as customer count and time-to-market, indicate a startup’s ability to attract and retain its customer base and deliver value innovation (Garidis & Rossmann, 2019; V. Gupta et al., 2020b). Furthermore, including R&D activities as an outcome metric reflects a startup’s commitment to creating value innovation, and cost metrics provide insights into operational efficiency. Notably, the introduction of Industry-adjusted Tobin’s Q, as proposed by Guo et al. (2018), stands out as a distinct metric that gauges a firm’s market value relative to its assets, indicating the efficiency of value generation in the BMI process.
Environmental level
At the environmental level, the outcomes of value creation, delivery, and capture in startups’ BMI are assessed to measure a firm’s potential to surpass competitors in generating and appropriating value (cf. Foss & Saebi, 2017; Peteraf & Barney, 2003). These metrics evaluate how startups gain a competitive advantage by creating and capturing value, focusing on a firm’s competitive standing and strategic positioning in the market. Within the reviewed studies, several key performance indicators were utilized, such as market share and market expansion, reflecting the acceptance of the firm’s value propositions in both existing and new or extended markets (cf. Gilbert et al., 2006). Another study introduced technology acquisition, indicating a startup’s capacity to integrate and leverage cutting-edge technologies to create unique market value (Bae & Choi, 2021). Meanwhile, To et al. (2019) introduced adaptive agility to measure startups’ ability to respond quickly and effectively to competitive pressures and market changes. Furthermore, several studies have observed the resilience and survivability of startups under certain circumstances, such as during crises or intense competition, showcasing their ability to withstand challenges, disruptions, and uncertainties, ensuring their continued existence and success in the competitive landscape (Rodrigues & Noronha, 2022; Tanveer et al., 2024).
The analysis indicates that most studies employ various indicators to measure the outcomes of startup BMI. For instance, Elia et al. (2022) utilized multiple indicators, such as revenue, number of customers, R&D activities, cost, and market expansion, to assess the outcomes of the BMI process in technology startups, encompassing startups’ performance across entrepreneurial, organizational, and environmental levels. Another study by Gupta et al. (2020) used time-to-market, cost, and customer satisfaction as performance indicators to measure the value proposition innovation process of software startups. This demonstrates that assessing BMI outcomes involves multiple operationalizations across entrepreneurial, organizational, and environmental levels. However, the analysis revealed that various studies used subjective measures based on respondents’ judgments (such as entrepreneurs or managers) to measure organizational performance. Although subjective measures provide insight into the phenomenon under study, they raise issues such as response bias, lack of objectivity, and response variability. Guo et al. (2021) acknowledge this limitation by revealing inconsistent results. In addition, the operationalization of the BMI construct and the performance indicators used vary significantly across studies, making comparisons of results less uniform (Foss & Saebi, 2018). The fundamental cause of this issue is the lack of clear dimensionalization of BMI, indicating the need for further work in developing BMI measurement instruments (Foss & Saebi, 2018; Huang & Ichikohji, 2023).
Business model innovation in emerging economies
Because the representation of emerging economies in the analyzed literature database is relatively low, and the above findings are mainly based on research publications from developed economies, this subsection focuses on findings distilled from the limited number of research articles on developing economies included in the dataset.
Evidence from emerging economies indicates that BMI is shaped by institutional voids, policy volatility, and resource scarcity, which require startups to actively create and legitimize markets in the early stages. In such contexts, startups frequently create value by acting as intermediaries that bridge weak institutional infrastructure with underserved customers and ecosystem partners (Jain, 2014). Evidence from sustainability-oriented startups in Brazil shows how regulatory uncertainty, weak incentives, and fragmented market infrastructure constrain scaling unless targeted public programs reduce institutional friction (Nunes et al., 2022). Scalable BMI here depends on business models that actively bridge the fragmented institutions and infrastructures.
Beyond institutional voids, emerging economies are characterized by institutional arrangements that actively shape viable BMI pathways. Evidence from China’s digital economy, which made a transition from an emerging to a developed economy in many ways, but still also have some characteristics of its former position as emerging economy, shows that competitiveness depends on continuous business model iteration, experimentation, and tight customer feedback loops, while internationalization typically follows a staged trajectory that first leverages domestic scale before adapting business models to foreign markets (Bell, 2022). Importantly, BMI outcomes in this context are sequence-dependent: value proposition innovation oriented toward consumer demand acts as the primary trigger, with aligned value creation and value capture innovations translating this proposition into performance (H. Guo et al., 2022). Sectoral evidence further illustrates how institutional governance shapes monetization logics, as startups develop hybrid funding and platform-based revenue models under strong regulatory and platform constraints (S. I. Zhang, 2019).
Third, BMI in emerging economies is often a necessary response to structural constraints. Although lean experimentation and effectual logic are widely promoted, empirical evidence shows that regulatory approvals, bureaucratic procedures, and legal uncertainty frequently slow experimentation cycles and restrict rapid validation, requiring startups to combine agile learning with formal planning to secure legitimacy and access resources (Silva et al., 2021). Market creation further requires deep contextual adaptation, as business models transferred from developed economies may fail when they conflict with limitations in infrastructural, payment, and logistics systems, prompting iterative redesign and strategic refocusing (G. Gupta & Bose, 2019). These findings indicate that BMI trajectories in the emerging economies are shaped by constrained experimental environments.
Consolidated Key Performance Indicator Framework for Business Model Innovation Outcomes
The review in the preceding section reveals substantial heterogeneity in how BMI outcomes are operationalized, which limits comparability and cumulative theory-building. Although many studies have employed multiple outcome indicators, the absence of a shared measurement baseline has resulted in fragmented and weakly comparable empirical evidence. To address this limitation, we propose a consolidated set of key performance indicators (KPIs) to translate descriptive insights from the literature into prescriptive guidance for future research on BMI and to serve as a supporting tool for practitioners in the field. The proposed KPIs are derived from indicators that (1) recur consistently across studies, (2) align conceptually with value creation, delivery, and capture, and (3) remain applicable across different startup stages, while explicitly acknowledging that financial indicators often exhibit limited explanatory power in early-stage ventures. This framework reduces measurement dispersion by identifying a parsimonious and theoretically grounded baseline for empirical comparisons and practical work.
At the entrepreneurial level, outcome measurement in the literature primarily relies on financial indicators such as revenue growth, sales growth, and profitability, reflecting startups’ ability to appropriate value. While these indicators remain necessary for assessing value capture feasibility, their interpretation requires caution in early-stage contexts, where financial performance frequently lags behind business model experimentation and market validation. At the organizational level, non-financial KPIs, including customer count, time-to-market, employee growth, R&D intensity, cost efficiency, and resource capability, provide more sensitive signals of BMI, capturing how startups reconfigure internal processes to create and deliver value under evolving business models. At the environmental level, indicators such as market share, market expansion, adaptive agility, technology acquisition, and resilience or survival reflect competitive positioning and long-term viability under external pressure.
Accordingly, BMI outcomes are best assessed through a multi-KPI logic that integrates complementary indicators aligned with the research objective and startup stage rather than privileging a single performance metric. Table 3 summarizes the consolidated KPI sets proposed in this study. While future studies may adapt this framework to specific contexts, adopting a shared core of outcome indicators would substantially enhance the comparability, replication, and cumulative theory development in startup BMI research.
| Level | BMI Outcome Focus | Core KPIs |
|---|---|---|
| Entrepreneurial | Value capture feasibility and early growth | Revenue growth, sales growth, and profitability |
| Organizational | Effectiveness of value creation and delivery | Number of customers, time-to-market, R&D intensity, cost efficiency, employee growth, resource capability |
| Environmental | Competitive positioning and adaptability | Market share; market expansion; adaptive agility; technology acquisition; resilience/survival |
Limitations and future research
As with any other research, this study had certain limitations. First, this study only includes research published in leading journals using the criteria outlined in the methodology section. The inclusion criteria were limited to journals with Q1 or Q2 impact factors at the time of access, potentially overlooking relevant findings from journals not included but still pertinent to this study. Second, the results were based on studies available until December 2025. Given the rapid growth of research in this field, future studies can further enrich our understanding. Nonetheless, this research offers an up-to-date knowledge base and comprehensive insight into the antecedents influencing the value creation, delivery, and capture processes of startups’ BMI and their outcomes.
Conclusion
This study presents a systematic literature review of the dynamics of value creation, delivery, and capture. It aims to assist researchers and practitioners in understanding the antecedents that influence the value creation, delivery, and capture processes of startups’ BMI and outcomes. The key findings of this review can be summarized in four aspects. First, this study presents a model outlining the research structure in the literature on startup BMI, focusing on its antecedents and outcomes. This model paves the way for future researchers to develop and empirically test frameworks related to a cohesive understanding of the antecedents and outcomes of startups’ BMI. Second, this review identifies a diverse set of antecedents that drive or constrain startups’ BMI processes, highlighting how these factors operate across multiple levels and interact dynamically. Furthermore, the findings cautiously suggest that startups’ BMI in emerging economies is shaped by institutional voids, policy volatility, resource constraints, and early-stage market-formation challenges. This contextual lens advances our understanding of how startups in emerging economies engage in BMI, not only to compete but also to bridge fragmented institutions, create market legitimacy, and adapt business models. Third, this review synthesizes the fragmented operationalization of BMI outcomes across entrepreneurial, organizational, and environmental levels into a consolidated set of key performance indicators, providing a coherent measurement baseline for assessing BMI effectiveness in startups and supporting both scholarly comparability and managerial evaluation of BMI implementation. Finally, this study suggests avenues for further research, including examining BMI across startup stages and contextual levels, understanding how startups adjust BMI for resilience during crises, and exploring the role of institutions in shaping regulatory environments across contexts.
Appendix A. Selected journals and articles
| No | Reference | Type of Study | Location of Study | Field of Industry | Research Objectives | Key findings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Antonio, J.L., Schmidt, A.L., Kanbach, D.K., Meyer, N., 2024. Enacting disruption: how entrepreneurial ventures innovate value propositions to increase the attractiveness of their technologies. IJEBR 30, 885–915. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEBR-07-2023-0688 | Qualitative, explorative research design | Various countries within Europe | Automotive | Analyze how entrepreneurial ventures modify their value propositions to increase the attractiveness of their comparatively inferior offerings, a process referred to as value proposition innovation | Developed a two-aspect framework for value proposition innovation comprising ‘determinants’ and ‘tactics’, connected by a continuous feedback loop. Determinants include cognitive antecedents, development drivers, and realization capabilities, guide the scope and focus of various tactics. |
| 2 | Axelson, M., Bjurstrom, E., 2019. The Role of Timing in the Business Model Evolution of Spinoffs The Case of C3 Technologies. RESEARCH-TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT 62, 19–26. https://doi.org/10.1080/08956308.2019.1613116 | Exploratory single case study | Sweden | Defense | Analyze the role of timing in the business model evolution of a spinoff | Business model evolution is characterized by an experimental and cost-efficient approach where timing to maximize opportunities and minimize risks. The superior development speed is not simply a matter of being the fastest but of finding the right time to move the venture forward. Timing can be used to resolve uncertainty in the exploration of the latent value of a high-potential technology. |
| 3 | Bae, B., & Choi, S. (2021). The effect of learning orientation and business model innovation on entrepreneurial performance: Focused on South Korean start-up companies. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity, 7(4). Scopus. https://doi.org/10.3390/joitmc7040245 | Correlational research using Questionnaires | South Korea | N/A | Investigate the importance of learning orientation in the operation of start-up companies. | The study finds that start-ups with high learning orientation are more innovative and have a positive impact on business model innovation, which in turn has a positive effect on technology acquisition and market expansion. |
| 4 | Balboni, B., Bortoluzzi, G., Pugliese, R., Tracogna, A., 2019. Business model evolution, contextual ambidexterity and the growth performance of high-tech start-ups. Journal of Business Research 99, 115–124. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.02.029 | Cross-sectional survey | Italy | Electronics and automation, information and communication technologies, pharma and biotech, and knowledge-intensive business services | Examine the impact of BM ambidextery (novelty and efficiency) of a high-tech start-up on growth performance (based on the growth of full-time equivalent (FTE) workers) may change over time (different phases of its evolution). | BM novelty does not affect the growth performance of start-ups. New ventures should focus not only on novelty but also on rapidly strengthening their BM with the required degree of efficiency. BM novelty can typically be the focus in the early stages, and successive evolution should instead be driven by the pursuit of progressive improvements in efficiency. Meanwhile, in later phases, start-ups need to clarify their market positioning, and tested their revenue models and cost structures, ambidexterity may release its full potential and encourage growth. |
| 5 | Baldassarre, B., Calabretta, G., Bocken, N.M.P., Jaskiewicz, T., 2017. Bridging sustainable business model innovation and user-driven innovation: A process for sustainable value proposition design. Journal of Cleaner Production 147, 175–186. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.01.081 | Research through design methodology | Various countries within Europe | Energy | Improve sustainable development business practice through combining sustainable business model innovation with user-driven innovation practices. | Proposes an initial methodological framework for mapping and understanding stakeholders in developing a process for designing a sustainable value proposition, which takes a thorough, dynamic, and iterative approach by talking to stakeholders, thinking about the problem, and testing the product/service, resulting in an actual sustainable value proposition and a superior problem-solution fit. |
| 6 | Baldassarre, B., Konietzko, J., Brown, P., Calabretta, G., Bocken, N., Karpen, I.O., Hultink, E.J., 2020. Addressing the design-implementation gap of sustainable business models by prototyping: A tool for planning and executing small-scale pilots. Journal of Cleaner Production 255. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.120295 | Design science research | Netherlands | Environmental Initiatives | Bridging the design-implementation gap of sustainable business models through business experimentation and strategic design support. | This research outlined that before detailing SBM ideas, piloting prototypes from an early stage are crucial to considering simultaneously their desirability, sustainability, feasibility, and viability, and to verify early on if they can be implemented that could avoid operational and financial bottlenecks. |
| 7 | B Becker, S.D., Endenich, C., 2023. Entrepreneurial Ecosystems as Amplifiers of the Lean Startup Philosophy: Management Control Practices in Earliest-Stage Startups*. Contemporary Accounting Research 40, 624–667. https://doi.org/10.1111/1911-3846.12806 | Cross-sectional field study using interviews | France | Multiple industry | The influences of Lean Startup philosophy in the earliest-stage startups’ towards the design and use of management control systems. | The Lean startup approach allows scientific experimentation that has transformed intuitive entrepreneurial processes into transactions that can be steered and accelerated by MCSs. MCSs play a crucial role in the rapid experimentation and learning process toward finding a scalable business model characteristic of the Lean Startup philosophy propagated by the entrepreneurial ecosystem. |
| 8 | Bel Bell, R., 2022. Innovating to survive in competitive markets: business model innovation of Chinese digital businesses. International Journal of Innovation Science. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJIS-09-2022-0189 | Investigative multiple case study | China | Digital businesses | Explore how start-up digital businesses develop and innovate their business models to survive in dynamic and competitive markets. | BMI play an important role and is beneficial in the success of new digital ventures in highly competitive environments. This research highlighted key factors in the BMIs studied, including the importance of BMI as a strategic tool to ensure competitiveness in the market; an openness to innovation and the identification of new opportunities; a close relationship with customers and their requirements; the ability to iterate to meet changing demands; and the ability to create and maximise value through the most efficient use of value delivery, capture and networks. |
| 9 | Bergmann, T., Utikal, H., 2021. How to support start-ups in developing a sustainable business model: The case of an european social impact accelerator. Sustainability (Switzerland) 13. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13063337 | Single case study | Various countries within Europe | Startup accelerator | Understands the role of accelerator to support start-ups in developing a triple layered Sustainable Business Model. | Presenting the importance intermediary role of social impact accelerator in supporting start-ups and developing a sustainable BM by providing new knowledge to startups, supporting start-ups’ assimilation of new knowledge, and supporting startups’ application of new knowledge |
| 10 | Biancuzzi, H., Massaro, M., Bagnoli, C., 2024. Smart mobility in Venice: An ecosystem perspective. Journal of Cleaner Production 434, 140096. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.140096 | Qualitative case study utilizing semi-structured interviews | Italy | Environmental Initiatives | Investigate the actors that generate ecosystem value in the field of Smart Mobility, the stakeholders who capture it, and the concept values generated/captured, with a specific reflection on Venice. | Significant obstacles hinder smart mobility, including widespread distrust and scepticism towards innovation, the economic interests tied to existing sales models, difficulties in data management and privacy, stringent regulations, and the general misalignment of business models among ecosystem actors. |
| 11 | Bocken, N.M.P., 2015. Sustainable venture capital - Catalyst for sustainable start-up success? Journal of Cleaner Production 108, 647–658. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2015.05.079 | Interviews | United States and Various Europe countries | Multiple industry | The contributions of sustainable venture capitalists for the success of sustainable start-ups | Sustainable startups should focus on triple-bottom-line BMI, seek new technology and funding platforms opportunities, and establish various business cases to achieve success outside the “green customer base.” Venture capitalists could provide business advice and network assistance. BMI, collaborations, and a solid business case are key success elements. |
| 12 | Bocken, N.M.P., Mugge, R., Bom, C.A., Lemstra, H.-J., 2018. Pay-per-use business models as a driver for sustainable consumption: Evidence from the case of HOMIE. Journal of Cleaner Production 198, 498–510. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.07.043 | Longitudinal study of single case study | Netherlands | Home appliances | Observe the positive environmental impact in terms of improving consumption patterns in a pay-per-use business model | Pay-per-use models can effectively change consumer behaviour, and have a more positive environmental impact than the conventional product-oriented BM. |
| 13 | Bocke Bocken, N.M.P., Schuit, C.S.C., Kraaijenhagen, C., 2018. Experimenting with a circular business model: Lessons from eight cases. Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions 28, 79–95. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eist.2018.02.001and 4 | Exploratory case study using experimentat-ion | Netherlands | Circular startups | Explores the role and process of sustainable business model experimentation within companies that shift from a linear to more circular business model. | Experimentation creates internal and external engagement to start business sustainability transitions and helps test assumptions in every building block of the BM. |
| 14 | Braun, S., Suoranta, M., 2025. Incubating innovation: the role of incubators in supporting business model innovation. JRME 27, 255–276. https://doi.org/10.1108/JRME-01-2024-0028 | Multiple case study using semi-structured interviews | Various countries within Europe | Software, healthcare, energy, online commerce, education, automotive | Exploring how incubators can support start-ups with BMI | Incubators can support BMI both directly and indirectly. Direct support includes regular business reviews, providing external perspectives, idea validation, emotional support, and hosting experts . Indirect support involves leveraging the incubator’s network to facilitate connections with research institutions, partners, and financial investors. Ultimately, incubators act as crucial intermediaries, fostering knowledge exchange and collaboration that pave the way for startup success and adaptability |
| 15 | Cavallo, A., Cosenz, F., Noto, G., 2023. Business model scaling and growth hacking in digital entrepreneurship. Journal of Small Business Management. https://doi.org/10.1080/00472778.2023.2195463 | Simulation modeling | United States | Digital technology | Investigate how digital startups can scale their business model and the role of growth hacking approach. | Entrepreneurs could use digital business model and computer simulations to experiment and learn before committing high investments to growth-hacking strategies. |
| 16 | Chammassian, R.G., Sabatier, V., 2020. The role of costs in business model design for early-stage technology startups. Technological Forecasting and Social Change 157. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2020.120090 | Semi-structured interviews | Switzerland, France, and the USA | Multiple industry | Investigate the role of costs in business model design. | Technology Startups develop three types of business models that are technology-driven, marketdriven, and exit-driven. Costs act as enablers, moderators, and mediators. The role of costs plays in the BM design phase changes firm value capture mechanisms, potentially enhancing the firm’s value. |
| 17 | Cheah, S.L.-Y., Ho, Y.-P., 2021. Effect of space creativity and social climate on business model innovation in Do-it-Yourself laboratories: the mediating role of opportunity discovery in the case of Singapore. Technology Analysis and Strategic Management 33, 1171–1185. https://doi.org/10.1080/09537325.2021.1976404 | Correlational research using survey | Singapore | Multiple industry | Investigate the correlation between DIY lab characteristics (space creativity and social climate) and business model innovation (BMI). | Space creativity in DIY labs is critical for value creation that is integral to BMI. Meanwhile the Opportunity Discovery process mediates the effects of DIY lab social climate on BMI outcome. In identifying opportunities, individuals need access to information about the market, technology and the network. |
| 18 | Cicellin, M., Canonico, P., Consiglio, S., Mercurio, L., 2019. Understanding the low cost business model in healthcare service provision: A comparative case study in Italy. Social Science and Medicine 240. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2019.112572 | Comparative case study | Italy | Healthcare | Analyse new business models of healthcare service provision in Italy and its social component. | Social innovation is the driving force for change and shared value creation in healthcare. The low-cost business model is able to bring together demand and supply in certain categories of healthcare increases access to medical care. |
| 19 | Csik, M.B.L., Feldmann, P.R., Salerno, M.S., 2025. What are the strategies for having success in an uncertain market in the new business creation? J Int Entrep. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10843-025-00391-y | Qualitative, exploratory approach, using semi-structured interviews | Brazil | Online commerce, financial, education, health, indusrance, | To determine if entrepreneurs use effectuation theory to create business models when faced with unexpected events in highly uncertain environments like Brazil. | Entrepreneurs successfully use the principles of effectuation theory to establish new businesses. Entrepreneurs begin by leveraging their existing resources and knowledge, manage risks by setting affordable loss limits, and form strategic alliances to grow. They demonstrate flexibility by adapting their business models in response to market feedback and unexpected events. However, the research also identified that during the growth phase, challenges such as the “pains of growth” or disadvantageous corporate partnerships can lead entrepreneurs to make a strategic exit or even shut down the venture. |
| 20 | Da Silva, W.J., Araújo, G.D.C., Rehder, A., Pedroso, M.C., 2024. Amaro’s business model innovation: DNVB or platform? REGE 31, 371–382. https://doi.org/10.1108/REGE-08-2022-0115 | Single case study | Brazil | Online commerce | Analyze Amaro’s business model and explore the strategic dilemma of whether to innovate from a DNVB model to a vertical marketplace platform. | The case study highlights Amaro’s strengths in technology, its mature digital purchasing process, and its ability to curate products for its target audience as key factors in this strategic decision. |
| 21 | De Angelis, R., Feola, R., 2020. Circular business models in biological cycles: The case of an Italian spin-off. Journal of Cleaner Production 247. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.119603 | Exploratory single case study | Italy | Bio-based industry | Investigate how the ideas of the circular economy are being transformed into activities and business strategies in a bio-based industrial setting. | The circular economy thinking could promote a value creation as well as value capture in BM. Innovative circular actions and BMs can be employed by SME in spite of challenges due to limited organisational resources. |
| 22 | Dijkstra, H., van Beukering, P., Brouwer, R., 2021. In the business of dirty oceans: Overview of startups and entrepreneurs managing marine plastic. Marine Pollution Bulletin 162. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111880 | Multiple case studies using secondary data | Northern America and Europe | Environmental Initiatives | Explore the role of entrepreneurial and SME led solutions for marine plastic management | Innovative BM play an important role for small businesses in successfully commercializing goods and services to reduce the damage of plastics on the marine environment. |
| 23 | Elia, G., Lerro, A., Schiuma, G., 2022. Leveraging knowledge management systems for business modelling in technology start-ups: an exploratory study. Knowledge Management Research and Practice 20, 913–924. https://doi.org/10.1080/14778238.2022.2144511 | Exploratory survey through a semi-structured questionnaire | Italy | Multiple industry | Examine the relationships between BM and knowledge assets grouped by the Intellectual Capital (IC) | The foundation and innovation of BM rely mainly on human capital, followed by relational and structural capital. Highlighting the importance of IC management as a dynamic capability that enables organisations to sense, size and transform their business model to revitalise their competitive advantage |
| 24 | Endenich, C., Lachmann, M., Schachel, H., Zajkowska, J., 2022. The relationship between management control systems and innovativeness in start-ups: evidence for product, business model, and ambidextrous innovation. Journal of Accounting and Organizational Change. https://doi.org/10.1108/JAOC-06-2022-0087 | Correlational research using questionnaires | Europe (Germany; Austria; Switzerland) | Multiple industry | Analyse the relationship between the use of management control systems (MCSs) and innovativeness in start-ups pursuing product innovation (PI), business model innovation (BMI) or ambidextrous innovation (both PI and BMI ). | Formal MCSs can positively contribute to the innovativeness of start-ups, but the significance and direction of each control levers of the MCSs differ between start-ups focusing on PI, BMI and ambidextrous innovation. |
| 25 | Font-Cot, F., Lara Navarra, P., Serradell-López, E., Sánchez-Arnau, C., 2025. Scaling Wheel Framework: A Holistic Approach to Startup Scalability, Governance Models, and Ai-Driven Innovation Ecosystem Competitiveness. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.5117197 | Mixed-methods design with a sequential exploratory approach | Barcelona startup ecosystem | Artificial Intelligence | Provide a comprehensive tool for evaluating startup scalability and guiding sustainable growth. | Highlighting several key themes for startup scalability. Team dynamics, including leadership cohesion and expertise, were identified as fundamental. The influence of external factors including market timing and competition also significant. Resource allocation, particularly financial capital, emerged as a common bottleneck. A clear, long-term strategic vision aligned with market trends was deemed essential for sustainable growth. |
| 26 | Franceschelli, M.V., Santoro, G., Candelo, E., 2018. Business model innovation for sustainability: a food start-up case study. British Food Journal 120, 2483–2494. https://doi.org/10.1108/BFJ-01-2018-0049 | Single Case study | Italy | Food and beverage | Investigate and present the way in which a food start-up can develop sustainable business model innovations, taking into account the importance of social and environmental issues. | Instead of merely focusing on product innovation, food companies can compete in the current market by developing new BMs due to the nature of small businesses affected by limited resources and constraints. Sustainable innovation is a winning strategy to achieve business success, especially in the food industry through the use of ICT and digital technologies and the establishment of partnerships. |
| 27 | Ganguly, A., Euchner, J., 2018. Conducting Business Experiments Validating New Business Models Well-designed business experiments can help validate assumptions and reduce risk associated with new business models. RESEARCH-TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT 61, 27–35. https://doi.org/10.1080/08956308.2018.1421381 | Single Case Study | United States | Automotive | Develope a framework for designing and focusing effective experiments within established corporations. | Well-designed business experiments can help validate assumptions and systematically reduce uncertainty risks from breakthrough innovation within a business model, resulting in management teams focusing on the main parts of the business model. It is increasing the likelihood that the legacy company will invest in incubating a new enterprise outside its typical core business. |
| 28 | Garidis, K., Rossmann, A., 2019. A framework for cooperation behavior of start-ups: Developing a multi-item scale and its performance impacts. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development 26, 877–890. https://doi.org/10.1108/JSBED-04-2019-0125 | Interview based qualitative study followed up with questionnaire-based studies | Germany | Multiple industry | Create a systematic approach to develop a multi-item scale to evaluate start-ups’ cooperation behavior and the impact of such behavioral patterns on startup performance. | Identifies three behavior dimensions (intention to cooperate, cooperation intensity, cooperation quality) and one performance dimension (start-up performance) that can be used to evaluate the relationships between Corporate and start-ups. The results shows that start-ups with a stronger intention to cooperate are more successful. |
| 29 | Geissdoerfer, M., Santa-Maria, T., Kirchherr, J., Pelzeter, C., 2023. Drivers and barriers for circular business model innovation. Bus Strat Env 32, 3814–3832. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.3339 | Exploratory, comparative multiple case study | Various countries within Europe | Circular startups | Empirically determine the drivers and barriers for the different types of circular business model innovation (CBMI) | Startups are primarily driven by market and financial factors. Startups face significant legal and financial barriers and are more likely to encounter value chain challenges like immature reverse logistics. |
| 30 | Ghezzi, A., Cavallo, A., 2020. Agile Business Model Innovation in Digital Entrepreneurship: Lean Startup Approaches. Journal of Business Research 110, 519–537. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2018.06.013 | Exploratory multiple case study | Italy | Digital multisided platform | Explore how LSAs act as agile methods for Business Model Innovation in Digital Entrepreneurship. | Early-stage BMI for digital startups revolves around the value architecture elements of value creation, value delivery and value capture. The Lean startup approach are the emerging form of a BMI-supporting Agility Development. LSA as a form of AD applied to the BMI as the important driver of BMI in early-stage digital startups that includes experimenting and testing the overall business model, strong entrepreneurial and Innovative organizational culture. |
| 31 | Ghezzi, A., Cavallo, A., Sanasi, S., Rangone, A., 2022. Opening up to startup collaborations: open business models and value co-creation in SMEs. Competitiveness Review 32, 40–61. https://doi.org/10.1108/CR-04-2020-0057 | Exploratory single-case study | Italy | Biotech | Explore the configurations of SMEs to structure open business model through systematic collaborations with startups. | Open BM is necessarily linked with creating systematic structures, processes, and practices to make openness a continuous and permanent attribute of BMs through the willingness to open to startup collaborations. |
| 32 | Guckenbiehl, P., Corral de Zubielqui, G., 2022. Start-ups’ business model changes during the COVID-19 pandemic: Counteracting adversities and pursuing opportunities. International Small Business Journal: Researching Entrepreneurship 40, 150–177. https://doi.org/10.1177/02662426211055447 | Semi-structured interviews | Australia | Multiple industry | Investigate the impact of COVID-19 on startups and their response in managing crises through business model changes. | Start-ups responded to the crisis through BM changes because of crisis-induced opportunities and crisis-induced adversity. The interplay between firm size and crisis influences whether start-ups focus on business model adaptation or business model innovation or a combination of both. |
| 33 | Guckenbiehl, P, De Zubielqui, G.C., Lindsay, N., 2024. Navigating external knowledge sources: impacts on business model innovation and competitive advantage in start-ups. Knowledge Management Research & Practice 22, 588–599. https://doi.org/10.1080/14778238.2024.2346215 | Quantitative approach using primary data collected through an online survey | Australia | ICT, education | Test the inter-relationships among external knowledge from research and support actors, business model innovation (BMI), and competitive advantage (CA) in start-ups. | External knowledge (EK) from both research and support actors positively contributes to Business Model Innovation (BMI), and BMI, in turn, positively affects Competitive Advantage (CA). However, while EK from research actors has a direct positive relationship with CA, EK from support actors shows a negative direct effect on CA. The research concludes that not all external knowledge is equally beneficial for startups in building a competitive advantage and advises them to focus on gaining knowledge from research actors. |
| 34 | Guldmann, E., Huulgaard, R.D., 2020. Barriers to circular business model innovation: A multiple-case study. Journal of Cleaner Production 243. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.118160 | Longitudinal multiple-case study | Denmark | Circular startups | Identify barriers to the implementation of circular business model innovation for start-ups and incumbent | Shows that barriers to circular business model innovation (CBMI) experienced by circular startups exist from all four socio-technical levels except at the employee level. These barriers can be organized into external barriers at the market and institutional and value chain, and internal barriers at the organizational levels. Within circular startups, regulatory and funding difficulties, and unclear market demand are the main barriers at the market and institutional levels. Meanwhile, the constant flow of supply material, the complex value chain, the lack of knowledge in the value chain, and taking time to build new partnerships and mutual trust are the barriers at the value chain levels. At last, the barriers at the organizational level are the economic profitability of CBMI and the need for more resources, knowledge, or competencies in-house. |
| 35 | Guo, B., Pang, X., Li, W., 2018. The role of top management team diversity in shaping the performance of business model innovation: a threshold effect. Technology Analysis and Strategic Management 30, 241–253. https://doi.org/10.1080/09537325.2017.1300250 | Correlational research using linear regression model | China | Multiple industry | Analyze the role of top management team diversity in shaping the performance of business model innovation | TMT plays an important role in shaping the performance effect of business model innovation. Furthermore, TMT diversity exhibits a significant threshold effect on the relationship between business model innovation and firm performance. |
| 36 | Guo, H., Guo, A., Ma, H., 2022. Inside the black box: How business model innovation contributes to digital start-up performance. Journal of Innovation and Knowledge 7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jik.2022.100188 | Correlational research using Questionnaires | China | Digital technology | Examine how businesses can leverage business model innovation to remain competitive and relevant in a constantly changing environment. | Value proposition innovation, which is mediated by value creation and value capture, is the most important component of successful business model innovation by being open to new ideas and collaborations. |
| 37 | Guo, H., Yang, J., Han, J., 2021. The Fit between Value Proposition Innovation and Technological Innovation in the Digital Environment: Implications for the Performance of Startups. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management 68, 797–809. https://doi.org/10.1109/TEM.2019.2918931 | Correlational research using Questionnaires | China | Digital technology | Examine the fit between value proposition innovation and technological innovation (exploitative versus explorative) for the performance of startups in the digital environment | Discovered that explorative innovation, is highly effective when combined with value proposition innovation (as a form of external dynamic capability), which seeks to generate value for customers. The study recommend that startups invest in explorative innovation instead of exploitative innovation and actively engage with customers to continuously refine their value proposition. |
| 38 | Gupta, G., Bose, I., 2019. Strategic learning for digital market pioneering: Examining the transformation of Wishberry’s crowdfunding model. Technological Forecasting and Social Change 146, 865–876. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2018.06.020 | Exploratory single case study | India | Crowdfunding | Investigate how digital market pioneers gain strategic knowledge to transform their business models. | Active scanning of the business environment (actively learning about their competitors and the market) led to strategic learnings that helped transform its BM which was at the core of its sustained market advantages. Establishing a digital infrastructure, being a pioneer in the market and adapting to environmental changes through proactive in seeking new opportunities and audit their digital capabilities can create and sustain a competitive advantage for businesses. |
| 39 | Gupta, V., Fernandez-Crehuet, J., Hanne, T., 2020. Fostering Continuous Value Proposition Innovation through Freelancer Involvement in Software Startups: Insights from Multiple Case Studies. SUSTAINABILITY 12. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12218922 | Multiple case study | Italy, France, and India | Software | Explain the strategies and challenges adopted by the software startups to foster value proposition innovation through freelancers | Freelancer involvement during value proposition activities has positive impact on the business in terms of development cost reductions, shorten time to market, and high customer satisfaction. |
| 40 | Henry, C., Rushton, J., Baillie, S., 2016. Exploring the sustainability of small rural veterinary enterprise. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development 23, 259–273. https://doi.org/10.1108/JSBED-10-2014-0166 | Exploratory single case study | United Kingdom | Veterinary | Explore the sustainability of small rural veterinary enterprise in light of recent changes in both the farming and veterinary sectors. | The future sustainability of rural veterinary SMEs is dependent on the veterinary business owners being prepared to change with their clients, develop supportive partnerships and create effective marketing strategies. |
| 41 | Henry, M., Bauwens, T., Hekkert, M., Kirchherr, J., 2020. A typology of circular start-ups: Analysis of 128 circular business models. Journal of Cleaner Production 245. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.118528 | Interviews and secondary data | Europe: the Randstad region in the Netherlands, Berlin and London. | Agriculture | Examine the business models of circular start-ups and how they may differ from incumbent firms embracing CE. | The results show that circular start-ups tend to embrace strategies corresponding to higher levels of circularity than those of incumbents and circular start-ups can make major contributions to transitioning towards CE. |
| 42 | Hou, D., Xiong, A., Lin, C., 2022. Executive cognitive ability and business model innovation in start-ups: The role of entrepreneurial bricolage and environmental dynamism. Frontiers in Psychology 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.978543 | Correlational research | China | Multiple industry | Examine the influence of executive cognitive ability on business model innovation through entrepreneurial bricolage and environmental dynamics. | The cognitive ability of new venture executives has a significant positive impact on BMI as mediated by entrepreneurial bricolage. The new venture executive should understand the importance of entrepreneurial bricolage to solve the problem of resource constraints through the creative use of existing resources. Concurrently, environmental dynamics can promote the relationship between executive cognitive ability, entrepreneurial bricolage, and business model innovation. |
| 43 | Huynh, P., 2022. Enabling circular business models in the fashion industry: the role of digital innovation. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PRODUCTIVITY AND PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT 71, 870–895. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPPM-12-2020-0683 | Exploratory multiple-case study | Norway | Fashion | Examine digital circular business models in the context of the fashion industry among different sizes of firms. | Digital technologies enable digital based circular business models in fashion industry due to its capability to improve the predictability of the innovation process and market patterns, increase traceability and transparency of garment products to enhance consumer consciousness and recyclability, and changed the communication flow of CE. The lack of governmental awareness and supportive policies is one of the most influencing factors for the CE transition. |
| 44 | Iyiola, K., Alzubi, A., Dappa, K., 2023. The influence of learning orientation on entrepreneurial performance: The role of business model innovation and risk-taking propensity. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity 9, 100133. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joitmc.2023.100133 | Quantitative approach using survey data | Turkey | Textiles, Food and Beverages, Computer and Software, Electrical/Electronics, Equipment, Mechanical and Engineering | Examine the impact of Learning Orientation on Entrepreneurial Performance, the mediating role of BMI, and the moderating role of the propensity to take risks | Learning Orientation (LO) positively impacts both Entrepreneurial Performance (EP) and Business Model Innovation (BMI), and that BMI also positively affects EP 5. BMI was found to mediate the relationship between LO and EP |
| 45 | Jabeen, F., Santoro, G., Ključnikov, A., Jose, S., 2025. Data-driven growth and business model transformation: how startups unlock resilience in turbulent times. Rev Manag Sci. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11846-025-00957-z | Qualitative, interpretivist paradigm, using a multiple-case study approach. | Not specified | Digital technology | Explore how organizations can enhance resilience through business model transformation, emphasizing the role of data-driven growth methodologies during crises. | Crises provide an opportunity for startups to transform their business models. Data-driven growth methodologies, encompassing practices from growth hacking, design thinking, and lean startup, are crucial for building resilience. These practices enable startups to sense market changes, experiment with new value propositions, and reconfigure their resources, thereby fostering both absorptive (incremental adjustments) and adaptive (strategic pivots) resilience. |
| 46 | Jain, R., 2014. Business model innovations for information and communications technology-based services for low-income segments in emerging economies. Journal of Global Information Technology Management 17, 74–90. https://doi.org/10.1080/1097198X.2014.928561 | Case-based approach using In-depth interviews | India | Digital technology | Identify factors contribute to business model innovation and the role of the start-ups for low-income segments in emerging economies | Factors that contribute to the BMI for low-income segments in emerging economies are the dominant role in the construction and linking of an ecosystem, the balance between formal and informal governance mechanisms, exploiting institutional voids, and developing products and services specifically to LIS markets. |
| 47 | Jin, T., Chorda, I.M., 2025. The impact of green strategy hybrid orientation on startup performance in SMEs. Journal of Business Research 201, 115748. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2025.115748 | Correlational research using Questionnaires | China | IT, High-tech, Energy, Manufacturing | Investigate the impact of green strategy hybrid orientation on startup performance, and to identify the mediating roles of entrepreneurial bricolage and business model innovation in this relationship. | Green Strategy Hybrid Orientation combines green entrepreneurial and learning orientations, positively affects both financial and environmental performance. This effect is primarily mediated by BMI, which systematically translates green strategies into tangible outcomes. The research also identified a crucial sequential mediation pathway where entrepreneurial bricolage acts as a catalyst for BMI, which in turn drives performance. |
| 48 | Jo, H., 2025. Internal capabilities and business confirmation: trajectories of emerging ventures. Management Decision 1–30. https://doi.org/10.1108/MD-07-2024-1709 | Quantitative study using survey data | South Korea | Not specified | Investigate how internal capabilities including technology level, competitive capacity, and business model innovation, along with the external support of the Venture Business Confirmation program, collectively influence the financial performance and growth of startups. | A high technology level boosts long-term growth but can negatively affect short-term financial performance. Competitive capacity, however, positively contributes to both growth and financial metrics. BMI is a strong driver for long-term growth, but its immediate financial impact is negligible. Venture Business Confirmation program positively moderates the relationship between a venture’s competitive capacity and its financial performance, amplifying its effect. |
| 49 | Jones, O., Giordano, B., 2021. Family entrepreneurial teams: The role of learning in business model evolution. Management Learning 52, 267–293. https://doi.org/10.1177/1350507620934092 | Longitudinal case study | United Kingdom | Online commerce | Examine the influence of entrepreneurial learning towards business model evolution in a family-based start-up | Emotional experiences as a key motivating factor in the early stages of family startups. A flexible BM is essential for trial-and-error learning, while team cognition plays a crucial role in learning. |
| 50 | Jorzik, P., Antonio, J.L., Kanbach, D.K., Kallmuenzer, A., Kraus, S., 2024. Sowing the seeds for sustainability: A business model innovation perspective on artificial intelligence in green technology startups. Technological Forecasting and Social Change 208, 123653. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2024.123653 | Qualitative, exploratory multiple-case study | Various countries within Europe | Environmental Initiatives | Understanding how green technology startups utilize AI-driven BMI to achieve environmental sustainability. | Identifies five key dimensions, called “predominant manifestations,” that describe how these startups use AI. It categorizes the startups into three distinct archetypes: “EcoTech Innovators,” “Green Societal Impact Catalysts,” and “Hardware-Software Integrators.” The findings indicate that AI is primarily used to innovate in the areas of value creation, delivery, and value proposition, with less emphasis on value capture mechanisms. |
| 51 | Konietzko, J., Baldassarre, B., Brown, P., Bocken, N., Hultink, E.J., 2020. Circular business model experimentation: Demystifying assumptions. Journal of Cleaner Production 277. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.122596 | Design science framework | Various countries within Europe | Circular startups | Investigate how entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs, and innovation managers create and evaluate their assumptions during the experimentation process to generate more circular outcome. | Study found that assessing the startups founder predetermined means important to better understand how participants build and evaluate their assumptions during circular BM experimentation. |
| 52 | Kuckertz, A., Berger, E.S.C., Gaudig, A., 2019. Responding to the greatest challenges? Value creation in ecological startups. Journal of Cleaner Production 230, 1138–1147. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.05.149 | Correlational research using regression | United States | Environmental Initiatives | Identify factors determine different forms of value creation in ecological startups | The majority of the ecological startups create sustainable value by employing value creation for sustainability meaning that most entrepreneurs exploit ecological opportunities not only to maximize profit, but also to create economic, ecological, and social value by integrating these values within their business model for sustainability. Ecology startups employ three different types of value creation for sustainability including technologically oriented, socially-oriented, and organizationally- oriented forms. |
| 53 | Kulkov, I., 2021. Next-generation business models for artificial intelligence start-ups in the healthcare industry. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour and Research. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEBR-04-2021-0304 | Multiple case study | Various countries within Europe | Healthcare | Study in depth the processes of forming business models for AI startups in the healthcare industry | AI startups are revolutionizing the healthcare industry by focusing on new technological capabilities and making the patient a source of value and also receiving benefits from value. AI startups in healthcare develop BMI by targeting specific problems based on founders’ backgrounds and networking and accessing data for AI solution development. |
| 54 | Lamperti, S., Cavallo, A., Sassanelli, C., 2023. Digital Servitization and Business Model Innovation in SMEs: A Model to Escape From Market Disruption. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1109/TEM.2022.3233132 | Exploratory using secondary data and interviews | Italy | Digital technology | Examine digital servitization as an opportunity to transform Business Model and escape from a disrupted market. | Emphasize on how enterprises operating in a disrupted market should be able to adopt an open BM configuration while embracing the transition to digital servitized solutions. |
| 55 | Li, Y., Li, B., Lu, T., 2022. Founders’ Creativity, Business Model Innovation, and Business Growth. Frontiers in Psychology 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.892716 | Correlational research using Questionnaires | China | Digital technology | Assess the relationship between founders’ creativity and business growth. | The cornerstone of enterprise growth is BMI, where founder creativity significantly contributes to firm growth. While work experience has a greater moderating effect on founder creativity and business model innovation since it provides managers with more information to make decisions, thus increasing the likelihood of successful innovation for founders. |
| 56 | Li, Y., Maxwell, D.W., Moehler, R., 2025. Facilitating platform-based business model innovation in construction start-ups: a dynamic capability perspective. Construction Management and Economics 43, 864–881. https://doi.org/10.1080/01446193.2025.2528795 | Exploratory, qualitative multiple-case study design | Not specified | Digital technology | Understand the emerging platform-based business models for construction startups, the dynamic capabilities needed for this innovation, and how these startups can systematically innovate their business models. | Identifies three main platform-based business models: product platform, transaction platform, and product-as-a-service platform, and explains how they create value via scalability, connectivity, and generativity. There are four dynamic capabilities—resonance, ideation, integration, and reconfiguration—that are crucial for platformization. The study also finds a reinforcing relationship between these platforms and dynamic capabilities, showing how platform mechanisms enhance a startup’s ability to adapt to market changes. |
| 57 | Lichy, J., Zhai, Y., Ang’awa, W., 2025. Using business model tools in entrepreneurial start-ups: insights and inconsistencies. Journal of Small Business & Entrepreneurship 37, 381–413. https://doi.org/10.1080/08276331.2024.2380554 | Exploratory multiple case study | Canada | Digital technology | Investigate how entrepreneurial startups utilize BM tools, given the recognized misalignment between academic literature and business practice. | Identified two main patterns in how startups use Business Model tools: Reactive Iteration, where tools are used selectively in response to specific needs rather than systematically, and Adaptive Training, which shows a preference for practical, mentor-led learning over theoretical frameworks. Startups often prioritize product development first, leading to inconsistencies in their use of BM tools. |
| 58 | Lit, F.C., Huijben, J.C., Cloodt, M.M., Paredis, E., 2024. Business model innovation in circular start-ups: Overcoming barriers in the circular plastics economy. International Small Business Journal: Researching Entrepreneurship 42, 506–550. https://doi.org/10.1177/02662426231217954 | Explorative case study | Netherlands | Circular startups | Identify the barriers faced by Circullar Startups in the plastics sector and determine the strategies they employ to overcome these barriers. | Five main barriers for Circular Startups in the plastics industry: technology dependence, poor credibility, limited resources, collaboration difficulties, lack of knowledge, and insufficient institutional support. To overcome these, circular startups utilize four key success factors: circular value proposition design, market sensitivity, networking prowess, and circular ambidexterity. |
| 59 | Long, T.B., Looijen, A., Blok, V., 2018. Critical success factors for the transition to business models for sustainability in the food and beverage industry in the Netherlands. Journal of Cleaner Production 175, 82–95. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.11.067 | Exploratory using semi-structured interviews | Netherlands | Food and beverage | Explore and identify critical success factors and barriers for the transition from traditional business models to business models for sustainability. | Various internal and external factors influence the development of a BM for sustainability. Collaboration, a clear narrative and goal, continuous innovation, a sustainable foundation, profitability, and fortuitous external events are all critical success factors for the transition to business models for sustainability. Exogenous events include principal-agent conflicts and a lack of support from broader actors such as suppliers, customers, and government. |
| 60 | Marcon, A., Ribeiro, J.L.D., Olteanu, Y., Fichter, K., 2024. How the interplay between innovation ecosystems and market contingency factors impacts startup innovation. Technology in Society 76, 102424. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techsoc.2023.102424 | Quantitative approch using survey data | Germany | Not specified | Understanding how participation in an Innovation Ecosystem (IE) contributes to a startup’s technological and business model innovation when faced with environmental contingencies like the pace of technological change, demand unpredictability, and market profitability. | Participating in an Innovation Ecosystem helps startups manage external challenges by enabling them to adapt to market contingencies using resources from IE actors. Specifically, IE participation is most beneficial for technological innovation in markets that are rapidly changing, less predictable, and have low profitability. For business model innovation, IE participation is most advantageous for startups in low-profit and more predictable markets. |
| 61 | Mormile, S., Piscopo, G., Adinolfi, P., 2025. Leveraging unique resources and capabilities to address ESG challenges: a qualitative study of high-growth Italian start-ups. SAMPJ. https://doi.org/10.1108/SAMPJ-10-2023-0770 | Qualitative study with in-depth interviews | Italia | Not specified | Investigates if and how high-growth startups utilize their unique resources and capabilities to address key environmental, social, and governance (ESG) challenges. | Entrepreneurs are using their unique resources and organizational capabilities, such as adaptability, sustainability-focused innovation, and stakeholder engagement, to effectively address ESG issues. The findings show a strong focus on environmental sustainability through technological innovation, social responsibility, and robust governance through ethical decision-making and transparency. Foy new generation of entrepreneurs, sustainability is becoming a fundamental part of the organizational identity rather than just a strategic choice. |
| 62 | Nunes, A.K.S., Morioka, S.N., Bolis, I., 2022. Challenges of business models for sustainability in startups. RAUSP Management Journal 57, 382–400. https://doi.org/10.1108/RAUSP-10-2021-0216 | Case study using the sustainable value exchange matrix (SVEM) | Brazil | Environmental Initiatives | Analyse the challenges startups face in implementing business models for sustainability. | The constraints and challenges of BMs for sustainability in startups were discovered in various categories, with the main barriers associated with the institutional category, the organizational category, the market, and sales culture. There is a need to reformulate public policies and increase the parties’ involvement. |
| 63 | Oliveira-Dias, D., Kneipp, J.M., Bichueti, R.S., Gomes, C.M., 2022. Fostering business model innovation for sustainability: a dynamic capabilities perspective. Management Decision 60, 105–129. https://doi.org/10.1108/MD-05-2021-0590 | Multiple case study using semi-structured interviews and secondary data analysis | Brazil | Logistics | Analyse the association between dynamic capabilities and sustainable business model innovation of startups | Introduce the diffusion of a model that jointly addresses the theory of dynamic capabilities and sustainable business model innovation where the dynamic capabilities of sensing, seizing, and transforming are associated with sustainable BMI. Dynamic capabilities can be considered internal drivers that stimulate sustainable BMI. The startups with the most disruptive business models are those with the greatest dynamic capabilities. |
| 64 | Randhawa, K., Wilden, R., Gudergan, S., 2021. How to innovate toward an ambidextrous business model? The role of dynamic capabilities and market orientation. Journal of Business Research 130, 618–634. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2020.05.046 | Longitudinal case study | Australia | Digital technology | Investigate businesses market orientation and its deployment of dynamic capabilities are related to business model innovation. | Reveals that market orientation and dynamic capabilities shape the BMI. As the businesses market orientation changes, it also deploys its dynamic capabilities to innovate its business model. The dynamic capabilities deployed to realize BMI led the SME to transition from a market-driving business model during the early phase, to a market-driven business model in the establishing phase, to an ambidextrous business model during the maturing. Enterprises align their deployment of dynamic capabilities with their market orientation to pursue innovations to their BM, highlighting the notion of fit. |
| 65 | Ranjbari, M., Kuděj, M., Kubálek, J., Ferraris, A., 2025. A Typology of Circular Economy Startups in Agri-Food Supply Chains: An Analysis of 79 Innovative Startups. Bus Strat Env 34, 9301–9320. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.70062 | Two-tiered method by combining qualitative analysis with hierarchical clustering | Various countries within Europe | Agriculture | Improve the understanding of circular startups in the agri-food industry by creating a comprehensive typology that identifies their key characteristics and contributions to the Circular Economy (CE) transition. | identifies and categorizes circular agri-food startups into three distinct types: biotech-driven sustainable producers, digital CE enablers, and circular packaging pioneers. Startups show diversity in their adopted CE strategies, technologies, and BMI, indicating the need for tailored support to foster a more resilient and circular agri-food supply chain. |
| 66 | Rask, M., Günzel-Jensen, F., 2020. Business model design and performance in nascent markets. Management Decision 58, 927–947. https://doi.org/10.1108/MD-10-2017-0924 | Comparative case study using interpretive methods | Denmark | Automotive | Investigate the impact of emerging technology on the business model design that influences firm performance in a nascent market setting | The BM typology of startups and incumbent in the nascent markets could be differentiated based on the innovation-imitation balance between BM archetype and value proposition. This business model will affect firm performance for startups and incumbents in nascent markets. |
| 67 | Reinecke, P.C., Küberling-Jost, J.A., Wrona, T., Zapf, A.K., 2023. Towards a dynamic value network perspective of sustainable business models: the example of RECUP. Journal of Business Economics 93, 635–665. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11573-023-01155-7 | Longitudinal single case study | Germany | Food and beverage | Understanding of how value network activities shape SBM development | Identify three sets of value network activities that supported the firm’s constant value proposition growth and led to mutual value creation among stakeholders from business, politics, and society: Collaboration between businesses, creating political agendas, and rallying end-users. Meanwhile, value network activities arise through experimentation and consolidate over time through iterative learning processes in SBM innovation and design. |
| 68 | Richter, C., Kraus, S., Brem, A., Durst, S., Giselbrecht, C., 2017. Digital entrepreneurship: Innovative business models for the sharing economy. Creativity and Innovation Management 26, 300–310. https://doi.org/10.1111/caim.12227 | Exploratory using semi-structured interviews | Germany, Austria and Switzerland | Circular startups | Explore circumstances affecting the business activities of entrepreneurs who are active in the sharing economy. | The sharing economy strives to monetise ideas and is a forward-looking business format enabled by modern ICT and Web 2.0 to develop successful business models based on sharing underutilised assets for monetary and nonmonetary benefits. The sharing economy’s fundamental prerequisites are a trustworthy company model and customers acting as providers. |
| 69 | Rodrigues, C.D., Noronha, M.E.S., 2022. What companies can learn from unicorn startups to overcome the COVID-19 crisis. Innovation and Management Review. https://doi.org/10.1108/INMR-01-2021-0011 | Multiple case study | Brazil | Multiple industry | Identify the unicorn startups reactions to overcome the Covid-19 crisis | The pandemic negatively affects unicorn businesses, yet a digital BMI affects them positively. The pandemic has fostered refinement, digital transformation, and innovation capacities. Some measures unicorn startups took include creating new partnership networks, including service outsourcing, payment flexibilization, the adaptation of logistics processes, the ability to attract external investment, and a robust digital improvement of internal operations. Three actions stand out to overcome the crisis, such as adopting new digital platforms, strategies to increase the network of partners, and adaptations in the provision of payment services. |
| 70 | Rok, B., Kulik, M., 2021. Circular start-up development: the case of positive impact entrepreneurship in Poland. Corporate Governance (Bingley) 21, 339–358. https://doi.org/10.1108/CG-01-2020-0043 | Exploratory multiple case study | Poland | Circular startups | Investigate how circular start-ups create and integrate innovation into their business models to maximize their positive impact. | The purpose-led motivation of the founder, the aims to increase positive impact, and the purpose of innovation through CBMI are factors influencing the development of circular startup. The BM of circular startups is based on three types of transformation: from sustainable development to circular; from sustainable entrepreneurship to startups with positive impact; and from sustainable innovation to innovation in a circular BM. |
| 71 | Roshan, R., Chandra Balodi, K., 2024. Sustainable business model innovation of an emerging country startup: An imprinting theory perspective. Journal of Cleaner Production 475, 143687. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2024.143687 | Qualitative, in-depth single case study | India | Online commerce | Understanding how startup founders’ sustainability values (FSVs) get imprinted in their venture’s business model innovation and to identify the sources that imprint these values on the founders. | Founders’ sustainability values (FSVs) are imprinted on the startup’s business model through structural and cognitive imprinting, influencing four key components: sustainable value proposition, creation, network, and delivery innovation. Thee research also identified three primary sources for these values in the founder: family values, sustainability-focused education, and early career experience with a non-profit organization (NPO). |
| 72 | Ruggieri, R., Savastano, M., Scalingi, A., Bala, D., D’Ascenzo, F., 2018. The impact of Digital Platforms on Business Models: An empirical investigation on innovative start-ups. Management and Marketing 13, 1210–1225. https://doi.org/10.2478/mmcks-2018-0032 | Multiple case study | Italy | Multiple industry | Investigate the evolution of business models brought by innovative and dynamic companies operating through online platforms. | Startups operating in several sectors showed great growth prospects and the possibility to create value for their customers through innovative products and services offered through digital platforms. |
| 73 | Ruggiero, S., Kangas, H.-L., Annala, S., Lazarevic, D., 2021. Business model innovation in demand response firms: Beyond the niche-regime dichotomy. Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions 39, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eist.2021.02.002 | Semi structured interviews | Finland | energy and information and communications technology | Identify the drivers of—and differences in—business model innovation (BMI) behaviours of firms operating in an industrial sector that spans multiple socio-technical regimes. | According to Finnish demand response firms, external drivers of BMI include legislation, competition, and the loss of the telecom industry following Nokia’s bankruptcy. Market diversification strategies triggering BMI in companies from adjacent industries. This study proposes a morphological box model to show BMI behaviours beyond archetypal dichotomies that represents the extreme states of firm BMI while allowing for flexibility. |
| 74 | Saidi, S., Grama-Vigouroux, S., Sellami, M., Ghamgui, N., Rezaei, M., 2025. How Double-Loop Learning Powers Business Model Innovation in Digital Startups: Mapping Enablers Across Core Dimensions. Strategic Change jsc.2677. https://doi.org/10.1002/jsc.2677 | Exploratory qualitative and deductive approach, utilizing case studies | France | Digital technology | Understanding how the enablers of BMI in digital startups affect its main dimensions: value creation, value delivery, and value capture. | BMI in digital startups is driven by double-loop learning, which integrates enablers: dynamic capabilities, paradoxical management strategies, and specific methodologies. Certain enablers have a more significant impact on specific dimensions of the business model. Notably, sensing capabilities, exploration/exploitation strategies, and the Lean Startup methodology are most crucial for value creation and value capture, but play a less prominent role in value delivery. |
| 75 | Sanasi, S., Ghezzi, A., 2022. Pivots as strategic responses to crises: Evidence from Italian companies navigating Covid-19. Strategic Organization. https://doi.org/10.1177/14761270221122933 | Comparative multiple-case study | Italy | Digital technology | Investigate new ventures’ processes of business model transformation (or pivoting) during a major crisis. | Develop a conceptual model of pivots-as-process that comprises three stages: reaction to shock, response, and retrospection, leading to longer-term strategic reorientation. Pivots play out across the three distinct layers of enactment, reflection, and awareness. |
| 76 | Sanasi, S., Ghezzi, A., Cavallo, A., Rangone, A., 2020. Making sense of the sharing economy: a business model innovation perspective. Technology Analysis and Strategic Management 32, 895–909. https://doi.org/10.1080/09537325.2020.1719058 | Cluster analysis | Italy | Circular startups | Propose a framework, definition, and classification of Sharing Economy startups in sharing and leverage digital technologies to develop innovative BMs. | SE startups group into five clusters: (i) pseudo-sharing; (ii) gig economy; (iii) crowd-based economy; (iv) pooling economy; and (v) P2P rental. |
| 77 | Saqib, N., Satar, M.S., 2021. Exploring business model innovation for competitive advantage: a lesson from an emerging market. International Journal of Innovation Science 13, 477–491. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJIS-05-2020-0072 | Exploratory single case study | India | Logistics | Explore the practices of an online transport network company (OLA) creating a distinctive place for itself in Indian taxi service sector. | The innovative BM of online transport network company achieved through combining technology with the ‘sharing economy’. This model features personalized customer service, asset sharing, usage-based pricing, a collaborative ecosystem, agile organization, and successful expansion strategies, gaining a competitive advantage and disrupting competition. |
| 78 | Saqib, N., Shah, G.B., 2022. Business Model Innovation through Digital Entrepreneurship: A Case of Online Food Delivery Start-Up in India. International Journal of E-Entrepreneurship and Innovation 13. https://doi.org/10.4018/IJEEI.315294 | Exploratory of a single case study | India | Logistics | Identify factors contributing to the digital start-up in online food delivery in gaining competitive advantage. | Digital start-up in online food delivery has gained a competitive advantage by changing its business model by focusing on the nine BM canvas components. BMI is how food companies can expand into new markets based on a valuable and distinctive value proposition where Information and communication technologies (ICTs) present a unique opportunity to reorganize value-creation processes. |
| 79 | Sergeeva, A., Zott, C., 2025. How founders’ values enable business model innovation in new ventures: The case of Magnum Photos. Strategic Management Journal 46, 2492–2534. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.3727 | Single case study using abductive analysis. | United States | Journalism | understand why and how founders’ personal values influence their choices related to business model innovation (BMI) in new ventures | Personal values as a primary driver for BMI. Founders whose prioritized values, such as creative freedom and integrity, were difficult to practice within existing industry models were motivated to design a new business model. |
| 80 | Silva, D.S., Ghezzi, A., Aguiar, R.B., Cortimiglia, M.N., ten Caten, C.S., 2021. Lean startup for opportunity exploitation: adoption constraints and strategies in technology new ventures. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour and Research 27, 944–969. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEBR-01-2020-0030 | Exploratory multiple-case study using semi-structured interviews and secondary data analysis | Brazil | biotechnology, engineering and software startups. | Explore Brazilian technology new ventures tentatively adopt LS to exploit opportunities | Technology new ventures tackle the activities of opportunity exploitation, such as developing a product or service, acquiring human resources, gathering financial resources, and setting up the organization through leveraging LS tools and practices for BM validation in the pre-seed, seed, and early stages of development. Technology new ventures capable of coping with these constraints in their early stages by integrating LS with complementary strategies and practices. |
| 81 | Singh, M., Jiao, J., Klobasa, M., Frietsch, R., 2022. Servitization of Energy Sector: Emerging Service Business Models and Startup’s Participation. Energies 15. https://doi.org/10.3390/en15072705 | Exploratory data analysis | Various countries within Europe | Energy | Examine the characteristics of startups offering service-oriented business models in the energy sector based on their value capture, Service motivation, and success factors . | As digital marketplaces evolve in the energy sector, startups associated with X-as-a-service (XaaS), platform-based business models, and marketplace activities are becoming the center of attention for investors and shareholders. Most startups are transitioning to adopt new service business models and digital platforms rather than offering conventional energy services. The policymakers should protect the startup’s interests regarding their service BMs because they are easy to copy and loosely protected by patents and copyrights. |
| 82 | Sorescu, A., 2017. Data-Driven Business Model Innovation. Journal of Product Innovation Management 34, 691–696. https://doi.org/10.1111/jpim.12398 | Perspective based on Multiple Case Study | N/A | N/A | Leverage internal and external data to generate new business models | Big data as source of competitive advantage and a catalyst for successful BMs. |
| 83 | Tang, X., Du, S., Deng, W., 2025. Business innovation in digital startups: A case study of an AI startup. International Review of Economics & Finance 98, 103898. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iref.2025.103898 | Longitudinal exploratory case study | China | Artificial Intelligence | Exploring how digital startups can use Lean Startup Approaches to improve the effectiveness of BMI | Lean Startup Approaches, through processes like MVDP development, stakeholder validation, and experimental learning, guide digital startups in their BMI. A key reason for startups to ‘pivot’ or change their business model is the lack of ‘value compatibility’ (alignment with internal resources and goals) and ‘value legitimacy’ (acceptance by external stakeholders). When both compatibility and legitimacy are achieved, the startup finds an effective minimum viable business model. LSA help startups reduce uncertainty and integrate experiences across different markets to foster novel BMI |
| 84 | Tanveer, A., Torres De Oliveira, R., Rizvi, S., 2024. How sector fluidity (knowledge-intensiveness and innovation) shapes startups’ resilience during crises. Journal of Business Venturing Insights 22, e00500. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbvi.2024.e00500 | Qualitative study based on inductive reasoning | India | Not specified | Understanding how sector fluidity, defined by knowledge-intensiveness and innovation, influences the resilience strategies of startups during the different phases of a crisis. | The resilience practices of startups significantly differ based on their sector’s fluidity. Startups in high-fluidity sectors (e.g., AI, fintech) demonstrated resilience through resourcefulness, customer value creation, digital transformation, and strategic shifts. In contrast, startups in low-fluidity sectors (e.g., hospitality, retail) focused more on operational adjustments and coping mechanisms for survival. As the crisis progressed from response to recovery and growth, high-fluidity startups pursued growth and innovation, while low-fluidity startups concentrated on innovating their business models to sustain operations. |
| 85 | To, C.K.M., Au, J.S.C., Kan, C.W., 2019. Uncovering business model innovation contexts: A comparative analysis by fsQCA methods. Journal of Business Research 101, 783–796. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2018.12.042 | Fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis | Hongkong | Multiple industry | Examine how business contexts can shape and impose urgency on business model innovation and their performance . | Identifies five contextual antecedents of BMI within current literature: business eco-networks, the business actors’ behavioral orientation, mastery of technology, rules and governance, and business complexity. Mastery of technology and business model complexity are two critical antecedents, leading to strong facilitating or hindering effects on all model innovations in science and service businesses. |
| 86 | Todeschini, B.V., Cortimiglia, M.N., Callegaro-de-Menezes, D., Ghezzi, A., 2017. Innovative and sustainable business models in the fashion industry: Entrepreneurial drivers, opportunities, and challenges. Business Horizons 60, 759–770. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2017.07.003 | Exploratory case study | Brazil and Italy | Fashion | Analyse the inner entrepreneurial dynamics of innovative sustainable business models. | Macro trends in sustainable innovation, the emergence of circular economy, corporate social responsibility, sharing economy and collaborative consumptions, the advancement in technological innovation, and consumer awareness are the drivers of implementing sustainability-oriented BMI. Entrepreneurial drivers also play important role in implementing sustainability-oriented BMI, especially in circular fashion startups. |
| 87 | Urbaniec, M., Żur, A., 2021. Business model innovation in corporate entrepreneurship: exploratory insights from corporate accelerators. International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal 17, 865–888. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11365-020-00646-1 | Exploratory cross case analysis study using in-depth interviews. | Various countries within Europe | Electronics, Tobacco, Energy | Explore the driving factors behind corporate start-up accelerators and identify the benefits and challenges associated with this business model innovation. | Suggests that corporate accelerators are driven by internal and external push and pull motives and act as a source of innovation that could be used to foster entrepreneurial-market logic and entrepreneurial learning. The greatest challenge accelerator companies’ face is finding companies with great ideas as well as a funding supply chain (to fund the next level or early stage after seed level). |
| 88 | Van Den Heuvel, C., Kao, P.-J., Matyas, M., 2020. Factors driving and hindering business model innovations for mobility sector start-ups. Research in Transportation Business and Management 37. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rtbm.2020.100568 | Exploratory using in-depth interviews | United Kingdom | Logistics | Analyse the internal and external factors that influence business model innovation within mobility sector startups. | Client/customer influence, legislation, and business partners are perceived as external influencing factors of BMI, while the firm’s societal impact vision, a dedicated employee responsible for BMI, decision-making structure, and internal use of technology are perceived as internal influencing factors of BMI. Depending on their influence on the firms, these factors could drive or hinder BMI. |
| 89 | von Kolpinski, C., Yazan, D.M., Fraccascia, L., 2022. The impact of internal company dynamics on sustainable circular business development: Insights from circular startups. Business Strategy and the Environment. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.3228 | Exploratory multiple case study | Germany | Multiple industry | Investigate the internal dynamics of young and small-scale companies in Germany adopting a sustainable circular business model | Internal dynamics plays major roles in the success of implementation of CBM including the importance of commitment from managers and founders as the decision maker, effective leadership and management of the organisation in developing circular BM, as well as values, culture and communication of the organizations. Human centeredness also plays important factor since circular startups rely on the mix competences of their employee for successfully setting up a business that is based on a CBM. |
| 90 | Wang, C., Chen, M., Wang, Q., Fang, Y., 2023. The study of value network reconstruction and business model innovation driven by entrepreneurial orientation. International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11365-023-00869-y | Qualitiative Comparative Analysis using single case study | China | Fashion | Investigate company’s value network restructuring and utilize the Entrepreneurial Orientation theory to dissect the impact of entrepreneurs to business models | Based on the success of the startup case study, the BM is tested and iterated based on user feedback (LS approach), where entrepreneurial orientation encourages value network reconstruction and BMI. |
| 91 | Wang, S., Zhang, H., 2025. Leveraging generative artificial intelligence for sustainable business model innovation in production systems. International Journal of Production Research 63, 6732–6757. https://doi.org/10.1080/00207543.2025.2485318 | Quantitative approach using survey data | China | Manufacturing | Develop an integrated framework to understand how manufacturing firms can utilize generative artificial intelligence (GAI) to achieve sustainable business model innovation (SBMI) in their production systems. | The adoption of generative artificial intelligence significantly boosts both exploitative and exploratory learning within manufacturing startups. These learning mechanisms, in turn, are key drivers for sustainable business model innovation. The research also highlights that the positive impact of GAI adoption on learning is strengthened by an international entrepreneurship orientation, and the effect of this learning on sustainable innovation is enhanced by GAI education. |
| 92 | Xiang, G., Peng, M., Tang, F., Liu, Y., 2024. Unpacking the impact of entrepreneurial learning on business model innovation in internet startups: Mediating roles of digital capabilities. Technology in Society 77, 102578. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techsoc.2024.102578 | Quantitative approach using hierarchical regression analysis based on survey data | China | Online commerce | Examine the influence of entrepreneurial learning (both exploratory and exploitative) on business model innovation (BMI) within internet startups, investigating the mediating roles of digital capabilities. | Both exploratory and exploitative learning have a significant positive impact on BMI, with exploitative learning being more influential. Digital capabilities partially mediate the relationship between entrepreneurial learning and BMI. |
| 93 | Xie, Y., Song, J., 2025. The value of cognitive bias: exploring the role of overconfidence and illusion of control in driving business model innovation. Chinese Management Studies 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1108/CMS-08-2023-0398 | Two-wave questionnaire survey | China | Startups from multiple industries | investigate the positive influence of cognitive biases, specifically overconfidence (OC) and illusion of control (IC), on business model innovation (BMI), and to explore the mediating role of effectuation (EF) in this relationship. | Overconfidence and illusion of control have a positive effect on BMI. This relationship is mediated by effectuation which in turn drives BMI. Additionally, the study revealed that environmental hostility moderates these relationships, making the positive impacts of overconfidence, illusion of control, and effectuation on BMI stronger in more hostile and competitive environments. |
| 94 | Xu, S., He, J., Morrison, A.M., de Domenici, M., Wang, Y., 2022. Entrepreneurial networks, effectuation and business model innovation of startups: The moderating role of environmental dynamism. Creativity and Innovation Management 31, 460–478. https://doi.org/10.1111/caim.12514 | Correlational research using survey | China | Multiple industry | Explore the impacts of entrepreneurial networks (as external factor)on BMI through effectuation (as internal factor) in dynamic environments. | Entrepreneurial networks identified through network size and strength positively impact BMI, supporting the RBV perspective on entrepreneurial networks as the critical external resource for advancing BMI in startups. Simultaneously, effectuation plays a mediating role in the relationship between entrepreneurial networks and BMI, meaning that an effectuation is an effective approach for transforming network resources into BMI. Meanwhile, environmental dynamism strengthens the relationship between effectuation and BMI, showing that effectuation is more beneficial for firm performance in high levels of environmental uncertainty. |
| 95 | Xu, S., He, J., Morrison, A.M., Su, X., Zhu, R., 2023. The role of bricolage in countering resource constraints and uncertainty in start-up business model innovation. European Journal of Innovation Management. https://doi.org/10.1108/EJIM-11-2022-0632 | Correlational research using linear regression model | China | Multiple industry | Investigate the influences of entrepreneurial networks and effectuation on BMI through bricolage in uncertain environments. | Entrepreneurial networks and effectuation positively related to BMI and combining these two factors improved BMI for startups. Furthermore, bricolage contributed to BMI and played mediating roles in translating entrepreneurial networks and effectuation into BMI. Meanwhile, environmental uncertainty weakened the linkage between bricolage and BMI. |
| 96 | Xu, S., Wu, X., He, J., Zhu, R., Morrison, A.M., Xie, C., 2024b. Turning entrepreneurial networks into business model innovation for start-ups. MD 62, 1395–1423. https://doi.org/10.1108/MD-04-2023-0558 | Quantitative study uses hierarchical regression analyses using survey data | China | Manufacturing, service, High Tech | Explore how and when entrepreneurial networks affect business model innovation (BMI) in start-ups by examining the dual mediating effects of causation and effectuation and the moderating role of environmental dynamism | Entrepreneurial networks have a significant positive impact on startup BMI. This relationship is mediated by both causation and effectuation, meaning these decision-making logics are pathways through which network resources are transformed into BMI. |
| 97 | Zhang, H., Sun, X., Lyu, C., 2018. Exploratory orientation, business model innovation and new venture growth. Sustainability (Switzerland) 10. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10010056 | Correlational research using Questionnaires | China | Multiple industry | Examine the exploratory orientation as the driver of BMI in promoting new ventures growth | Emphasize on BMI as an effective way to promote the growth of new enterprises. The innovation of BM depends on the exploratory orientation of the new venture, which requires the new enterprise to develop its own strategic plan to uphold the spirit and orientation of exploration. While Internet serves as the moderator between exploratory orientation and the growth of new ventures. |
| 98 | Zhang, K., Feng, L., Wang, J., Qin, G., Li, H., 2022. Start-Up’s Road to Disruptive Innovation in the Digital Era: The Interplay Between Dynamic Capabilities and Business Model Innovation. Frontiers in Psychology 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.925277 | Longitudinal case study | China | Digital technology | Investigate the evolutionary mechanism and fulfilment path start-ups’ disruptive innovation in the digital era | Identifies digital technologies, dynamic capabilities deployment, and BMI as key pillars for achieving disruptive innovation where digital technology provides conditions for innovation, while dynamic capabilities and business model innovation facilitate its progression. |
| 99 | Zhang, S.I., 2019. The Business Model of Journalism Start-Ups in China. Digital Journalism 7, 614–634. https://doi.org/10.1080/21670811.2018.1496025 | Semi-structured interviews | China | Journalism | Investigate the new integrated business model in Chinese digital journalism start-ups. | Chinese journalism startups have explored BMI in China’s political and social context, where the state media policy, market and technology are the three main driving forces for the innovative business model. |
Appendix B. List of Journal and Publisher
| Journal | 2024 SJR quartile | 2024 SJR IF | h-index | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Strategic Management Journal | Q1 | 10.176 | 351 | John Wiley and Sons Ltd |
| Strategic Organization | Q1 | 5.210 | 80 | SAGE Publications Ltd |
| Business Strategy and the Environment | Q1 | 3.609 | 173 | John Wiley and Sons Ltd |
| Journal of Product Innovation Management | Q1 | 3.598 | 180 | Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd |
| Journal of Business Research | Q1 | 3.499 | 292 | Elsevier Inc. |
| Technological Forecasting and Social Change | Q1 | 3.472 | 209 | Elsevier Inc. |
| Journal of Innovation and Knowledge | Q1 | 3.341 | 70 | Elsevier BV |
| Contemporary Accounting Research | Q1 | 3.069 | 133 | John Wiley and Sons Ltd |
| Digital Journalism | Q1 | 3.037 | 84 | Taylor and Francis Ltd. |
| Technology in Society | Q1 | 2.559 | 112 | Elsevier Ltd. |
| Review of Managerial Science | Q1 | 2.316 | 63 | Springer Verlag |
| Business Horizons | Q1 | 2.280 | 131 | Elsevier Ltd. |
| International Journal of Production Research | Q1 | 2.242 | 201 | Taylor and Francis Ltd. |
| Journal of Cleaner Production | Q1 | 2.174 | 354 | Elsevier Ltd. |
| Journal of Small Business Management | Q1 | 2.149 | 141 | Taylor and Francis Ltd. |
| Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions | Q1 | 2.108 | 86 | Elsevier BV |
| Social Science and Medicine | Q1 | 2.103 | 296 | Elsevier Ltd. |
| International Small Business Journal | Q1 | 1.956 | 120 | SAGE Publications Ltd |
| Journal of Business Venturing Insights | Q1 | 1.873 | 45 | Elsevier Inc. |
| Management Learning | Q1 | 1.672 | 91 | SAGE Publications Ltd |
| Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy Journal | Q1 | 1.449 | 57 | Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. |
| Marine Pollution Bulletin | Q1 | 1.402 | 245 | Elsevier Ltd. |
| European Journal of Innovation Management | Q1 | 1.397 | 88 | Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. |
| International Review of Economics and Finance | Q1 | 1.372 | 87 | Elsevier Inc. |
| International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour and Research | Q1 | 1.354 | 101 | Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. |
| International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal | Q1 | 1.352 | 89 | Springer New York |
| Strategic Change | Q1 | 1.253 | 45 | John Wiley and Sons Ltd |
| Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity | Q1 | 1.215 | 63 | Elsevier BV |
| Research in Transportation Business and Management | Q1 | 1.196 | 57 | Elsevier BV |
| Creativity and Innovation Management | Q1 | 1.163 | 81 | John Wiley and Sons Ltd |
| IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management | Q1 | 1.134 | 117 | Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc. |
| Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship | Q1 | 1.117 | 45 | Taylor and Francis Ltd. |
| Management Decision | Q1 | 1.028 | 138 | Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. |
| International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management | Q1 | 0.954 | 83 | Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. |
| Construction Management and Economics | Q1 | 0.909 | 116 | Taylor and Francis Ltd. |
| Competitiveness Review | Q1 | 0.898 | 44 | Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. |
| Corporate Governance (Bingley) | Q1 | 0.874 | 64 | Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. |
| Knowledge Management Research and Practice | Q1 | 0.822 | 56 | Taylor and Francis Ltd. |
| British Food Journal | Q1 | 0.817 | 111 | Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. |
| Energies | Q1 | 0.713 | 175 | Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI) |
| Journal of Accounting and Organizational Change | Q1 | 0.699 | 40 | Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. |
| International Journal of Innovation Science | Q1 | 0.691 | 34 | Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. |
| Sustainability (Switzerland) | Q1 | 0.688 | 207 | Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI) |
| Frontiers in Psychology | Q2 | 0.872 | 212 | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development | Q2 | 0.809 | 92 | Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. |
| Technology Analysis and Strategic Management | Q2 | 0.794 | 92 | Routledge |
| Innovation and Management Review | Q2 | 0.772 | 21 | Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. |
| Journal of International Entrepreneurship | Q2 | 0.719 | 60 | Springer International Publishing AG |
| Journal of Business Economics | Q2 | 0.667 | 38 | Springer International Publishing AG |
| Chinese Management Studies | Q2 | 0.643 | 40 | Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. |
| Journal of Research in Marketing and Entrepreneurship | Q2 | 0.548 | 33 | Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. |
| Revista de Gestao | Q2 | 0.540 | 20 | Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. |
| Research Technology Management | Q2 | 0.534 | 83 | Taylor and Francis Ltd. |
| RAUSP Management Journal | Q2 | 0.417 | 20 | Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. |
| Journal of Global Information Technology Management | Q2 | 0.402 | 40 | Taylor and Francis Ltd. |
Note. IF = impact factor; SJR = SCImago Journal Rank. All journal metrics were retrieved on 20 January 2026.
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