Journal of Business Research xxx (xxxx) xxx–xxx

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Journal of Business Research

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Business as unusual: A business model for social innovation

⁎
Marta Gasparina, , William Greena, Simon Lilleya, Martin Quinna, Mike Sarena,
Christophe Schinckusb
a
University of Leicester School of Business, University Road, Leicester LE1 7RH, UK
b
School of Accounting and Finance, Faculty of Business and Law, Taylor’s University, Malaysia

A R T I C LE I N FO A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Business model (BM) literature has developed considerably; however, most research takes place in large for-
SMEs profit organisations in western settings, rather than small–medium enterprises with social goals. This is sur-
Business model for social innovation prising given the drive for social innovation (SI) and alternative modes of organizing. Models for managing
Social innovation innovation are typically agnostic about sources of social, ecological and cultural values; yet our in-depth qua-
Strategic framework for social innovation
litative research demonstrates that, for SMEs practicing SI in Vietnam, these values are as inherent as economic
Transitional economy
value. As a result, a new social BM emerged and was evaluated. This paper: (i) defines a Business model for SI for
sustaining the long-term growth of SI; (ii) provides a Strategic framework for SI for SMEs, to ensure that the
strategy of SMEs takes into consideration the positive impact SIs can have on society; and (iii) defines me-
chanisms to create and capture economic, social, cultural and ecological values.

1. Introduction
Business Models (BMs) are fundamental to understanding the
competitive advantage and sustainable growth of a firm (García-
Gutiérrez & Martínez-Borreguero, 2016). BMs and BM innovation
gained considerable attention in the last 15 years in management re-
search and especially among practitioners (Foss & Saebi, 2017).
A BM is defined as a concept (Baden-Fuller & Mangematin, 2013), a
way of telling a story (Magretta, 2002), or a cognitive device (Baden-
Fuller & Mangematin, 2013) that focuses upon how a business creates
and delivers value to customers (Teece, 2010) through managerial
thinking and engagement in economic activities (Aversa, Haefliger,
Rossi, & Baden-Fuller, 2015). Recent definitions of a BM in the litera-
ture are consistent with Teece (2010, p. 172) definition (Foss & Saebi,
2017): a BM is the “design or architecture of the value creation, de-
livery, and capture mechanisms”.
A BM enables value creation through the translation of technolo-
gical inputs into economic outputs (Chesbrough & Rosenbloom, 2002),
and a describes how a company organizes itself to create, distribute and
retain value (Baden-Fuller & Morgan, 2010).
Whilst this concept is widely researched and used in practice for
technological innovations, its application has recently been extended to
manage public sector innovation (Axelson & Richtnér, 2015), uni-
versities (McAdam, 2017; Miller, McAdam, & McAdam, 2014),
healthcare (Brady & Saranga, 2013; Winterhalter, Zeschky, Neumann,
& Gassman, 2017), and social enterprise (Rispal & Servantie, 2017).
However, it has not yet been extensively investigated in regard to SMEs,
nor in regard to SMEs working with a new typology of innovation: SI
(Mongelli & Rullani, 2017).
Since the financial crisis and the austerity measures that followed in
many states globally, the decline of government support for welfare has
stimulated private citizens and organisations to invest their time and
resources to find innovative solutions to social problems. SI is still in its
infancy, but it is already clear that this is a way of doing things dif-
ferently on a variety of distinct levels (Rao-Nicholson, Vorley, & Khan,
2017).
Whilst innovation is a driver for sustaining competitive advantage,
reaching commercial gain through science and technology
(Nicolopoulou, Karatas-Özkan, Vas, & Nouman, 2017), and a process to
adapt companies to make changes to meet new customers’ demands
(Girod & Whittington, 2015), SI explicitly seeks societal change
alongside positive impact on financial performance (Mongelli &
Rullani, 2017). SIs are novel products and services that meet a social
need. They are “diffused through organisations whose primary purposes
are social” (Mulgan, 2006, p. 146), and respond to modifications in
social relations with new cultural orientations (Bouchard, 2012) that
seek to contribute towards social and ecological resilience (Westley &
Antadze, 2010) and to help target communities to create social value
beyond the capacity of the existing system (Adams & Hess, 2010).
However, current SI research focuses on urban planning (e.g.

⁎
Corresponding author.
E-mail address: mg352@le.ac.uk (M. Gasparin).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2020.01.034
Received 26 March 2019; Received in revised form 17 January 2020; Accepted 19 January 2020
0148-2963/ © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Please cite this article as: Marta Gasparin, et al., Journal of Business Research, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2020.01.034
M. Gasparin, et al.
Christiaens, Moulaert, & Bosmans, 2007), the psychological effects on
communities (Nicholls, Simon, Gabriel, & Whelan, 2015), regional
studies and social science (e.g. Jessop, Moulaert, Hulgard, &
Hamdouch, 2013), but it is inadequately theorized in the management
literature (Lindberg & Portinson Hylander, 2017; Lindberg, Forsberg, &
Karlberg, 2016; Nicolopoulou et al., 2017; Sabato, Vanhercke, &
Verschraegen, 2017; Unceta, Castro-Spila, & García-Fronti, 2016;
Voorberg, Bekkers, & Tummers, 2015).
Although at least one recent article (Spieth, Schneider, Clauß, &
Eichenberg, 2019) has investigated value propositions for companies
that have a dual mission (social and economic) and are investing their
profit in social welfare, BMs for SMEs conducting SI are neither fully
defined nor extensively researched. As Mongelli and Rullani (2017)
indicate, this is a clear gap in the BM literature. Furthermore, there is a
geographical gap, as researchers are focused upon western settings ra-
ther than transitional economies.
Using SI theory (Bouchard, 2012; Moulaert, MacCallum, Abid, &
Hamdouch, 2013; Mulgan, 2006; Nicholls et al., 2015), we analyze
activities that are conducted to deliver SIs in a transitional economy,
Vietnam, in order to define the constitutive elements of a BM for SMEs
producing SIs.
Employing an in-depth interpretivist methodology based on
grounded research, we investigate creative and innovative SME orga-
nisations in Vietnam, whose social, cultural and ecological aims are
inherent. Vietnam is opening its economy to private enterprise, at-
tracting foreign direct investments, creating new markets, modernizing
industry, building infrastructure (Cameron, Pham, & Atherton, 2018),
and moving towards being a democratic, open and innovative economy
(World Bank Group, Ministry of Planning and Investment of Vietnam,
2016). However, growth is creating disequilibria in society, especially
between the rural and urban areas (Bui & Imai, 2018).
The dominant espoused motivations of SMEs practising SI in
Vietnam are to tackle societal problems, challenge the status quo and
develop sustainable and inclusive growth, although an economically
sustainable drive also features in their overall approach to achieving
their long-term goals. SMEs practising SI create new products and ser-
vices addressing challenging issues including: income provision; social
and economic participation and empowerment of marginalized and
vulnerable groups by generating rich and diverse employment oppor-
tunities (for people living in extreme poverty, ethnic minorities, women
and girls not currently in education, unemployed youth, the
LGBTQIA + community, people with disabilities); preservation of tra-
ditional, regional and national cultural identities; delivery of vocational
programmes; creation of an entrepreneurial mindset; and critically
addressing economic, social and environmental issues.
This paper makes three contributions. First, we define the Business
model for SI through a novel approach to value proposition. Second, we
provide a Strategic framework for SI. While models for managing in-
novation are typically agnostic about sources of social value
(Lubberink, Blok, van Ophem, van der Velde, & Omta, 2018; Nicholls &
Murdock, 2012a, 2012b; Phills, Deiglmeier, & Miller, 2008), our re-
search demonstrates that in the development of SIs, social, ecological
and cultural values are inherent. SMEs practising SI need a specific
approach to BMs, allowing two different sets of architecture and ac-
tivity systems: business performance and societal, cultural and en-
vironmental goals. Third, we demonstrate that BMs need to utilize so-
cial and business ideas to create social and economic value (Spieth
et al., 2019), and cultural and ecological values, while defining internal
mechanisms to claim some portion of each value and external me-
chanisms to get it recognized. This research demonstrates that the SI
paradigm treats innovation as a social system. As a result, social aims,
cultural and ecological values, as well as paths to market, are equally
prioritized by SMEs producing SIs. In some cases, the social values are
central to the organisation and are considered even more important.
However, BM literature considers only how to address customer needs
and capture value from new technological products and services
2
Journal of Business Research xxx (xxxx) xxx–xxx
(Mongelli & Rullani, 2017) by describing the architecture of revenues,
costs, and profits associated with the delivery of economic value (Foss &
Saebi, 2017). As such, a new approach to the Business model for SI has to
take into consideration the sets of values and activities that an orga-
nisation developing SI addresses and creates. The Business model for SI is
designed for sustaining the long-term growth of SMEs developing SIs.
The Strategic framework for SI ensures that the strategy of SMEs goes
beyond the strategy of the company by making an impact on society.
The paper proceeds as follows. First, we review the literature on
BMs, then we present SI theory and the research method used for data
collection and analysis. Our analysis comprises three sections: the
analysis of SIs using a system theory; the development of a prototype
BM using SI; and its subsequent evaluation and evolution. We call it the
Business model for SI and the Strategic framework for SI, which are in-
tended for any SMEs that have an inherent social, cultural and ecolo-
gical goal. We conclude with a discussion on our research, and con-
tributions and directions for further research in the areas of BM
development.
2. Business model
BM’s group together a company’s instituting components (Massa &
Tucci, 2013) by defining its activities (Teece, 2010). Utilizing a com-
parison, a BM is like a recipe that depicts value creation (Baden-Fuller &
Morgan, 2010). There are numerous BM definitions within the aca-
demic and practitioner literature. The BM is a concept, an architecture,
a pattern, a method (Zott, Amit, & Massa, 2011), a way for companies
to create and monetarise value (Teece, 2010), and a cognitive device
used by managers to make sense of the world (Baden-Fuller, Giudici, &
Morgan, 2017). A BM is an architecture for a product or service and the
flow of information and other resources required to accomplish sus-
tainable business (Amit & Zott, 2001). Despite numerous definitions,
authors agree that the BM links what is inside the company with what is
outside, delineates how to engage different groups, and defines how
value is captured or monetarised (Baden-Fuller & Mangematin, 2013).
A BM can become a driver for innovation (Francis & Bessant, 2005), a
tool to capture its value (Teece, 2010), and an object of innovation itself
(Schneider & Spieth, 2013).
Academic literature on BMs is well established in many manage-
ment fields (Demil & Lecocq, 2010), and focuses on the relationship
between BMs and theories of change and evolution, design, perfor-
mance and control (Wirtz, Pistoia, Ullrich, & Göttel, 2015). BMs
emerged as a way to manage new forms of distribution, to identify the
dynamic capabilities that are necessary to compete in new markets
(Teece, 2010), and to create channels for accessing new markets
(Magretta, 2002; Osterwalder & Pigneur, 2010). Even though there is a
relationship between a BM and a business strategy (Casadesus-Masanell
& Ricart, 2010; Chesbrough & Rosenbloom, 2002; Markides, 2006;
Shafer, Smith, & Linder, 2005) and between a BM and a marketing
strategy (Baden-Fuller & Haefliger, 2013; Zott & Amit, 2008), they are
not the same thing, although “a firm’s business model is a reflection of
its realized strategy” and “essentially, strategy coincides with business
model, so that an outside observer can know the firm’s strategy by
looking at its business model” (Casadesus-Masanell & Ricart, 2010, p.
205). Since the BM supports the analysis, testing and validation of a
firm’s strategy (Achtenhagen, Melin, & Naldi, 2013; Magretta, 2002), a
company needs to develop activities that ensure consistency between
strategy, architecture, growth and economy (Morris, Schindehutte, &
Allen, 2005) by referring to the logic of the firm, to the way it operates,
the value creation for its stakeholders, and to the market competition
(Casadesus-Masanell & Ricart, 2010).
Osterwalder and Pigneur (2010) present the building blocks of the
BM as: infrastructure, offering customers channels of delivery, customer
relationships, finances, cost structures, classes of business, and revenue
streams. Wirtz et al. (2015) identify the BM’s components as strategy,
resources, network, customers, market offering, revenues, service
M. Gasparin, et al.
provision, procurement and finances. However, these are static views of
BMs, relying on linear, rational conceptions and causal reasoning
(Gudiksen, 2015).
A more dynamic approach to BMs is through the perspective of an
activity system. A BM can be conceived as a set of interrelated activities
to support the internal and external environment (Amit & Zott, 2001,
2012; Zott & Amit, 2008, 2010; Zott et al., 2011).
Amit and Zott (2012) suggest that the BM is made up of three pri-
mary activities related to: content, structure and governance. An ac-
tivity system is a set of activities the firm performs through a system
design framework, which provides insights by “giving business model
design a language, concepts and tools, highlighting business model
design as a key managerial/entrepreneurial task, and emphasizing
system-level design over partial optimization” (Zott & Amit, 2010, p.
217), and architecture and design themes such as novelty (in the con-
tent, structure or governance), lock-in, complementarities, and effi-
ciency (Zott & Amit, 2010). Thus:
[a]n activity in a focal firm’s business model can be viewed as the
engagement of human, physical and/or capital resources of any
party to the business model (the focal firm, end customers, vendors)
to serve a specific purpose towards the fulfilment of the overall
objective. An activity system is thus a set of interdependent orga-
nisational activities centered on a focal firm, including those con-
ducted by the focal firm, its partners, vendors or customers (Zott &
Amit, 2010, p. 217).
Recently, Spieth et al. (2019), using institutional logic, analyze the
BMs of hybrid organisations, which combine commerciality with wel-
fare logic. Their study looks into the definition of the value drivers of
hybrid social purpose, which are: responsible, efficient, they impact
complementarities, share economic and social values, and integrate
novel ideas. The profit is meant to generate new social values, including
the direct creation of social benefits and value-based collaborations by
enabling partners to join the process.
However, the study was not focused specifically on SMEs nor was it
focused upon a SI setting. Thus, SMEs face challenges to create and
innovate a BM supporting SI, as the current BM concepts are aimed
solely at producing economic gains rather than social and cultural ones.
A more comprehensive BM is needed, which can focus on the different
kinds of values that a SI produces, and different mechanisms to capture
them. This paper responds to this need by building a Business model for
SI, and a Strategic framework for SI, in order to relate the BM to the
strategy of an SME.
3. Analytical framework: Social innovation
SI focuses on creating societal and ecosystem changes, as well as
regional development, which can be analyzed at the micro, meso and
macro levels (Dacin, Dacin, & Tracey, 2011). The micro level recognizes
an opportunity and frames it in a new light. The meso level focuses on
supporting a new organisational design, following analyses of the SI.
The macro level requires researchers to analyze the connections and
interactions among the actors involved. This research focuses on the
micro level. As stated in the introduction, SI in management literature
is still emerging. It is claimed that SIs are developed by large cor-
porations since they have the means to invest and allocate time and
resources to social problems (Anthony, 2012) and to bring a significant
improvement in quality of life (Pol & Ville, 2009). However, these are
likely to be activities conducted under an organization’s corporate so-
cial responsibility (CSR) strategy rather than an SI strategy. SI is dif-
ferent from CSR in that, in SI the surplus generated by the innovation is
proactively reinvested in the innovation process to develop new pro-
ducts or services, while in CSR reinvestment is not required.
SI spans boundaries between different fields (Rao-Nicholson et al.,
2017) with the aim of developing “a novel solution to a social problem
that is more effective, efficient, sustainable, or just than existing
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Journal of Business Research xxx (xxxx) xxx–xxx
solutions and for which the value created accrues primarily to society as
a whole rather than private individuals” (Phills et al., 2008, p. 39). SI is
an intervention to respond to an aspiration, certain needs, or a mod-
ification in social relations to propose new cultural orientations
(Bouchard, 2012). It has also been considered an important contributor
to overall social and ecological resilience (Westley & Antadze, 2010). SI
can be products, services, production processes, technologies, princi-
ples, ideas, legislation, social movements, interventions, or a combi-
nation of these that addresses gaps generated by the market failure of
public goods (Phills et al., 2008, p. 39). SI does not necessarily sell the
innovation to target populations, as revenues might come from dif-
ferent sources. The goal of SI is to create social value beyond the ca-
pacity of the existing system (Adams & Hess, 2010). SI is the develop-
ment of new concepts, strategies and tools that support groups in
achieving the objective of improved well-being (Dawson & Daniel,
2010). Using an interpretative methodology based on grounded re-
search methods, we will use this theoretical framework to create a BM
for SMEs practising SI.
4. Method
This research investigates the use of BMs in SMEs with inherently
social aims and uses this data to design a BM for SMEs practising SI. To
conduct this exploratory study, a grounded theory approach (Strauss &
Corbin, 1998) is adopted building on interviews and observations with
practitioners. The need for an ad-hoc BM became evident to us at a
workshop in November 2017. We ran the workshop on BMs with a SME
delivering cultural content focused on the preservation of cultural
heritage. The aim of the workshop was to co-design a new BM for their
new products and services. The workshop became chaotic due to the
competing interests of the organisation: the social and cultural offers of
the SME and the commercial value proposition. In fact, we had diffi-
culties filling up the BM as the canvas and the activity system BMs do
not distinguish between values concerning social and cultural propo-
sitions and the economic value proposition. However, the need for an
ad-hoc social BM was repeatedly mentioned in our interviews, but we
(wrongly) assumed that SMEs were not trained in designing a BM, until
we did a workshop and experienced the same difficulty in filling it.1 We
subsequently researched other SMEs to establish the breadth of this
problem. Building on the data collected, a prototype of a Business model
for SI was developed in relation to the SI literature. The prototype was
evaluated and refined by SMEs and innovation mentors prior to the
final version being presented to Vietnamese academics and practi-
tioners.
4.1. Study site
In order to identify innovative SMEs likely to have inherently social
aims, a theoretical sampling strategy (Strauss & Corbin, 1998) was
adopted. Vietnam was chosen as a suitable site, as it is a transitional
economy (Ateljević & Trivić, 2016), and since 2016 a new policy
strategy has been put in place to support innovation and creativity. We
worked closely with a local research partner to identify the creative and
innovative sectors in Vietnam outlined in the policy document.
Subsequently, with the Vietnamese research partner, we identified
typical organizations of the Vietnamese creative industry to interview,
applying the criteria of: being operative for at least three years, having
a defined innovative mission, having a social/cultural/ecological aim,
being an SME, and running on the premise of being sustainable (eco-
nomically viable long-term). This ensured organizations would be able
reflect on their experiences and challenges of operating in a transitional
economy. This resulted in 26 organisations (see Table 1). In each case
1
We have run similar workshops with technology companies in Europe, thus
this was not a novel approach for us.
M. Gasparin, et al. Journal of Business Research xxx (xxxx) xxx–xxx

Table 1
Description of the 26 SME Organizations, the number of employees have been redacted to protect anonymity.
Case identifier Description of the 26 SME organizations
i. interviewee(s),
ii. industry

1. The designer creates a new working process for engaging Vietnamese ethnic minorities in developing sustainable
i. Designer & Owner, and ethical design. She teaches them soft skills and she learns the traditional craft to translate it into modern design.
ii. Fashion Industry This process is radical: the craft community is not considered a supplier, but a co-creator. The revenues are created
by selling fashion clothes.
2. The radio has created radio programmes running in two platforms (radio and Facebook) for disadvantaged and
i. Owner & Marketing Manager, marginalized groups (e.g. truck drivers, and mums in rural areas) to give them the opportunity to share their
ii. Radio opinions, doubts, questions, and create a community. Thanks to the radio, they do not feel alone, they feel the
community’s support, and receive training. This is the first radio station proposing this. It generates income by
selling advertising and by marketing consultants.
3. The director is working with the younger generations to cultivate an appreciation and interest in classical music and
i. Music Composer ballet. He has developed innovative educational projects to present classical music in a “light” and joyful way to
ii. Opera teens and university students. Tickets are the source of income.
4. Developing sustainable design and establishing it as a “norm in the industry”. They have created a co-working space
i. Project Manager, IT Manager to support young artists and entrepreneurs without resources to help them develop their ideas (co-working is a new
ii. Product Design concept in Vietnam). The space is designed using sustainable materials and is attentive to the environment.
Discussing sustainability is not the norm in the industry. Income is generated by product design, catering and
interior design.
5. Because of the censorship and cultural control, the art market is not developed, artists cannot freely express their
i. Founder, creativity, nor do they have a space to meet and be mentored. The founders have created a virtual hub that works as
ii. Visual Arts Hub a “dating” site for artists to exchange ideas and constructive comments on each other’s work, to develop critical
thinking and a movement towards contemporary art. Income is generated by selling tickets, food and beverages.
6. The founder and his team have developed projects to: (1) teach kids to be creative; (2) work with adults and young
i. Founder, adults to overcome mental health issues through art programmes, where they learn to express their feelings; (3)
ii. Creative Learning Hub and Mindfulness travel and meet marginalized communities to put them in contact, to talk about their problems, dreams and create a
programme, with the local NGOs, and to empower them; (4) playfully introduce art to kids from disadvantaged
backgrounds. These are new services in Vietnam. Income is generated by offering the same courses to companies,
and consultancy on mindfulness.
7. An entrepreneurship hub supports and cultivates young talents with ideas; and organizes training events, since
i. Director of the Platform entrepreneurship and innovation are not taught in Vietnamese universities nor governmental bodies. Income is
ii. Start-ups Ecosystem generated by renting out the space.
Learning Platform
8. This creative hub connects artists to the general public, finds new emergent artists to exhibit their art and creates a
i. Art Curator positive attitude towards South-Asian contemporary art, since it considers this a catalyst of innovation. It proposes
ii. Visual Art Centre/Hub innovative programmes and projects to bring young generations closer to contemporary art.
9. Connects entrepreneurs and provides them with guidance on how to develop the business; the income is generated
i. Manager through rents and events.
ii. Innovation/ Entrepreneurship Hub
10. Teaches creativity, design thinking and creative advertising to university students (which is not offered at the
I. Director university) and to young professionals. Income is generated through consultancy.
ii. Creative Hub specialized in product design and
advertising
11. Exhibits Vietnamese art that is outside the international art market; organizes training for artists; organizes talks on
i. Manager & Curator Vietnamese culture, and the challenges of globalization. Income is generated by organizing corporate events (fine
ii. Art Space dining).

12. Helps to design new legislation for the sector. Income is generated through consultancies.
i. Director
ii. Advertising
13. Teaching art to kids, exhibiting, training Vietnamese artists to work within the international art world. Vietnamese
i. Manager & Curator art education involves copying from a master. Here, teachers engage kids in creative practices, and thinking outside
ii. Art Studio the box. Income is generated by organizing events, the sale of food at the exhibitions, and teambuilding.

14. Connecting Vietnamese artists and discussing cultural issues. Income is from book sales.
i. Founder
ii. Art Hub
15. An intellectual hub that connects Vietnamese artists to the international art scene. It also organizes philosophical
i. Founder & Manager discussions, translates books and discusses intellectual issues and challenges during training programmes.
ii. Art Space/Hub
16. Develops games and apps to support the work of social enterprises in rural areas. Income is generated by selling
i. Project Manager codes for corporate clients.
ii. Game Industry
17. Develops the cinema culture and a Vietnamese identity. Income is provided by fundraisers.
i. Director
ii. Cinema
18. Develops design and sustainability programmes; teaches respect for intellectual property; and teaches kids to
i. Manager develop a creative and innovative spirit. Income is generated by selling design products and through consultancies.
ii. Design and Advertising
19. Writes articles on social enterprise and SI. Income is generated through ads.
i. Journalist
ii. Global Media Press Company
(continued on next page)

4
M. Gasparin, et al. Journal of Business Research xxx (xxxx) xxx–xxx

Table 1 (continued)

Case identifier Description of the 26 SME organizations

i. interviewee(s),
ii. industry

20. A co-working space providing training on innovation management. This is the first hub in Vietnam with 3D printing,
i. Project Manager & Founder woodcarving classes and fashion design facilities. Income is generated through organized events.
ii. Creative Incubator Space
21. Fosters kids’ creativity and changes their attitude towards books and culture. Income is generated through sales.
i. Director
ii. Publishing House
22. A documentary studio; provides courses to stimulate creativity through the language of films; also sessions on how
i. Creative Manager to critically analyze films, use the equipment, and create reflexive stories.
ii. Cinema
23. A library and art gallery, working to preserve Vietnamese art. Income is generated through training programmes.
i. Manager
ii. Library
24. Writes innovative legislation for social development through creative practices.
i. Director
ii. Research Institute
25. Communities have created programmes to support community tourism, re-learn how to use natural plants to make
i. Director cosmetics, and work with rural communities to refurbish their houses and transform into guest houses. They also
ii. Sustainable Tourism train farmers to be trekking guides and women to cook for international visitors.
26. It has projects to: 1) teach kids to be creative; and 2) work with kids to overcome mental health issues through art
i. Director & Design Manager programmes. Income is generated by selling the design products.
ii. Creative Hub

company, the lead author interviewed those person(s) with a deep
understanding of the SME’s operational activities and its strategic goals.
In many cases, this was the company’s founder, a project manager, or a
marketing manager.
4.2. Data collection
Field research was conducted from June 2017 until April 2019, as
presented in Table 2.
The qualitative research was initiated with a grounded approach
collecting interviewees’ comments and conducting observation. An in-
terview protocol was designed and divided into five parts: new pro-
ducts/services that were offered; processes and organisational archi-
tecture; motivations for practising SI; values that were created and
mobilized; and the context of work and delivery of their SIs. The in-
terview questions were aimed at discussing the actions undertaken,
who performed them, the network of external stakeholders, the pro-
blems and struggles that arose, and relations. Interviews were con-
ducted in English and each interview typically lasted an hour. We re-
corded and transcribed all interviews verbatim. This approach allowed
the development of an in-depth understanding and capture of the
richness of the phenomenon under consideration (Denzin & Lincoln,
2002), and consequently enabled the analysis of how socially
innovative SMEs act and organize their activities. We reached theore-
tical saturation (Strauss & Corbin, 1998) having analyzed the multiple
sources, including observations in situ, workshops, and external docu-
ments (SMEs’ reports and archival data) and conducted the interviews.
Theoretical saturation was judged to be achieved when no new insights
were forthcoming through the analysis and no new themes identified
following constant comparison across the cases (Bowen, 2008).
Based on the analysis of the field data, including interviews and
observations with the 26 SMEs, a draft social BM was constructed. The
dimensions were enriched with the theory of SI presented in the ana-
lytical framework. This follows Eisenhardt (1989) process of building
theory from case study research where enfolding conflicting and similar
literature, “builds internal validity, raises theoretical level and sharpens
construct definition, sharpens generalizability, improves construct de-
finition, and raises theoretical level” (p. 533). It was presented in De-
cember 2017 to 20 SMEs, who had not previously participated in our
interviews, during an eight-hour workshop. The SMEs were then
mentored until April 2018 in their adoption of the prototype Business
model for SI. A focus group was then conducted with five participants
(three mentors and two local academics in innovation) to review the
social BM, with the aim of understanding how the BM was used, what
more they would need to operationalize in their business, and what was
working or not working and why. Through this, the model was

Table 2
Steps of data collection.
Process What When

Interviews and observations in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh Semi-structured interviews and systematic observations July–October 2017
Analysis of the interviews Thematic analysis October 2017
Workshop on BM at an innovation hub in Hanoi Workshop with an SME on developing their BM November 2017
Construction of the BM First prototype of the BM November 2017
Workshop Presentation of the BM prototype for SI in Hanoi to 20 SMEs December 2017
SMEs mentored on using the BM by three local mentors Testing and using the BM in practice. Twenty mentored SMEs used it from January 2018 January–April 2018
until May 2018
Submission of the BM to the mentors The mentors gave feedback to the mentees on the submitted BM and awarded the three April 2018 (submission)
most innovative and robust BMs May 2018 (award)
The SMEs provided feedback on the BM for SI and on how they have found its use
Workshop with experts Focus group with the mentors and two local academics concerning their evaluation and September 2018
experience of using the BM for SI with the mentees
Work on the second version of the BM Incorporating the feedback to create a BM for SI November–December 2018
Presentation of the BM to SMEs and academic audience Presentation of the BM to SMEs and academics during a workshop in Ho Chi Minh City April 2019
(validity test)

5
M. Gasparin, et al.
incrementally improved, and instead of providing a picture like in the
canvas BM, as initially proposed, it was designed as a step-by-step in-
teractive process, thinking about the engagement with users and ben-
eficiaries from prototyping a SI to its development and presentation to
the market. The final BM was then presented in April 2019 during a
workshop on “University – Industry” relationships as an example of
grounded research working with SMEs. The audience was Vietnamese
SMEs invited by the University of Economics of Ho Chi Minh City, and
Vietnamese academics. No criticisms were made towards the model,
only positive remarks.
4.3. Data analysis
A grounded approach to theory building was adopted in this re-
search (Strauss & Corbin, 1998). The characteristics of the Business
model for SI emerged through the data and were co-constructed from
interviews with SMEs, feedback on a presentation to SMEs, six months
of adoption of the BM prototype, and a follow-on evaluative focus
group. Subsequently, the model was informed through SI theory, in
particular in the construction of the notion of values. This novel, in-
ductive approach to the development of BMs is now described in
greater detail.
First, the 26 case SMEs’ interview transcriptions and field notes
were read to familiarize analyzing authors with the data (Eisenhardt,
1989). Author 1 was the field researcher and authors 2 and 4 supported
the interpretation and analysis. All authors supported the development
of the theoretical framework and BM.
Then, NVivo was used to facilitate coding, defining organisation
activities as themes.
The themes were grouped into first-order categories (see Fig. 1). We
then continued to search the transcripts for a system of activities and
concepts that provided a basis for their BM which facilitated inherent
social and cultural aims. In this aggregation process, the theory of SI
explained in the analytical framework was used to create the second
order. This resulted in eight sub-order categories, which were used to
construct the first BM prototype, informed by the analytical framework
of SI.
Taking the feedback from the use of the prototype and from the
focus group with the mentors, we combined them into the final di-
mension, which was used to create the BM and the strategic framework.
5. Findings
In this section, the findings on the activities for creating a Business
model for SI, identifying users’ beneficiaries and determining different
sets of values are presented. These were used to construct the first
prototype of the BM, which was evaluated in the field; and the feedback
received was used to create the final Business model for SI.
The following presents the development of the first prototype, the
feedback, and the analysis of the coding necessary to develop the
Business model for SI, for SMEs in a transitional economy.
5.1. The Business model for social innovation: The prototype
In November 2017, we ran a workshop at an innovation hub with a
dynamic SME in Hanoi (capital of Vietnam) providing cultural content.
We organized a standard workshop, with an A3 BM canvas, post-it notes
and images, and held a discussion on the value construction. First, we
asked SMEs to define the value proposition. The CEO and the marketing
and operation managers vividly discussed for 10 min. We asked to re-
port their discussion: the value proposition was not only the set of offers
that made possible economic growth, but also all the social and cultural
needs that were addressed for the Hanoian community. They had issues
about who constituted their customer base: they wanted to distinguish
who was purchasing a product and who was socially benefitting from it.
Customers and users/beneficiaries were considered. Thus, on the spot,
6
Journal of Business Research xxx (xxxx) xxx–xxx
we decided to create two BM canvases: one for the economic devel-
opment of the SME, and the other focused on the social and cultural
mission of the company. However, even with two different BMs, filling
them proved to be challenging and we decided to design the first pro-
totype based on the first thematic round of data and on the second
aggregated dimension.
The prototype (Fig. 2) was presented in December 2017 during a
workshop on BM innovation, to 20 SMEs that were not interviewed, and
then were mentored in its use (see Section 4.2).
At the end of the process, a focus group was held with the mentors.
In the focus group, we asked what was needed to support the man-
agement of SIs in SME. This resulted in a better explanation of defining
the needs, and the actions in the various stages of the SI development
process, which a mentor drew on the board (Fig. 3).
Through the focus group dialogue, it became clear that the con-
ceptualization of the model was ineffective and static. It was suggested
that the model was unreflective of the dynamic and interactive ap-
proach required to navigate a very challenging environment were the
main motivations of organisations were social, ecological and cultural
values. The commercial environments that these types of organisations
normally rely on did not exist. The organisations needed the separation
between economic and social, ecological and cultural values (albeit
more clearly emphasized) but they also required the phases of proto-
typing, development and diffusion separated as they required distinct
resourcing. These comments were taken into consideration when de-
veloping the second (final) Business model for SI (Fig. 4).
Thus, we analyzed the data by coding them in the third aggregated
dimension, which is presented in the next section.
6. Business model for social innovation
6.1. An interactive process for SIs
Since SI is still an unknown for the majority of SMEs, its develop-
ment process is based on an experimental approach. The SI process was
observed to be highly iterative and explorative.
The SI process generally starts with the SME recognizing a social
problem that needs to be addressed to improve or build resilience for
the local community. Thus, socially innovative SMEs are driven by care
aiming to improve community life and create societal cohesion. SMEs
do not simply want to solve a problem but to construct a long-term
sustainable way to overcome a specific difficulty, as the Vietnamese
Government does not have the means to care for communities.
Therefore, SMEs frequently have a co-creation mode of operating,
by supporting the development of an ethical supply chain, and by
making communities part of a programme of action. For example, one
of the designers [1] working with rural women is training them in basic
accountancy, teaching them to be accountable in a project management
setting, and to be independent once the project ends. The key activities
related to the suppliers are thought to ensure the well-being of the
product makers in the supply chain:
the women of ethnic minorities work with me, and we create a fu-
ture for them to preserve the traditions. They are learning basic
business skills, soft skills. [1]
Working in their own communities allows the preservation of the
family structure:
The women can work at their place [village]; in this way, they don’t
need to leave the villages and their families to go to the city to find
jobs. [3]
SI creates transferable skills and knowledge that can allow these
communities to work ethically for clients without being exploited, and
maintain their traditional lifestyle, rather than moving to the cities and
abandoning their families and traditions. In this way, socially in-
novative SMEs not only preserve traditions, but also co-create an
M. Gasparin, et al. Journal of Business Research xxx (xxxx) xxx–xxx

First order aggregation Second order aggregation used to Aggregate dimension: activities,
construct the first prototype BM structure and governance
Activity system content: selection of activities that are performed
Developing new ideas, Creating an alternative education/ Create a community of
artists/ Create a community of entrepreneurs/ Develop a market for creative
enterprises / Create a space of freedom/ Bring people closer to art/ Create Value proposition
mindfulness/ Engaging kids/ Keep alive traditional arts/ Develop Critical thinking Process: prototyping,
developing and diffusing
Activity system structure: how the activities are linked Product/service
Core activities: service for the community/ Addressing challenging issues including:
income provision; social and economic participation and empowerment of
marginalized and vulnerable groups by generating rich and diverse employment
opportunities (for people living in extreme poverty, ethnic minorities, women and
girls not currently in education, unemployed youth, LGBTQIA+ community, people Direct beneficiaries
with disabilities)/ Maintaining traditional, regional and national cultural identities/
Providing vocational programs; stimulating an entrepreneurial mindset/ Critically Finding users: creating a
addressing economic, social and environmental issues. network of beneficiaries and
Ancillary activities for economic support for sustainable growth. customers
Indirect beneficiaries
New market (out and inside Vietnam)/Learning from other
cultures and countries/ Capitalism/ Access to international funds/ Promote local
identity/ Protect local traditions/
Social value
Open network/Community building/ Trust/ Co-working/ hub/ Call for
action/Improve community life/ Develop a feeling of belonging/ Overcome the
feeling of inadequateness? Protect the environment
Cultural value
Cultural Issues Unification of the country/ New economic status/ Fast consumption/
Creating societal Values and
Free market/ Attention to money/Context / Freedom of expression/ Freedom of
impact
having an opinion
Economic value
Developing an innovation ecosystem/creating an Ip culture/ Lack of Business
model/ developing an Educational programme/ enhancing creativity/ having
Financial access/ lobbying for Infrastructure/ training management skills/ creating
organisational independence/ bringing books/ overcoming problems associated with
land use/ supporting licenses applications/ Censorship/ Bureaucracy/ Taxation/ Legal
status/ complexities/not reflexive customers/Public illiterate from a technological Ecological value
perspective

Market served/ Prices/ Revenues flows/ Slow consumption/ competitors

Fig. 1. Coding categories across the three rounds of coding assimilation.

inclusive, open, democratic and innovative society, ethical and paying a
fair price.
However, SMEs do not advertise this way of working: ethical
practices are not well known in Vietnam and some clients (especially
corporate) might not understand it and consider it an extra cost.
In terms of the development process, it is experimental development
based on rapid prototyping, trial and error; new ideas emerge from the
mistakes, as well as new learning processes.
In the established paradigm of innovation literature, prototyping
has been increasingly considered a central element (Anderson, 2012;
Sherman, Berkowitz, & Souder, 2005). When prototyping is used, it
brings together people from different backgrounds and can reduce
uncertainty (Sherman et al., 2005). In the case of SI, prototyping is
considered learning-by-doing, communicating and integrating the
progress made, looking for resources and engaging with the commu-
nity. Prototypes are collaboratively used with stakeholders to improve
functions and usability, and to create a story around the product/ser-
vice: in fact, prototyping has become a device for telling a story about
innovation to get a license2 and to find funding.
In the innovation literature, the main phases are planning (idea
development analysis, market trends, feasibility assessment, develop-
ment of the brief), development (where specifications, prototypes, de-
tailed design and production issues are considered), followed by the
launch (production and sales phase) (Cooper, 2008). In the SI
innovation context, being the SI radical in most of the cases, it is not
always possible to plan; the process starts with the realization and co-
creation of a prototype that is then frequently modified, until success-
fully funded. The prototype is mobilized to find appropriate resources,
technology, tools, co-creating the innovation with the beneficiaries and
looking for customers. Prototyping allows SMEs to relax the process,
open up space and consider alternatives to business as usual
(Christiansen & Gasparin, 2017). The prototype of a SI is therefore
constructed and socialized in the network, presented with its values,
and used to work collectively towards the success of the SI.
6.2. Interdependence between social, cultural and economic values
Value creation in the innovation literature is considered in eco-
nomic terms and in relation to customer satisfaction and loyalty
(Pullman & Gross, 2004), which are fundamental for providing a sus-
tainable competitive advantage to firms (Kotler, Keller, Brady,
Goodman, & Hansen, 2012).
However, the ultimate aim of SI is to achieve a social outcome,
rather than a competitive advantage (Nicolopoulou et al., 2017), such
as preserving traditions, societal cohesion, local aesthetics, and the
creation of a national identity.3 In particular, cultural, economic and
societal values are recognized and intertwined in the accounts of our
interviewees.

2 3
A license is required in Vietnam in all circumstances relating to the public The idea of Vietnam as a nation is relatively new, and divisions between the
display and commercialization of products. north and south of the country remain.

7
M. Gasparin, et al.
Fig. 2. Prototype of the Business model for SI.
Fig. 3. Suggestions from the focus group.
Fig. 4. Business model for SI (final).
Vietnamese SMEs practising SI need to achieve sustainable growth,
as finances are scarce.
In Vietnam the loan and banking system is not accessible by SMEs
practising SI, thus they cannot afford to be in debt. SMEs need to stay
profitable in order to deliver their social and cultural missions. One of
the interviewees (10) commented that all SMEs practising SI are op-
erating like a normal business, and they do not get any special support
8
Journal of Business Research xxx (xxxx) xxx–xxx
or tax break for delivering a public service or engaging the wider
community. Therefore, they need to find new channels for reaching the
market, being profitable and at the same time delivering the SI.
Another interviewee, the manager of an innovation hub (13),
claimed that he and his team were the first to set up an innovation hub
in Hanoi, and they were having difficulties in assisting the organisations
working in it because of the lack of funding and investments from the
private sector that do not understand the value nor the potential of
innovation; at the same time, the government does not invest in SI.
Thus, SMEs need to find alternative ways to support their value
proposition; different resources and channels to cover the costs. A
common process is to divide the organisation into two functions: one
that creates economic value with market-based products, and the other
that reinvests part of the value in social activities and sells at a symbolic
price.
An interesting example is a commercial radio station. Radio stations
are usually supporting themselves through commercials and providing
a platform for advertising established companies. A radio station based
in Hanoi has created two digital programs addressing the needs of
communities that are usually left behind because they are not profitable
for the traditional programmes: truck-drivers and mums from poor
rural communities. These communities do not have a large disposable
income, therefore they are not appealing to advertisers nor to investors
seeking to offer advertising opportunities; nevertheless, the station
decided to give them a voice, to make them proud of being a commu-
nity by investing the revenues they are getting from other successful
programmes. The radio station has also created a Facebook community
in which members share opinions, problems, and give a voice to their
concerns. At the same time, the radio uses these channels to share po-
sitive behaviours, condemn negative and dangerous ones, and provide
an educational platform. The first programme is for mums in rural
areas, who can feel isolated, living with the family of their husband;
M. Gasparin, et al. Journal of Business Research xxx (xxxx) xxx–xxx

Fig. 5. Strategic framework for SI.

thus the radio gives them a safe space to talk about family issues, and invest time and resources to educate them. [19]
provide health-related information.
The SIs developed by the SMEs are aimed at not only preserving
The second programme is aimed at truck drivers, which reinforces
cultural values, but also questioning and mobilizing those values that
positive attitudes and behaviours on the road. The station created a
are at the risk of disappearing:
movement with the most active members of the community called “give
it away”, which encourages drivers to give precedence to people I told them [the students]: How to tell our foreigner friends “That’s
coming from the right (which is not happening in Vietnam). from Vietnam” and represents something from Vietnam? That’s
Other SMEs are providing products and/or services to under- important, that makes our work significant in the environment,
privileged communities and children at risk, at a symbolic price; and because when we arrive, we are just copiers, and not really creative,
the same service or product to corporate or western clients at a market and that’s theft. It’s not hard to be a copier. Whereas it takes time to
price. be a real designer. [20]
For example, an art lab (26) working with children with mental
Our interviewees work to create a new generation of critical thin-
health issues does not ask for fees (or asks only for a symbolic one when
kers and at the same time explore cultural values that have been lost.
appropriate) from the very poor, but a similar service is transformed
Vietnam has a long history of colonisation and war, which have worked
into a mindfulness programme offered to companies at a market price,
to erase local cultural identity that nowadays is challenging to re-
which supports the development of activities with children and un-
member.
derprivileged communities. The SME working on contemporary art (20)
In terms of social values, SMEs practising SIs are educating younger
supports their SI activities by proposing team-building services to or-
generations towards inclusiveness, teamworking, creativity and in-
ganisations at market prices.
novation – which have historically been absent from the curricula and
Cultural values, according to the interviewees, are a set of beliefs,
public debate – in order to make a long-term impact.
traditions, heritage, and ethical principles that guide and inspire a
SMEs are regarding art, creativity and innovation as societal glue to
community. In particular, they address: design, creativity and sustain-
help overcome diffidence and build a collective consciousness, stimu-
ability concerns in new products; exploration and preservation of
late critical thinking and imagination, and develop a physical and
Vietnamese visual identity and cultural heritage; the creation of space
mental space for being irresponsible and looking for novel solutions.
for arts; the development of education and income for marginalized
This behaviour ultimately could lead to innovation and a general so-
communities; capacity building; the development of emotional ex-
cietal improvement.
pression; and provision of cultural content that is not available through
These models generate an economic impact for the whole society,
official channels. The social innovators are committed to delivering
which has been under-researched in the literature, and the SMEs have
cultural values, as they are not offered by state education and, there-
indicated a lack of tools for capturing the social, cultural and en-
fore, young generations do not have the possibility of cultivating them
vironmental impact on society. The evaluation of social impact is
at school. One of the interviewees is doing this to initiate a cycle for
challenging to perform as there are no established mechanisms to
future generations, as:
capture the value, and sometimes western organisations use the op-
the public doesn’t care – it’s not that they don’t care… they don’t portunity for cost-reasoning (Schinckus, 2015). Thus, some participants
understand. They don’t take the time to stop and reflect. We need to asked us to make evident the role of the BM on highlighting the impact

9
M. Gasparin, et al.
on society from SMEs’ perspective.
7. Social business model and strategic framework
Creating value for final beneficiaries and for customers is one of the
ultimate goals of SIs, emphasizing the communicative and translational
aspect of the economic, social and cultural values that only makes sense
with SI.
Building on the activity system, Fig. 4 presents the final Business
model for SI in an interactive process. The BM is intended to provide a
progressive approach, taking into consideration the stage of the de-
velopment process of the SI, the use of the prototype, and the level of
monetarization supporting the SI for sustainable growth of the business.
Since the BM can be considered as the missing link between strategy
and tactics (Osterwalder & Pigneur, 2010), and a tactic refers to the
residual choices open to a firm by virtue of the BM it chooses to employ,
we have elaborated a Strategic framework for SI, presented in Fig. 5,
defining:
1. Process: The analysis starts by identifying the social needs and de-
fining the innovative idea to tackle them. In this phase the prototype
assists the decision making in terms of product, process, organisa-
tion, or marketing; mapping the values begins.
2. Network: Internal and external networks of customers and bene-
ficiaries need to be mobilized in order to co-create social and cul-
tural values and at the same time sustain, gain and retain economic
value to deliver social and cultural values.
3. Economic value: How to support the economic sustainable growth of
the company.
4. Impact: Create mechanisms to capture the social, economic, ecolo-
gical and cultural impact on society as well as on the SME.
Having a strategy in place is important, since it supports the design
and implementation of the BM.
8. Discussion
This paper presented and discussed how SI can be a source of in-
spiration to generate societal and economic values through defining
and solving social, cultural and ecological issues.
Our analysis reveals that BMs for SIs have a dual offer, a sort of
“Janus Bifrons” approach: a part of the organisation works to address
social needs, and another part to create products and services for the
market, whose profits are reinvested in the socially innovative activ-
ities.
The literature on BMs is functionalistic (Doganova & Eyquem-
Renault, 2009) and answers questions related to managerial and eco-
nomic logic, creating a gap for SMEs that are producing SIs (Mongelli &
Rullani, 2017). The BM in the literature is typically described as con-
sisting of three main blocks: values embedded in the firm’s offer; ar-
chitecture and list of participants; and revenues model (Doganova &
Eyquem-Renault, 2009). However, in the case of SMEs producing SIs,
the building blocks are more complex as they need to consider the so-
cial, ecological and cultural values that are co-created and mobilized,
and the economic values. The architecture and list of participants in-
clude the network of beneficiaries who are recipients of the SI as well as
the network of customers that are creating the revenue model which
supports company growth and at the same time supports the develop-
ment and implementation of SI.
Amit and Zott (2012) suggest that the BM is made up of three pri-
mary activities related to: content (the activities to be performed),
structure (how and in what sequence activities are linked) and gov-
ernance (who performs the activities), with a set of activities that en-
ables insight through the tools it provides, emphasizing system-level
design over partial optimization, and architecture and design themes
(Zott & Amit, 2010).
10
Journal of Business Research xxx (xxxx) xxx–xxx
Building on this and integrating with the overarching literature of
the SI theory, we have created the Business model for SI, in which the
actions suggested in the building blocks are becoming a medium for
discussion, circulation, and a device that helps to define and manage
the network of customers and beneficiaries, thus creating different sets
of values. The Business model for SI becomes a reflection upon actions
with multiple meanings: supporting sustainable growth and at the same
time tackling social, cultural and ecological problems.
SIs in this transitional economy are aimed at improving the well-
being of selected groups, such as: creating socially responsible beha-
viour in people; developing soft skills that are lacking in a specific
context; stimulating critical and reflexive thoughts; addressing in-
stances of human rights violations; stimulating creativity; delivering
educational, training and vocational programmes; providing basic ad-
vice on childcare and healthcare management for communities that are
living too far from hospitals and care centres; instructing people in
adopting responsible behaviour towards society (e.g. teaching traffic
rules, incentivizing recycling); creating and cultivating positive emo-
tions towards society; and stimulating reflections and viewpoints on
political issues. Education is one of the key areas of SI literature
(Nicholls & Murdock, 2012a, 2012b), and we learned of organisations
establishing educational programmes for rural areas to create sustain-
able living through vocational programmes that support the establish-
ment, for example, of home-stays and community-based tourism.
Similarly to other studies, for example the research conducted in
Canada by Tremblay and Pilati (2013), SIs in Vietnam emerge in in-
novative SMEs that are cultivating arts and creativity. Social innovators
belong to the creative class (Florida, 2012), and they realize the im-
portance of having a vibrant and culturally stimulating environment. In
this transitional economy, there is no institutional contemporary art
education, no critical thinking courses, nor curatorial programmes.
Furthermore, the previous regimes have strongly discouraged
sharing emotions and opinions, and forbidden art and creativity that
was not supporting the propaganda. The art courses at schools are
based on copying from the master, without incentivizing creativity or
discussion on the local art and crafts. The presence of educational
programmes is therefore meaningful because the classes that are taught
at school and universities do not encourage or foster creativity. The
SMEs are filling this gap. This is aligned with the SI literature, as often
SI focuses on delivering training with the aim of creating more re-
flective innovators for tomorrow’s society (Nicholls & Murdock, 2012a,
2012b). Vocational programmes on art, creativity, local crafts, and local
heritage are perceived by social innovators as societal glue to overcome
diffidence and build a collective consciousness, stimulating critical
thinking and imagination, and developing a “physical and mental space
for being irresponsible” [15]. This could ultimately lead to innovation
and general societal improvement, as well as inclusiveness. In fact,
Vietnam is composed of 54 ethnic minorities, and not all of them have a
voice.
The Business model for SI, which is designed to be a critical reflection
device and a continuous narrative adaptation, is supposed to mitigate
the tension between exploration of SI and exploitation of products for
generating revenues. The Strategic framework for SI is intended to be a
framework for discussing the strategy of the SMEs retaining the “Janus
Bifrons” nature of the organisation.
9. Conclusions
In this article, we explored the newly arising topic of BMs for SMEs
delivering SIs in a transitional economy context.
BMs are increasingly popular in academic and practitioner circles as
a critical tool to sustain growth. And yet there are few practical tools for
designing and supporting social BMs, particularly for SMEs. In our re-
search, we constructed a Social BM and a Strategic framework for SI; we
evaluated them with SMEs practising SI, whose comments helped in
constructing the final version presented in this paper.
M. Gasparin, et al.
Further research should validate the model and the framework, by
developing indicators for SMEs to capture the social, cultural and
ecological values, as well as the economic impact on SMEs and on so-
ciety. These would support the development of macro policies for so-
cially innovative SMEs (e.g. tax breaks) as they contribute to filling a
gap in what states and governments offer, reducing social costs. Future
research should consider the long-term cultural, economic, ecological
and social value of these types of organisations.
Funding
ESRC New Investigator ES/S006060/1; British Council, Vietnam;
British Council, UK.
Declaration of Competing Interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial
interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influ-
ence the work reported in this paper.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their excellent
comments, and the editor of the special issue for the thoughtful sug-
gestions for the paper.
We would like to thank Thoa Bao Nguyen, Director of VIRI and
Claire Driscoll, Director of Work Room Four, for the insightful com-
ments during the Crafting Futures Project funded by the British Council,
Vietnam and British Council, UK and for their comments in the devel-
opment of the business models.
The Data were collected during the Crafting Futures Project and
ESRC grant ES/S006060/1.
“Slow Design Driven Innovation: Developing A Business Model For
Glocalised Enterprises”.
The graphic abstract is designed by Claire Driscoll.
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Dr Marta Gasparin is Associate Professor in Innovation And Design Management at the
university of Leicester. Her research explores how design and innovation emerges, how
value is created, the role of the actors (objects, managers, designers) in the innovation
and design processes. She draws on ideas from Science and Technology Studies and Actor-
Network Theory. She is interested in design theory and the epistemological dimension of
innovation, in particular the relations between design and decision, design and art, design
and aesthetic, design and epistemology, design and technology. She is currently under-
taking a ESRC funded research on slow design driven innovation to develop “glocalised”
“slow business models”, to theorise the design and innovation practices that reduce the
exploitation of natural and human resources, whilst increasing product lifespans and
driving innovation based on quality, local traditions, alternative forms of finance and
sustainable values.
Dr William Green is the Deputy Dean of Research for the College of Social Sciences, Arts
and Humanities, and Associate Professor in the University of Leicester School of Business.
He researches design and innovation management, and the role of new technology on the
interface between people, technology and their environment. He has won over one mil-
lion pounds of research funding, from a range of prestigious research funders. His re-
search in the creative and healthcare sectors has been nominated and won awards in
relation to innovation and has published in a number of leading marketing, management
and innovation journals.
Prof Simon Lilley’s research interests turn around the relationships between (human)
agency, technology and performance, particularly the ways in which such relationships
can be understood through post-structural approaches to organisation. These concerns are
reflected in a continuing focus upon the use of information technologies and strategic
models in organisations and he is currently pursuing these themes through investigation
of the regulation and conduct of financial and commodity derivatives trading.
Dr Martin Quinn is Associate Professor in Regional Development and Public Policy. His
research interests focus on regional development and public policy, especially in the
context of devolution to the regional and local tiers in England. He is particularly in-
terested in the ways in which second tier cities (broadly defined) experience the devo-
lution process and how the public and private sectors come together to form governance
networks. He has developed work examining devolution and governance through the lens
of Social Contract Theory and this work has been funded in part by a grant from the
Regional Studies Association.
Prof Mike Saren is Professor in Marketing and is an honorary fellow and lifetime member
of the UK Academy of Marketing. His research interests originated in the area of the
marketing and management of technology and he has conducted many research projects
into various aspects of marketing technology and innovation. More recently he has been
interested in the development of marketing theory and was a founding editor of the
journal ‘Marketing Theory’ (Sage) and co-editor of ‘Rethinking Marketing’ (Brownlie
et al., 1999, Sage). His introductory text is ‘Marketing Graffiti: The View from the Street’
(Routledge 2018).
Prof Christophe Schinckus is Professor of Finance and Head of the School of Finance
and Economics at Taylor’s University in Malaysia. He has published more than 100 papers
in peer-reviewed journals. Christophe has just published a book on Econophysics (Oxford
University Press) while doing a second PhD at the University of Cambridge, UK. He is
currently involved in his third PhD in Physics applied to Finance. In parallel to his aca-
demic activities, Christophe also collaborates as a research consultant for private com-
panies, such as JPMorgan and Suez Gaz de France, and recently worked with the African
Development Bank.