Sustainable Business Models in a Challenging Context: The Amana Katu Case
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José Augusto Lacerda Fernandes
José Milton de Sousa-Filho
Fernando Luiz Emerenciano Viana
Abstract
Context: the Brazilian Amazon region has the largest hydrographic basin in the world. However, even with such abundance, a good part of the population does not have access to quality water in their daily lives. In order to change that reality, a social business called Amana Katu created an innovative sustainable business model based on the principles of circular economy, built through partnerships with NGOs, corporations, government, and universities. Objective: this study aims to understand how sustainable business models can be co-created in challenging contexts. Methods: based on a qualitative case study, data was collected in three phases, from primary and secondary sources over three years, and analyzed following content analysis procedures. Results: the business model is based on different principles of circular economy, and the business co-creation process, based on partnerships with different stakeholders, was fundamental for the generation of value and impact associated with the three dimensions of sustainability. Conclusions: these results contribute to theory for a better understanding of the creation and development of SBMs in challenging contexts. In this kind of context, co-creation processes and a deep relationship with stakeholders have a unique function, and collaborate to create successful initiatives.
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Fernandes, J. A. L., Sousa-Filho, J. M. de, & Viana, F. L. E. (2020). Sustainable Business Models in a Challenging Context: The Amana Katu Case. Journal of Contemporary Administration, 25(3), e200205. https://doi.org/10.1590/1982-7849rac2021200205.en
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Lüdeke-Freund, F. & Dembek, K. (2017). Sustainable business model research and practice: New field or passing fancy? Journal of Cleaner Production, 168, 1668-1678. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.08.093
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Batista, L., Gong, Y., Pereira, S., Jia, F., & Bittar, A. (2019). Circular supply chains in emerging economies – A comparative study of packaging recovery ecosystems in China and Brazil. International Journal of Production Research, 57(23), 7248-7268. https://doi.org/10.1080/00207543.2018.1558295
Bocken, N., Short, S., Rana, P., & Evans, S. (2013). A value mapping tool for sustainable business modelling. Corporate Governance: The International Journal of Business in Society,13(5), 482–497. https://doi.org/10.1108/CG-06-2013-0078
Bocken, N., Short, S., Rana, P., & Evans, S. (2014). A literature and practice review to develop sustainable business model archetypes. Journal of Cleaner Production, 65,42–56. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2013.11.039
Bocken, N., Pauw, I., Bakkerd, C., & Grinten, B. (2016). Product design and business model strategies for a circular economy. Journal of Industrial and Production Engineering, 33(5), 308-320. https://doi.org/10.1080/21681015.2016.1172124
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Brest, P., & Bordn, K. (2013). Unpacking the Impact in Impact Investing. Standford Social Innovation Review, 11, 22-27. Retrieved from https://ssir.org/articles/entry/unpacking_the_impact_in_impact_investing
Chesbrough, H. (2010). Business model innovation: Opportunities and barriers. Long Range Planning, 43(2-3), 354–363. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2009.07.010
Choi, D., & Gray, E. (2008). The venture development processes of “sustainable” entrepreneurs. Management Research News, 31(8), 558–569. https://doi.org/10.1108/01409170810892127
Cohen, B. (2006). Sustainable valley entrepreneurial ecosystems. Business Strategy Environment, 15(1),1–14. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.428
Cooper, D. R., & Schindler, P. S. (2016). Métodos de Pesquisa em Administração (12a ed.). Porto Alegre: AMGH.
Dimov, D. (2007). From opportunity insight to opportunity intention: The importance of person-situation learning match. Entrepreneurship Theory & Practice. 31(4),561–583. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2007.00188.x
Dufays, F., & Huybrechts, B. (2017). Entrepreneurial teams in social entrepreneurship: When team heterogeneity facilitates organizational hybridity (pp. 273-287). In C. Ben-Hafaïedh & T. M. Cooney (Eds.), Research handbook on entrepreneurial teams. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar.
Eisenhardt, K. M., & Graebner, M. E. (2007). Theory building from cases: Opportunities and challenges. Academy of Management Journal, 50(1), 25–32. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2007.24160888
Elkington, J. (1994) Towards the sustainable corporation: Win-win-win business strategies for sustainable development. California Management Review, 36, 90-100. Retrieved from https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Towards-the-Sustainable-Corporation%3A-Win-Win-Win-Elkington/ee13a5550b3a683923fe66ab36d729fafd135050
Ellen Macarthur Foundation. (2017). Rumo à economia circular: O racional de negócio para acelerar a transição. Retrieved from https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/assets/downloads/Rumo-a%CC%80-economia-circular_Updated_08-12-15.pdf
Evans, S., Vladimirova, D., Holgado, M., Van Fossen, K., Yang, M., Silva, E. A., & Barlow, C.Y. (2017). Business model innovation for sustainability: Towards a unified perspective for creation of sustainable business models. Business Strategy and the Environment, 26(5), 597-608. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.1939
Freudenreich, B., Lüdeke‑Freund, F., & Schaltegger, S. (2020). A stakeholder theory perspective on business models: Value creation for sustainability. Journal of Business Ethics, 166, 3–18. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-019-04112-z
Geissdoerfer, M, Savaget, P., Bocken, N., & Hultink, E. J. (2017). The circular economy – A new sustainability paradigm? Journal of Cleaner Production, 143, 757-768. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.12.048
Ghisellini, P, Cialani, C., & Ulgiati, S. (2016). A review on circular economy: The expected transition to a balanced interplay of environmental and economic systems. Journal of Cleaner Production, 114, 11-32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2015.09.007
Ketokivi, M., & Choi, T. (2014). Renaissance of case research as a scientific method. Journal of Operations Management, 32(5), 232-240. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jom.2014.03.004
Korhonen, J., Honkasalo, A., & Seppälä, J. (2018). Circular economy: The concepts and its limitations. Ecological Economics, 143, 37-46. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2017.06.041
Jabbour, A. B. L. S., Luiz, J. V. R., Luiz, O. R., Jabbour, C. J. C., Ndubisi, N. O., Oliveira, J. H. C. de, & Horneaux Junior, F. (2019). Circular economy business models and operations management. Journal of Cleaner Production, 235, 1525-1539. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.06.349
Jamali, D., Yianni, M., & Abdallah, H. (2011). Strategic partnerships, social capital and innovation: Accounting for social alliance innovation. Business Ethics: A European Review, 20(4), 375-391. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8608.2011.01621.x
Lovejoy, T. E., & Nobre, C. (2018). Amazon tipping point. Science Advances, 4(2), eaat2340. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aat2340
Lüdeke-Freund, F. & Dembek, K. (2017). Sustainable business model research and practice: New field or passing fancy? Journal of Cleaner Production, 168, 1668-1678. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.08.093
Lüdeke-Freund, F., Carroux, S., Joyce, A., Massa, L., & Breuer, H. (2018). The Sustainable Business Model Pattern Taxonomy: 45 patterns to support sustainability-oriented business model innovation. Sustainable Production and Consumption, 15, 145-162. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2018.06.004
Manning, S., & Roessler, D. (2014). The formation of cross-sector development partnerships: how bridging agents shape project agendas and longer-term alliances. Journal of Business Ethics, 123(3), 527-547. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-013-1853-5
Matews, J., & Tan, H. (2011). Process toward a circular economy in China: The drivers (and inhibitors) of eco-industrial initiative. Journal of Industrial Ecology, 15(3), 435-457. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1530-9290.2011.00332.x
Murray, A., Skene, K., & Haynes, K. (2017). The circular economy: an interdisciplinary exploration of the concept and application in a global context. Journal of Business Ethics, 140, 369-380. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-015-2693-2
Nosratabadi, S., Mosavi, A., Shamshirband, S., Kazimieras Zavadskas, E., Rakotonirainy, A., & Chau, K. W. (2019). Sustainable business models: A review. Sustainability, 11(6), 1663. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11061663
Patton, M. Q. (2014), Qualitative research & evaluation methods: Integrating theory and practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Paulus, T.M., & Lester, J.N. (2016). ATLAS.ti for conversation and discourse analysis studies. International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 19(4), 405-428. https://doi.org/10.1080/13645579.2015.1021949
Perrini, F., Vurro, C., & Costanzo, L. A. (2010). A process-based view of social entrepreneurship: From opportunity identification to scaling-up social change in the case of San Patrignano. Entrepreneurship and Regional Development, 22(6), 515-534. https://doi.org/10.1080/08985626.2010.488402
Rashid, A. Asif, F. M. Krajnik, P., & Nicolescu, C. M. (2013). Resource conservative manufacturing: An essential change in business and technology paradigm for sustainable manufacturing. Journal of Cleaner Production, 57, 166–177. Retrieved from https://www.tib.eu/en/search/id/elsevier%3Adoi~10.1016%252Fj.jclepro.2013.06.012/Resource-Conservative-Manufacturing-an-essential/
Richardson, J. (2008). The business model: An integrative framework for strategy. Strategic Change, 17(5–6), 133–144. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.932998
Schaltegger, S., Lüdeke-Freund, F., & Hansen, E. (2016). Business models for sustainability: A co-evolutionary analysis of sustainable entrepreneurship, innovation, and transformation. Organization & Environment, 29(3), 264-289. https://doi.org/10.1177/1086026616633272
Sistema Nacional de Informações sobre Saneamento. (2016). Diagnóstico dos serviços de água e esgotos de 2014. Brasília, DF: SNSA/MCIDADES.
Teece, D. (2010). Business models, business strategy and innovation. Long Range Planning, 43, 172–194. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2009.07.003
Veloso, N. S. L., & Mendes, R. L. R. (2014). Aproveitamento da água da chuva na Amazônia: experiências nas ilhas de Belém/PA. Revista Brasileira de Recursos Hídricos, 19(1), 229-242. Retrieved from https://docplayer.com.br/11865459-Aproveitamento-da-agua-da-chuva-na-amazonia-experiencias-nas-ilhas-de-belem-pa.html
Wirtz, B. W., Pistoia, A., Ullrich, S., & Göttel, V. (2016). Business models: Origin, development and future research perspectives. Long Range Planning, 49(1), 36–54. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2015.04.001
World Health Organization. (2017). Inheriting a sustainable world? Atlas on children’s health and the environment. Geneva: WHO.
World Health Organization. (1986). Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion. New York: World Health Organization. Available at: https://www.who.int/healthpromotion/conferences/previous/ottawa/en/
Yin, R. K. (2014). Estudo de Caso: planejamento e métodos (5a ed.). Porto Alegre: Bookman.
Zott, C., Amit, R., & Massa, L. (2011). The business model: Recent developments and future research. Journal of Management, 37(4), 1019–1042. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206311406265