The Use of Narratives in Business Models

a proposal to understand the logics of human action in entrepreneurship

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.30800/mises.2024.v12.1562

Keywords:

business model, Human Action, narrative analysis, Value

Abstract

This article aims to demonstrate how the narrative analysis method, combined with a value-based perspective of business model structuration, can be applied to identify the logic of human action in entrepreneurship. The business model is a narrative story, a form of presentation, explanation, or interpretation of elements that give meaning to the creation of business opportunities. However, not every element is explicit in the narratives of entrepreneurs who are showing, mainly to investors, how their business models are structured. Based on the mapping of implicit or explicit oppositions in the story, which enables the identification of hidden meaning in arguments, the logic of the narrative is extracted from the perspective of the dialectical process, where the sequence of events does not follow a chronological line but rather the outcome of the value creation, configuration, and appropriation process.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Metrics

Metrics Loading ...

Author Biographies

Dimária Silva e Meirelles, Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie, São Paulo, Brazil

Economist, Master’s and Doctorate in Industrial and Technology Economics. Professor at the Center for Social and Applied Sciences, Presbyterian University Mackenzie, affiliated with the Graduate Program in Business Administration. Research Line: Creation, Configuration, and Appropriation of Value in Technology-Mediated Services.

José Carlos Thomaz, Independent Consultant, São Paulo, Brazil

He is a consultant and teacher in the field of management, with emphasis on Strategies and Markets, working mainly on the following themes: corporate reputation (involving corporate image, corporate culture, organizational identification, organizational behavior and corporate communication), competitive advantage, organizational performance and business modeling (value creation, configuration and appropriation).

References

Arendt, H. (2014). Sobre a revolução. Companhia das Letras. (Obra original publicada em 1963).

Blank, S., & Dorf, B. (2014). Startup: Manual do Empreendedor. São Paulo: Alta Books.

Bowman, C., & Ambrosini, V. (2000). Value creation versus value capture: towards a coherent definition of value in Strategy. British Journal of Management, 11(1), 1-15. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8551.00147

Doganova, L., & Eyquem-Renault, M. (2009). What do business models do? Innovation devices in technology entrepreneurship. Research Policy, 38, 1559-1570. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2009.08.002 https://www.investopedia.com/articles/07/banking.asp

Feldman, M. S., Skoldberg, K., Brown, R. N., & Horner, D. (2004). Making Sense of Stories: A Rhetorical Approach to Narrative Analysis. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 14(2), 147-170. https://doi.org/10.1093/jopart/muh010

Flores, J. (1994). Análisis de datos cualitativos: aplicaciones a la investigación educative. Barcelona: PPU.

Lounsbury, M., & Glynn, M. A. (2001). Cultural entrepreneurship: stories, legitimacy, and the acquisition of resources. Strategic Management Journal, 22(6-7), 545-564. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.188

Mises, L. (1949). Human Action. A Treatise on Economics. New Haven, CT Yale University Press.

Pentland, B. T. (1999). Narrative Methods in Collaborative Systems Research. In Proceedings from the 32nd Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. Hawai.

Pentland, B. T., & Feldman, M. S. (2007). Narrative Networks: Patterns of Technology and Organization. Organization Science, 18(5), 781-795. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.1070.0283

Perkmann, M., & Spicer, A. (2010). What are business models? Developing a theory of performative representations. Research in the Sociology of Organizations, Technology and Organization: Essays in Honour of Joan Woodward. 29, 265-275. https://doi.org/10.1108/S0733-558X(2010)0000029020

Ries, E. (2011). The lean startup. Crown Publishing Group.

Riessman, C. (2005). Narrative analysis. In: Narrative, memory, and everyday life, edited by Kelly, N., Horrocks, C., Milnes, K., Roberts, B. & Robinson, D., pp. 1-7. University of Huddersfield.

Silva e Meirelles, D. (2019). Business Model and Strategy: in search of dialog through value perspective. RAC – Revista de Administração Contemporânea, 23(6), 786-806. https://doi.org/10.1590/1982-7849rac2019180314

Storbacka, K., Windahl, C., Nenonen, S., & Salonen, A. (2013). Solution business models: Transformation along four continua. Industrial Marketing Management, 42(5), 705-716. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indmarman.2013.05.008

Teece, D. J. (2016). Dynamic capabilities and entrepreneurial management in large organizations: Toward a theory of the (entrepreneurial) firm. European Economic Review, 86, 202-216. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.euroecorev.2015.11.006

Van de Ven, A. H. (2007). Engaged Scholarship: A Guide for organizational and Social Research. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Wallnofer, M., & Hacklin, F. (2013). The business model in entrepreneurial marketing: A communication perspective on business angels’ opportunity interpretation. Industrial Marketing Management, 42(5), 755-764. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.indmarman.2013.05.012

Downloads

Published

2024-10-03

How to Cite

1.
Silva e Meirelles D, Thomaz JC. The Use of Narratives in Business Models: a proposal to understand the logics of human action in entrepreneurship. MisesJournal [Internet]. 2024 Oct. 3 [cited 2024 Dec. 21];12. Available from: https://misesjournal.org.br/misesjournal/article/view/1562

Issue

Section

Original Research Articles