The business landscape is rapidly evolving. Transformation is no longer optional but necessary. The New Business Modelling Framework (NBM4) offers a systematic approach to creating and commercializing new business models. It also helps in developing new products. Whether you’re an established company trying to stay relevant, or a startup aiming to disrupt an industry, NBM4 provide guidance. It helps you navigate the complexities of becoming a more adaptive and innovative enterprise. In this post, we’ll introduce the NBM4 concept, explore its goals, and provide an overview of its structure.

What is the NBM4? #

The New Business Modelling Framework is a comprehensive method for designing and launching new business models and products. It guides organizations through a process that starts from the initial idea to successfully delivering a product to the market.

NBM4 focuses on identifying opportunities, creating value, and ensuring market alignment. These are the key elements that help businesses innovate and remain competitive in today’s environment.

The core goal of NBM4 is to help companies become adaptive enterprises. It aims to enhance efficiency, improve customer experience, and increase market agility through structured innovation.

Throughout my career, I have implemented elements of the NBM4 framework in many cases. For example, I have launched:

• Document management company who was an early AI-pioneer.
• IaaS cloud service provider startup (CSP).
• Cloud IoT platform, commercial fleet marketplace, and SaaS cloud platform for major telecommunications companies.

I worked in Microsoft, and we used a Solution Sales approach, which has a lot of similarities with NBM4. While working in IBM I earned the IBM Design Thinking Practitioner badge. I have also used NBM4 to help numerous startups launch their offerings. I consulted large enterprises how to implement its methods for the digital transformation and development of internal IT systems.

These experiences involved applying NBM4 principles like:

• Solution Discovery—identifying opportunities, understanding customer needs, and crafting hypothesis about value propositions, and
• Solution Delivery, which included iterative testing, refining solutions, and executing go-to-market strategies.

Through this framework, businesses can discover new ways to serve their customers. They can validate their value proposition and deliver products that make an impact.

The Goals of NBM4 #

Framework is designed to help companies:

1. Discover and Develop New Product Opportunities: Spot new opportunities in the market. Turn them into viable product ideas that align with customer needs.
2. Deliver Customer-Centric Solutions: Focus on the customer experience, ensuring the product provides true value and aligns with the target audience.
3. Ensure Successful Market Entry: Build the right go-to-market strategy to ensure products reach the intended audience effectively.

NBM4 breaks down the complex journey from idea to go-to-market. This process provides clarity for decision-makers. It also assists teams working on product development and innovation.

The NBM4 Structure #

The New Business Modeling Framework is divided into two major phases: Solution Discovery and Solution Delivery, each including 3 stages.

1. Solution Discovery #

The first phase, Solution Discovery, is all about understanding and refining the product development opportunity.

1.1 Business Idea

This stage begins by developing a compelling product idea, considering both market trends and customer pain points:

• Develop product idea and vision (strategy).
• Conduct market research and segmentation.
• Formulate business model hypothesis.
• Develop business case hypothesis.

1.2 Customer

Gain a deep understanding of the customer. Identify their needs, pain points, and motivations to build a comprehensive profile:

• Create persona profiles, including goals, desired outcomes, motivations, and success metrics.
• Develop empathy maps.
• Map the current customer journey (CJM).
• Define customer tasks (Jobs to be Done, JTBD) and job stories.
• Identify pain points.

1.3 Value Suggestion

Create a value suggestion that highlights how the product uniquely addresses customer needs, solves pain points, or generates new value:

• Formulate hypotheses to solve customer tasks and alleviate pain points.
• Define future customer journey hypotheses (CJM).
• Identify product opportunities and key functional capabilities.
• Develop a value map for each customer persona.
• Craft value-based positioning by emphasizing benefit growth and pain reduction.

2. Solution Delivery #

Once a solution is defined, the next step is to deliver it:

2.1 Value Test

Testing the proposed value with real customers through methods like Customer Development, Design Thinking, prototype testing, usability testing, A/B testing, NPS surveys, focus groups and others to gather insights and iteratively refine the solution:

• Test product value hypotheses.
• Develop product mockups and prototypes.
• Test product hypotheses on mockups and prototypes.

2.2 Product (MVP Development)

Developing a product that embodies the value. This step involves building the actual solution, creating prototypes, and refining based on feedback to build the minimum viable product (MVP):

• Refine the initial idea, pains, values, and product features.
• Decide upon the product’s architecture.
• Select the development environment and platform.
• Develop the minimum viable product (MVP).

2.3 Go to Market (Growth)

Create a market for the product and refine the value proposition:

• Craft a go-to-market plan to introduce the product effectively.
• Define sales channels, marketing tactics, and ensure alignment between the product, channels, and business model to meet market expectations:
  • Product-Market Fit: The extent to which the product meets market needs.
  • Product-Channel Fit: Ensuring the product utilizes the right sales channels effectively.
  • Channel-Model Fit: Aligning sales channels with the business model.
  • Model-Market Fit: Ensuring the business model matches market conditions.
• Drive growth and scaling.
• Apply the Sales Excellence model for further sales optimization

The NBM4 Approach #

NBM4 is inherently iterative and customer-focused. The process doesn’t follow a strict linear path; instead, it emphasizes testing and adapting based on real customer insights. It encourages organizations to experiment, gather feedback, and iterate until the product aligns perfectly with market needs. This approach minimizes risk. It ensures that the final product isn’t just a theoretical solution but something that truly creates value for customers.

Why NBM4 Matters #

NBM4 is a tool for structured innovation in a world of disruptive business models for entire industries. It brings together the creative process of ideation, the discipline of customer research, and the pragmatism of product delivery. This blend ensures that companies are not just developing one-time solutions. Instead, they are building scalable products that truly resonate with their customers and drive growth.

Potential Challenges of NBM4 #

The New Business Modelling Framework can be transformative. However, it is important to acknowledge that it is not a silver bullet. Implementing NBM4 can come with several challenges that businesses need to prepare for:

• Resource Intensity: NBM4 requires knowledge, time, personnel, and financial resources. The iterative nature of the framework means that businesses need to be ready to invest in multiple rounds of testing and refinement.
• Cultural Resistance: For established companies, the shift towards a more iterative, customer-focused approach can be met with internal resistance. Adopting NBM4 often requires cultural change and buy-in across all levels of the organization.
• Market Uncertainty: Despite thorough testing, market conditions can change rapidly. Even with NBM4’s emphasis on adaptability, predicting shifts in customer preferences or external factors remains a challenge.

By understanding these potential drawbacks, companies can better prepare and make informed decisions on how to effectively leverage NBM4 for their unique needs.

New Product Development Journey #

The New Business Modelling Framework is a powerful tool for organizations that want to thrive in a competitive and changing market. By focusing on both discovery and delivery, NBM4 provides a clear path from idea to market success. In the coming posts, we’ll dive deeper into each phase of this framework, starting with how to develop ideas that are grounded in customer insights.

If you’re ready to embark on the journey of new product development and transformation, stay tuned as we explore each of these steps in detail, providing actionable insights to help you bring your own products and business models to life.

In the meantime, feel free to share your thoughts or questions in the comments below, and explore our related resources to deepen your understanding of the NBM4 journey.

The entire concept of the New Business Modelling Framework is outlined in the presentation below: