BUSINESS MODEL GENERATION Analysis of a Start - up through Business Model Canvas Supervised by Dr Paul Cerotti & Professor Elana Fine Business Globalization RMIT University, Australia & University of Maryland, United States of America By Sahan Laksitha Kekiriwaragoda 02 A pril 201 8 Contents 1. Executive Summary ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ..................... 1 2. Introduction – Business Model Idea ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................ 2 2.1. The Inspiration ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................... 2 2.2. The Business Model Idea ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .. 2 2.3. Applicability and Vision ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .... 3 3. Application of the Business Model Canvas ................................ ................................ ................................ ................. 4 3.1. Design, Innovation and Testing ................................ ................................ ................................ ......................... 4 3.2 . Forming a Dashboard ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ........ 5 3.3. Understanding Competition ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................... 5 4. Analysis of Like - A - Haus through Business Model Canvas ................................ ................................ ........................ 6 4.1. Customer Segments ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ........... 6 4.2. Value Propositions ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............. 7 4.3. Channels ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................ 8 4.4. Customer Relationships ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ..... 9 4.5. Revenue Streams ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............. 10 4.6. Key Resources ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................. 11 4.7. Key Activities ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .................. 12 4.8. Key Partnerships ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .............. 13 4.9. Cost Structure ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .................. 14 5. Competitive Advantages of Like - A - Haus ................................ ................................ ................................ ................. 1 6 5.1. Creating Advantages over Competitors ................................ ................................ ................................ ........... 1 6 5.2. Addressing Current Issues through Business Model Canvas ................................ ................................ ........... 1 7 5.3. Challenges faced by Like - A - Haus ................................ ................................ ................................ ................... 1 8 6. Conclusion ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ 1 9 7. References ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ 20 8. Appendices ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ 2 2 Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 1 Executive Summary This report intends to evaluate a Business Model Canvas for a proposed start - up idea inspired by prefabricated housing and cloud manufacturing. The idea revolves mainly around the concept of delivering home units and allowing the clients to involve in the design and customization processes through a DIY experience as well as through the involvement of construction companies that may overlook some aspects of the projects. The particular concept has been selected as it could be a potential application across developing countries around the world. The report would discuss the idea in terms of the start - up idea itself, business model canvas and what the start - up idea hopes to achieve with the application of it, analysis of the canvas in terms of the nine specifi c blocks, and competitive advantages of the segments. Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 2 Introduction - Business Model Idea The Inspiration Having increased efficiency during construction and performance with substantial cost savings, prefabricated housing is a common application in the field of architecture and design in developed countries such as United States, Japan, and Europe (Clouston, Schreiber & Mann 2009). Therefore, the application of prefabricated housing in developing countries could be defined as a topic that is yet to be progressively looked into in the near future due to advancement of technology, availability in resources and knowledge. The application of prefabricated housing is an effective solution to many issues faced by developing countries in situations related to natural disasters and inclement of weather, having minimal skills and expertise in terms of manufacturing and construction, lack of materials with greater quality to be included in applications and mostly, the fluctuating economic conditions that regularly affect communities (Clouston, Schreiber & Mann 2009). While the above movement in architecture could be identified as the inspiration for social habitat and improving living conditions, the recent refinement in the Cloud Manufac turing could be considered as the inspiration that ties the business idea together with the conceptualisation of virtual sources and services. As the modern manufacturing grows, virtually integrated services have assisted in order to tackle issues such as increase production and reduce costs (Wu et al. 2015). The cloud and computer integrated procedure has been utilised during the forming of this particular business model idea. The Business Model Idea The business model that is referred to in this report is formed around the incorporation of the above mentioned elements; prefabricated housing and cloud manufacturing. Therefore, it is an idea that includes both design and construction aspects. The concept of the business model is to provide a servic e to clients that applies prefabrication in terms of manufacturing process and management of construction of a completely customized housing unit. The company would be identified as “Like - A - Haus”. The procedure would comprise of a client requesting a cust omizable housing design and carrying out a selection procedure as manifested by the company. This would include providing details on available space options and discussing the process with a technical professional at the start - up venture. Upon completion o f the selection process and customization of the proposed housing design, the start - up venture (herein would be referred to as the company or Like - A - Haus) would get involved in outsourcing the manufacturing and construction processes to the selected partne r organizations that are already established in conventional construction in the selected countries. The company would present the customer with the options of being able to manage their own project Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 3 and take part in the production process as a program orga nized with the collaboration of the participating construction companies or having the project managed completely by the company itself. The company would mainly concentrate on the service that would be provided to the customers as a design and built opti on that includes administration and project management. The business model idea also intends to reduce manufacturing and installation durations, include LEED certified energy standards with high quality materials, reduce response periods to growing custome r demands, offer considerably reduced costs with the usage of modern building materials over conventional materials that are available in the market, high safety and health standards, methodical and modular installation, countless options in terms of custo mization, and comfortability that is required of a home to live in. Applicability and Vision The vision of Like - A - Haus is to provide an opportunity to everyone in developing countries, who are caught up in the cycle of loans and mortgages to give hope in order to achieve their goal of living in a custom designed home that makes them happy in shorter period of time at a reduced price. Therefore, in terms of applicability, the company wishes to have an opportunity to introduce the simple procedure of buildi ng a house that suit the communities of developing countries through conducting extensive research. Furthermore, the company intends to improve the quality of life in developing countries with their long term plans and also to conduct research in terms of more efficient and feasible construction procedures, energy efficient designs and be involved in producing durable and sustainable materials with collaboration of the partnerships that would ideally be formed through the process. Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 4 Application of the Busin ess Model Canvas When considering this particular business idea through an entrepreneurial view, it is important to identify the applicability of the business model canvas in an effective manner in order to project the idea towards potential audiences. Th e reasons for the use of business model canvas is observed to be vibrantly vivid through various businesses and companies. Reasons include new product or service development within existing businesses, requirements regard to strategic reorientation, renova tion of an existing business model, expansion, research that follow through with investments, and mergers that might occur in order to rebuild businesses (Amarsi 2015). However, as mentioned by Amarsi (2015), the biggest reason for the application of a bus iness model canvas is during the development of an entirely new business. As it is the same reason for the business model canvas to be applied in the scenario of Like - A - Haus, it is important to realise the values of the application in order to resolve or address issues that arise during or prior to the process. Though many uses could be applied for the company, three major reasons would be discussed through this report that are crucial as fundamentals of the business idea. Design, Innovation and Testing Due to the likeliness of Like - A - Haus being an initial development concept, evidently it is necessary to conduct a filtration process that assists the business idea to be refined using the business model canvas that would help identify the components of ea ch of the nine blocks. Therefore, through a process of mind mapping and working visually (Amarsi 2015), Like - A - Haus intends to identify what the customers would prefer to obtain through the introduction of this product that is incorporated with a service, what type of issues does the company wish to address by implementing this method in development of housing, and whether the idea can be expanded in order to gain profits in a substantially larger scale in the future by adding or shifting aspects across the business model canvas (Amarsi 2015). Since the idea could be improved, the company would furthe r benefit from allowing the business model canvas to be designed in a flexible and a rough manner at the early stages of performance (Amarsi 2015). The systematic formation of the canvas allows the company to form the elements of the business model in a way, which allows components to interact and influence the customers, identify solutions to current issues and weaknesses of the model, and conduct research and experiments on further improvements that could be added through a process of testing during ini tial implementation (First Round Review n.d.). Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 5 Forming a Dashboard The application of the business model canvas as a dashboard is in order to establish a performance threshold. This could be applied in Like - A - Haus idea as the idea is the development of an entirely new business plan that is yet to be implemented. Therefore, by allocating indicators on each block of the canvas during the above mentioned testing process, the company has the capability to identify the level of performance associated in each sector of the business model (Garner 2015). Depending on the performance the business model can be regenerated to fit the purpose of the company in order to achieve a better outcome during the following cycle of implementation (Garner 2015). Understanding Competition The application of the business model canvas allows the company to identify the processes undertaken by competitors in the field of design and construction and the specialities of their tasks in order to form a model that is revolutionary as well as applicable to areas that have not yet been addressed by existing companies (Garner 2015). This essentially means that the business model canvas of Like - A - Haus could potentially address issues through a customer centric design in order to provide so lutions to questions such as what exactly are the customer requirements when providing a design and a built service, what does the customer aspire and how can Like - A - Haus as a company deliver them according a standard, the type of relationships that the co mpany would like to form with customers and other involved parties as mentioned by the canvas, and what the values do this service needs to provide in order to be different from the existing service providers that undertake conventional methods in addressi ng issues (Osterwalder & Pigneur 2010). Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 6 Analysis of Like - A - Haus through Business Model Canvas Customer Segments Like - A - Haus intends to address the customer segments of the business model canvas in a manner, which appeals to two main groups in the curre nt market of developing South Asian countries. These two can be defined as follows. • Customers with design only requirements • Customers with design and build requirements Therefore, it is identifiable as a segmented market approach as the service that the company wishes to provide is focused on two different categories of customers (Osterwalder & Pigneur 2010). In order to project the idea of Like - A - Haus to the above mentioned groups, it is important to view customers in a cross sectional manner that assist s the company to base the two categories on demographics such as age groups that often involve in the process of building a house in their lives, whether they consider residing in urban or rural areas, and the level of income of these citizens, which outli nes the specific needs of customers (Montinaro & Sciascia 2011). Like - A - Haus would consider separate issues that affect each group in order to clearly distinguish between the two separate customer segments. Examples have been provided in Table 1 Issues faced by customers with Design only requirements Issues faced by customers with Design and build requirements How to guide the customers to achieve the level of customization that reduces issues when using their own builder or conducting a DIY proj ect? How to maintain a strict budget as the requirements indicate both design and customization of the housing unit, and being outsourced for the collaborative construction company? Could they receive technical assistance on a session basis during the con struction process if complications arise? How to select a suitable contractor for the project depending on the availability and other requirements? What type of initial consultation would the customers receive? How to obtain planning permissions by local councils and authorities? Table 1 - Categorizing Customer Segments Though the customer segments would be different based on above mentioned sample issues, the company would provide similar services as defined by key activities, which maintain the value propositions. Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 7 Value Propositions Value propositions of Like - A - Haus have been introduced to the market in a manner to address a few areas that are yet to be approached by major construction companies, which conduct conventional construction procedures. As the proposition intends to create values to the defined customer segments, Like - A - Haus has considered a selection of elements such as newness, performance, customization, price and cost red uction as well as convenience for the customers who wish to obtain the service (Osterwalder & Pigneur 2010). According to these mentioned elements, the value propositions of Like - A - Haus are mentioned below in Table 2 Value Proposition Explanation Newness and customization Being able to customize home units or housing ideas flexibly through a selective process, the company can offer unique designs for customers. Price and cost reduction Due to the usage of specialised materials and avoiding intermediaries, the company can allow a substantial reduction in cost during processes that involves manufacturing and construction. Performance With higher quality, extended warranty period, and LEED accredited engineering, the company offers a better product to the customer. Convenience With the inclusion of processes such as selective design procedure with customization, DIY applicability, technical assistance, and reformed prefabricated manufactur ing procedure that allows customers to select their own or company assigned contractors, Like - A - Haus has simplified the building process of home units. Table 2 - Identifying Value Propositions Therefore, Figure 1 describes how Like - A - Haus proposes a service that addresses and avoids many issues that are present in the conventional building industry by providing a unique experience that offers benefits and features, which appeal to customers to fulfil their require ments and reduce uncertainties in the process (Fernandez 2018). Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 8 Channels The channels block of the canvas in Like - A - Haus would mainly depend on the introduced customer segments ( Please refer to Section 3.1. ). Due to the nature of the service that is bei ng provided, it is important to conduct the process in a manner that satisfies the customer requirements by providing the proposed values of the service. In the situation of Like - A - Haus, the company should consider an ability to reach the customers through a mix of both of very own company channels as well as partner channels as it would allow the company to reach higher margins, benefit from the strengths of partners, and preserve the capability to expand in the future (Osterwalder & Pigneur 2010). As the manufacturing and delivering, and construction processes will be outsourced, a substantial portion of the addressing on issues of customers that have design and build requirements would be dealt with key partners that would be described in the sections be low. The customers with design only requirements would be dealt with in house channels. A better view of this divisive allocations has been indicated in the Appendices (Please refer to Appendix 1 for an enlarged version of the image) The company would focus on social media, website and in person consultation as these would be main channels that the customers would be reached across by the company. The channels would b e integrated in a manner where both the company (specified as “own” in Table 2) and partners would have a collaborative problem solving environment in order to serve the customers better. The most cost efficient channels would be identified upon implementa tion and the rest would be phased out in order to maintain consistency of the functional channels (Vucemilovic 2015). Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 9 Customer Relationships It is important for the company to establish customer relationships with the identified customer segments in order to provide an exceptional experience during the procedure of conducting business operations (Osterwalder & Pigneur 2010). As the service that is being provided by Like - A - Haus focuses on assisting the customers in achieving a housing unit design, which would be built in a DIY manner by customers or a selected group of partner companies that are involved during the process, it is necessary to maintain a relationship with these customers from the start to a point where they would require ser vices at a later stage upon completion due to the inclusion of the warranty period. Therefore, it would mainly include a personalised experience when maintaining customer relationships. According to this particular aspect, Like - A - Haus would create a co - ex istence of the following levels as explained in Table 3 in order to serve both the identified customer segments. Type of Experience Explanation of the Procedure Self - service The simple procedure of customers deciding what type of a home unit they would wish to acquire would depend on them conducting a selection process through the established website. Through the interaction of the website, they may request assistance should t hey need it. Personal Assistance Once the self - service selection process is carried out by the customers the company would allocate the customer with a professional to guide them through the process of receiving assistance for all design and planning specific matters. This would also be applicable in case the project is simpler and the customer wishes to conduct it in a DIY manner. Dedicated Personal Assistance Upon receiving personal assistance from the company, the pre - fabrication construct ion processes would commence under the guidance of the partnering companies while Lie - A - Haus oversees the administration. During this stage , the application of dedicated personal assistance would create a substantial impact on company branding and image. Table 3 - Methods of Maintaining Customer Relationships Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 10 Revenue Streams The presented value propositions of Like - A - Haus based on the two separate customer segments would be exploited in order to generate revenues for the company. As the business model canvas suggests, it is necessary to identify types of revenue streams that a re suitable for the company, pricing mechanisms and the ways to generate the revenue streams (Osterwalder & Pigneur 2010). According to the concepts that have been explained by Osterwalder and Pigneur (2010), pricing mechanisms may vary depending on the type of revenue streams that would be selected by the company and its model. Like - A - Haus would ideally consist of both transaction revenues and recurring revenues as it is a product and service based business model (Cleverism 2015). Through both procedure s where the customer purchases only the design solution as well as the design, outsourced construction and installation services, the company is required to charge based on the transaction on a fixed price mechanism. Furthermore, recurring revenues would b e generated during the processes where customers may require technical assistance related to the product installation and customization, and after sales services that occur upon the completion of the initial transaction. • Customized home unit design sales • Charges associated with technical assistance, administration and project management • Brokerage fee that is charged from construction companies The selected methods of revenue generation streams have been indicated in Table 4 Type of Revenue Stream Applications Asset Sales Transactions conducted during home unit design sales contribute to revenue streams. A service fee would be charged during processes such as technical assistance, service administration and project management that are acquired directly. Brokerage Fee During project allocation where customers would be matched with construction companies that would conduct manufacturing and installation, a brokerage fee would be charged from the partner construction c ompanies. Licensing (Future applicability) Due to possible application of an expansion, the company could consider a licensing method where the Like - A - Haus distributes the authority to other sub - companies that would conduct the business model processes as defined under a contract agreement. Table 4 - Identification of Revenue Streams Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 11 Key Resources Due to Like - A - Haus being a newly formed business, it is comprehensible that it would have difficulties in accessing financial resources in the beginning of the formation. Bootstrapping could be identified as a technique that would be useful in the given si tuation in order to continue growth for the company as it is a newly established startup (Jones & Jayawarna 2010). The method that is applicable in Like - A - Haus is that the company’s interest in sharing and acquiring knowledge as well as effectively utilizi ng the expertise of the partner companies involved in the manufacturing processes (Jones & Jayawarna 2010). Like - A - Haus could further consider using the relationships with the partnering companies that would assist in terms of staffing capabilities through exchanges, and sharing premises to conduct operations (Jones & Jayawarna 2010). According to Osterwalder and Pigneur (2010), the types of key resources are categorised as physical, intellectual, human and financial elements. Like - A - Haus would focus on th e key resources through their very own expertise to begin with in order to function initially. Therefore, the key resources could be explained as followed as mentioned in Table 5 Type of Resource Included Elements Physical Office space to conduct transactions and meetings with customers. Materials such as IT equipment and servers. Intellectual Design expertise. Administration and project management expertise. Website that includes a system where the customers can select and customize design and select construction companies from the available partners. Human Relationships with the contributing partner companies. Finances Would be acquired in the future upon t he growth of the company. Table 5 - Key Resources of Like - A - Haus Model Jones and Jayawarna (2010) have also reiterated the importance of social networks in order to thrive in the market. Therefore, it would be essential for Like - A - Haus to utilise the partnering companies with regard to achieving more investors and revenue. These networks would assist the company in order to achieve higher goals as mentioned through Section 3.3; Channels, which include referrals, promotions and personal relations. Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 12 Key Activities Due to their capability in adding values to business operations such as reaching markets, maintaining customer relationships and earning revenues, key activities remain to be a crucial aspect of the business model canvas in order for the business model idea to function without inconsistencies (Osterwalder & Pigneur 2010) According to Osterwalder and Pigneur (2010), the key activities should depend on the understanding of values propositions that the company has to offer, distribution channels that are to be deployed, maintaining of customer relationships and how the company acquires revenue through the business model idea. Therefore, key activities of Like - A - Haus mainly consist of intellectual and human related aspects, which would be conducted throughout the life cycle of the company procedures. These activities would help Like - A - Ha us reach the desired market of customer segments through the value propositions, maintain the relationships with the acquired customers during projects and upon completion, which would help the expansion of the network of the company, and acquire financial resources that were initially limited during the launching of the idea in order to continue the cycle. The key activities of Like - A - Haus could be identified as the following. • Market outreach • Design and development • Customer service and technical assistance • Project management Table 6 indicates the importance of activities to the performance of the company. Key Activity Result Towards Performance Market Outreach This element would define how Lie - A - Haus would approach the identified customer segments to conduct their business operations with customers. Being able to carry out marketing procedures with the help of social media and website, local campaigns are crucial to the com pany. Design and Development Design is a main element that the company has to offer in terms of selling the products. Through design and development, the company would approach issues of various customer segments. Customer Service and Technical Assistance During design and development processes, technical assistance would be of utmost importance to customers and the company would provide it to continue the problem - solving nature of the projects. Customer service would be applied together with tec hnical assistance upon delivery of a project. Project Management As the company manages a portion of how the projects are being performed upon allocating them to construction companies, project management would be a crucial activity to maintain customer r elationships, major investors and stakeholders that contribute to the performance of the company. Table 6 - Key Activities and how they relate to Performance of the Company Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 13 Key Partnerships Osterwalder and Pigneur (2010) define partnerships as one of the cornerstones that companies are built upon in order to conduct their very own business operations in a successful manner. The forging of partnerships is of utmost importance to Like - A - Haus du e to one of the main activities that is described in Section 3.7, project management, which involves the monitoring of the outsourced manufacturing, construction and installation of housing units by partnering companies. For the projects to be successful , Like - A - Haus would require a number of parties that function closely with the company in order to provide an excellent service to the customers whether they require only design assistance or design and built assistance. It is of utmost importance for the company to define expectations of the partnerships, create an impact on the clients, have all involved parties benefit from the partnership and choose the right partnerships (Cleverism 2015). The initially identified key partnerships that would create an impact on the company performance in a positive manner have been elaborated in Table 7 Key Partnership Impact on the Company Design Professionals The relationships maintained with the design professionals would essentially mean that the company would have the ability to produce most of the innovative housing designs that can be delivered. The in - house design teams would benefit from obtaining advice and professional guidance fr om such experts. Construction Companies As a substantial portion of the projects would be conducted by partnering construction companies, it is important to maintain this partnership as it would accommodate price negotiations, project and construction man agement, design solutions and customer referrals during the long run. Project Management Professionals The projects that would be undertaken by the company heavily relies on project management due to the nature of the business idea that involves outsourci ng and the involvement of various companies that carry out construction procedures. Therefore, professional expertise of approved project management would benefit the performance and maintaining the cycle of procedures. Material Innovators Material innova tors could assist the company in providing information with new materials that are available in the market and by introducing such materials to the involved construction companies to increase efficiency, reliability, sustainability, and performance of the delivered home units. R&D Companies These partnerships would assist the company identify how to better approach customers, how designs and material usage can be improved, how involved construction companies may increase efficiency and performance in t erms of delivery and identify new markets to introduce the product and service. Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 14 Local Governments When customers require the company to continue projects, it would be essential for Like - A - Haus to maintain a positive relationship and a partnership with l ocal governments that would have the authority to provide approval for projects and expedite the progress. Table 7 - Key Partnerships that Assist the Business Processes of the Company C ost Structure According to Osterwalder and Pigneur (2010), many of the blocks that are included in the business model canvas would incur costs during the application. These would mainly be identifying and serving customer segments, creating value propositions, maintaining channels and customer relationships, allocating key resources , and conducting key activities that are necessary for the performance of the business operations of the company. It is important for Like - A - Haus to identify what the most inherent costs that are incorporated with the proposed business model, to identify the most expensive key resources and find out solutions to reduce them to a minimum while maintaining values and quality, and which activities require the most costs to be conducted and how could they be streamlined in order to be more cost effective and f easible (Osterwalder & Pigneur 2010). Therefore, by considering the explanations provided by Osterwalder and Pigneur (2010), Like - A - Haus could incorporate such values in order to form a better cost structure for the company. By dividing these in to fixed costs and variable costs, Table 8 tries to portray a simplified view of the cost structures of Like - A - Haus. Cost Type Inclusions Fixed Costs Salaries for the involved capacity of staff - Design, Administration, Customer Service, Technical Assistance, Project Management Maintenance of systems, which include social media platforms Rentals that are involved with office spaces and IT related servers Variable Costs Local promotions and marketing campaigns Project costs that would be associated with each of the individual housing projects that would be dissimilar to each other as selected by the customers Service and maintenance costs of housing units in the long run as r equested by customers Costs that would incur during various projects that would require project management depending on the degree the company is involved with partnering companies that conduct construction and installations Miscellaneous costs associate d with maintaining relationships and conducting key activities Table 8 - Cost Structure through Fixed Costs and Variable Costs Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 15 Therefore, it is understandable that the company would mainly have the cost structure deal with variable costs in the beginning as the company tries to identify the application of processes through a process of experimenting in order to identify the best suited scenarios that are best fitted for the long term performance of the co mpany. Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 16 Competitive Advantages of Like - A - Haus Creating Advantages over Competitors According to literature presented by Pekuri (2015), application of business models seem to be rather different when the concept is being discussed with professionals involved in the construction industry. This is due to the fact that the concept of a business model is being understood in a partial manner by professionals, who only analyses different fields of operations, business segments, certain modes of project delivery techniques, and contract types that captures the business idea (Pekuri 2015). Another main factor that has been elaborated by Pe kuri (2015) is that many construction firms apply the concept of a business model to set financial objectives and acquire more projects. Due to the lack of understanding of the importance of the business model canvas by many conventional construc tion companies in developing countries, Like - A - Haus would gain an advantageous position over the current competitors in terms of considering more integral aspects such as understanding the viewpoint of customers and value creation (Pekuri 2015). By applyin g the business model canvas in Like - A - Haus, the company gains a further advantage by being able to understand the business idea fully with comparison to other companies where a limited number of managerial staff understand their existing models in order to develop the business further or make necessary amendments and transitions at the right time (Pekuri, Pekuri & Haapasalo 2013). By applying the business model canvas, Like - A - Haus is also capable in projecting different risks that may be presented during i mplementation and deployment of the business (Pekuri 2015). Being able to analyse each block of the canvas, the business can identify issues related to business strategies, project management and performance, sustainable construction, cultures, and t he future of the business, which helps the idea to create a competitive edge and surpass the conventional competition in the construction industry. Business Model Generation Kekiriwaragoda, S., 2018 RMIT University 17 Addressing Current Issues through Business Model Canvas As a business idea that is being created with t he business model canvas, Like - A - Haus can address a series of current issues, which are presently overlooked by conventional construction companies as mentioned in Section 4.1. Through relevant research conducted by Ofori (2007), some of the i ssues and how the company wishes to address them through the application of the business model canvas have been elaborated in Table 9 Category Application of Solutions Business Strategies Like - A - Haus is capable in linking with many other participants of the construction industry to create a lasting effect on the local economies of the developing countries i