Broader use of the Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) in the UK public sector: A Business Model Canvas (BMC) perspective

Abstract

The UK government is promoting the Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) by presumption in favour due to outperforming traditional methods in meeting key industry goals. Despite the public construction sector’s recognition of the benefits, MMC uptake across this influential purchasing power is yet far from satisfactory. Such low adoption rates have been linked to MMC firms’ business strategies contributing to public clients’ indecision. To investigate such arguments, the study utilises a questionnaire survey and gathers responses from seventy-four decision-makers of UK-established MMC businesses. Results are then discussed in relation to the contingency theory from a Business Model Canvas (BMC) perspective, revealing the divergence between organisations outperforming others in the public sector, i.e. achieving fit. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first construction management study to empirically propose the relationships between the nine business model elements of the BMC in relation to a specific market. The findings of this paper suggest the critical role of the Target Customer element in reaching alignment with the external environment by acting as a receiver and provider of information, superseding the importance of solely focusing on communicating added values and extended capabilities. Our findings also suggest that MMC organisations outperforming others in the UK public sector are those who are understanding public clients’ needs the most, and thus, continuously changing their business strategies to sustain alignment with any change in those needs. Overall, the paper proposes a three-dimensional consideration to achieve fit, namely, 1) internal consistency of the elements (inside-out), 2), changing external environment (outside-in), and 3) relationships between the nine elements (inside-in). The study depicts the problematic nature of the internal interrelations responsible for reaching fit in the UK public sector and deepens the understanding of how the nine BMC elements are supporting more informed and strategic decisions. Therefore, decision-makers are urged to pursue alignment by assessing the contingency of each decision made with respect to the proposed influences. Future research to focus on replicating the results in accordance with other theories involving technological and organisational change, maturity, and systems theory.