Business Model Innovation and Dynamic Capabilities Development in IoT Start-Ups

Abstract

This research addresses the relationship between dynamic capabilities and business model innovation in start-up firms operating in high-technology environments. More specifically, this chapter seeks to explain how and why these companies, which are characterized by a high level of uncertainty and resource scarcity, are able to transform individual managerial capabilities into dynamic capabilities to sense and seize new opportunities and to reconfigure the business model to welcome the change. Findings highlight those specific modes of interaction among the entrepreneurs involved - which are influenced also by a strong sharing of value and objectives - fuel the development of these capabilities. These findings were achieved thanks to the exploration of the phenomenon through a single case study on a start-up which develops internet of things products for the health sector. This research proposes a theoretical advancement about business model innovation in start-ups and explores how and why these companies develop proper dynamic capabilities to do that.