Impact of Crisis on Sustainable Business Model Innovation—The Role of Technology Innovation

Abstract

The transformation of old and new technologies, the normalized crisis situation, and global economic integration blur industrial boundaries and cause the business pattern to fluctuate and become unsustainable, especially when considering the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study focuses on crisis situations and combines the types of technology innovation (introduction, socialization, and differentiation) and sustainable business model innovation (efficiency, novelty, and co-benefit innovations) to theoretically analyze the dynamic impact of technology innovation on different types of sustainable business model innovations. Using a multi-case comparative analysis method, typical enterprises are selected as the sample cases. This study discusses the influences of different technology innovation schemes on sustainable business model innovation in different crisis situations. Enterprises should consider introducing technology for rapid value updates to maintain an efficient business model in an urgent production factor crisis, search for valuable and scarce technical components or introduce other entities to facilitate technical cooperation and form a novel business model in a market environment crisis, and use big data, artificial intelligence, and other technologies to create co-benefit business model innovation in a business ethics crisis. The conclusion guides enterprises and provides a framework for the optimal technical scheme under the corresponding crisis.