Obviously, my first post has to cover Alex Osterwalder's book on business models. I am proud to have been part of the journey (my portrait made it to page 9), although the homebuilding distracted me and my contribution has been much more limited than I had initially planned.
I believe in systematic and full analysis of business models when one is searching for differences among companies, whether for investment purposes, for strategic positioning or for innovation opportunities. Alex' Business Model Canvas has the necessary clarity of design, and gently forces the user to think beyond spreadsheets and Porter diagrams, using visualisation over textual descriptions.
Although a full PDF of the book is available here, I strongly recommend the real thing. Order it directly from the book team. It is not yet available through other channels (which is why it can't be shown in the Amazon book widget adjacent to this blog). It is now available on Amazon.com , Dutch translation on Managementboek.nl .
It is about time. After one year of construction, the new house is 80% ready and I can no longer claim to be a full-time homebuilder. My professional CV needs a new top line and Oblonski needs a refreshment.
This blog will track my quest. I will use this space to leave a trail: points of view, trains of thought, and surprising finds that seem worth more than just a tweet.