An innovative, colorful introduction to business models, Alexander Osterwalder’s Business Model Generation is drawn from 470 practitioners and over 10 years worth of research. Its premise is to try and cut though the potentially complex subject of business modeling and encapsulate in as visual a form as possible just how businesses create and deliver value. After less than a year since its publication, it already looks set to become the authoritative work on the topic.

Using the basis of nine key business model building blocks, a framework used by many business model practitioners, it offers a unique summary of contemporary management techniques, liberally sprinkled with real-world case studies from the likes of Google, Nintendo Wii, Apple, Skype, Gillette and even Lego. Its graphical presentation and workshop-style format are broken down into five main sections, including the basic definition or “model canvas,” popular models from the business world, business model design concepts, strategy and evaluation, and the model design process from origination to implementation.

Strong on design thinking and the need to visually represent your company’s strategy, it is perhaps both the best introduction to business modeling and the best tool to ensure your model is the most successful it can be. It’s as much a planning manual as a business guide, and that maybe where most of its value resides for small and medium enterprises.

Business Model Generation: A Handbook for Visionaries, Game Changers, and Challengers:
Alexander Osterwalder (OSF), 2009