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The paradigm shift of design thinking
Design thinking for business growth.
How to design and scale business models and business ecosystems. From the customer problem to the minimum viable ecosystem (MVE) and exponential growth, with 32 templates.
By Michael Lewrick · Visualisation by Donika Palaj · Wiley 2022 · also in German and French
MVEminimum viable ecosystem: a term coined by Michael Lewrick
5design lenses from ecosystem strategy to scale
32templates from the book
3editions: English, German, French
The core shift
From business model to business ecosystem.
Design thinking started with one user and one product. Growth today comes from systems: several actors create one value proposition together that none of them could deliver alone. This book takes design thinking from the single business model to the ecosystem, and makes ecosystem design a discipline that teams can learn and apply.
Linear view of growthBusiness model plus partner network equals a limited business model. Optimisation is the lever.
Ecosystem view of growthBusiness ecosystem times value proposition and multidimensional business models equals the potential for exponential growth. The network is the multiplier.
Every actor profitsThe question changes from how one company differentiates to how every actor who contributes skills to a unique value proposition profits in multiple ways.
Coined by Michael Lewrick
The minimum viable ecosystem.
The MVP tests a product. Michael Lewrick coined the minimum viable ecosystem (MVE) to test what an MVP cannot: whether several actors, their value streams and their business models work together around one value proposition. An MVE starts with the smallest set of actors and minimum marketable features (MMFs), tests the key risks and only then decides on roles such as orchestrator or actor.
- MVPTest the solution with real customers: build, measure, learn.
- MMFTurn validated MVPs into minimum marketable features.
- MVECombine MMFs with the first actors and value streams, test the joint value proposition and improve it in iterations.
- ScaleGrow with network effects, more actors and expanded value streams.
Relevance for agentic AI
Ecosystems of agents.
With agentic AI, value is no longer created by one product, but by networks of AI agents, platforms, data and partners that act on behalf of customers. That is an ecosystem. The questions of this book become the questions of every AI agent strategy: who orchestrates, which roles do humans and agents play, which value streams of data and money flow, how is trust governed, and how can the interplay be tested in a minimum viable ecosystem before it scales.
Agents are actorsDescribe AI agents like any other actor: role, value contribution, motivation and rules.
Data is a value streamMap which data flows between agents, partners and customers, and who benefits.
MVE before scaleTest human-agent and agent-agent interplay with a minimum set of actors and clear guardrails.
Governance by designConfigure roles, permissions and compliance from the start, not after the launch.
Lessons from China and the US
How ecosystems scale.
The book analyses how ecosystems in China and the US grow: Ping An from insurer to an ecosystem of health, finance, mobility and housing; Alibaba and Alipay, Tencent and WeChat Pay; Amazon and Apple. Michael Lewrick’s work on ecosystem design has strongly influenced how companies in China and the US think about designing and scaling ecosystems, and it gives European companies the tools to play the same game.
The structure
Five lenses. One ecosystem.
The book guides teams from ecosystem strategy through design thinking and lean start-up to ecosystem design and exponential growth. Each lens has its canvas and tools.
Ecosystem strategy
Where to play and how to win: vision, principles, initiatives, partners, PESTLE and configuration.
7 templatesDesign thinking
Find the real customer problem and test solutions, from foresight to the final prototype.
13 templatesLean start-up & MVP
Validate with MVPs, build-measure-learn and pivots, and prepare the MVE.
3 templatesEcosystem design
Design the ecosystem: value proposition, actors, roles and value streams up to the MVE.
4 templatesGrowth & scale
Exponential growth: network effects, community, data and scalable processes.
1 templateReflection
Reflect and learn on the project and the meta level.
4 templatesTemplates
Start with a template.
Every tool in the book comes with a template. A selection to start with:
Ecosystem strategyEcosystem Strategy CanvasOne canvas to document the strategic analyses and the results of all design lenses: vision, roles, capabilities, explore and exploit.Ecosystem strategyDesign PrinciplesA pyramid to agree on general and project-specific design principles for an ecosystem initiative.Ecosystem strategyTopic Area MatrixA map of customer-centred topic areas such as health, living, mobility or payment, and of the industries that serve them.Ecosystem strategyEcosystem Configuration GridA grid to configure the ecosystem along where to play and how to win: strategic focus, customer interaction, roles and organisation design.Design thinkingDesign Thinking CanvasOne canvas for the design thinking lens: from research and problem statement to persona, ideas, prototypes, lean canvas and MVP requirements.Lean start-up & MVPLean Start-up MVP CanvasA canvas for the lean start-up lens: MVPs, build-measure-learn, innovation accounting, user stories, pivots and the step from MVPs to MMFs for the MVE.Ecosystem designEcosystem Design CanvasThe core canvas of the book: design, test and improve a business ecosystem, from the value proposition and the actors to value streams, multidimensional business models and the minimum viable ecosystem (MVE).Ecosystem designCore Value Proposition CanvasA canvas for the core value proposition: for the customer, for the ecosystem and for each participating actor.Ecosystem designDescription of Actors and RolesA template to describe each actor: motivation, value contribution, current business model, market power, compatibility and time horizon.Ecosystem designValue Streams MappingA template to map the value streams between actors, orchestrator and customer: services, money, information, data, IP and intangible values.Growth & scaleExponential Growth & Scale CanvasA canvas for exponential growth: solving problems of many, expanding the value proposition, scalable processes and data, community, touchpoints, network effects and optimised costs.ReflectionEcosystem Reflection CanvasA canvas to reflect on an ecosystem initiative on the project and the meta level: lenses, strategy, mindset, leadership, capabilities, digital fluency and governance.
“As a thought leader, Michael Lewrick has dealt intensively with the development of the design paradigm. His book meets the current zeitgeist and is the best definition of business ecosystem design that I have seen so far.”
Larry Leifer, Professor of Mechanical Engineering Design (ME310), Stanford University
Voices
What experts say.
“Many talk about the importance of designing good business ecosystems. This book shows you how.”
“This book not only helps to better understand business ecosystem design, it is also great visualization.”
The book
Design Thinking for Business Growth
How to Design and Scale Business Models and Business Ecosystems. Five design lenses, the problem to growth and scale framework, the minimum viable ecosystem and 32 templates for teams and leaders.
Michael Lewrick · Visualisation by Donika Palaj · Wiley, 2022 · ISBN 978-1-119-81515-0. German edition: Business Ökosystem Design (Vahlen). French edition: Design thinking & croissance (Pearson France).
The author
Michael Lewrick
Author, keynote speaker and facilitator, Vaduz, Liechtenstein
Michael Lewrick is the lead author of the Wiley design thinking series, including The Design Thinking Playbook, The Design Thinking Toolbox, Design Thinking and Innovation Metrics and Design Thinking for Humanity. The books have reached more than 3 million readers in over 25 languages.
He coined the term minimum viable ecosystem (MVE) and made business ecosystem design a discipline of its own. He was Chief Innovation Officer at Swisscom and head of the innovation labs at Deloitte, is a visiting professor at the University of Liechtenstein and leads Lewrick & Company in Vaduz, where he helps leadership teams design ecosystems and AI agents with guardrails.
Work with Michael Lewrick
Design your next ecosystem.
Inspire
Keynotes
Business ecosystems, the MVE, black ocean strategies and AI agents for leadership teams and conferences.
lewrick.chApplyWorkshops
Ecosystem strategy, ecosystem design sprints and MVE labs with your teams and partners.
lewrick.chBuildCapability programmes
Ecosystem design capabilities, governance and agentic AI for the whole organisation.
lewrick.chThe series
More books from the series.
The Wiley design thinking series: more than 3 million readers in over 25 languages.
New
The Design Thinking Library
Five books in one box: mindset, methods, metrics, growth and purpose. The complete methodology for the full innovation lifecycle.
Design Thinking for Humanity
Lewrick
Practical tools and methods to build resilience for a better future.
The Design Thinking Playbook
Lewrick · Link · Leifer
Mindful digital transformation of teams, products, services, businesses and ecosystems.
The Design Thinking Toolbox
Lewrick · Link · Leifer
A guide to mastering the most popular and valuable innovation methods.
The Design Thinking Life Playbook
Lewrick · Thommen · Leifer
Empower yourself, embrace change and visualize a joyful life.
Questions
Frequently asked.
What is business ecosystem design?
Business ecosystem design is the design of new, unique offers that several actors in a system make available to the customer together. It answers who the potential partners are, which roles they play, which skills they bring and how value streams and business models fit together.
What is a minimum viable ecosystem (MVE)?
The MVE, a term coined by Michael Lewrick, is the smallest version of an ecosystem that can test the joint value proposition: a minimum set of actors, value streams and minimum marketable features. It reduces the ecosystem risk before roles are taken and capital is committed.
Why does the book matter for agentic AI?
AI agents create value in networks of agents, platforms, data and partners, which is an ecosystem. The book gives the tools to define roles, value streams, governance and an MVE for these networks.
Where can I download the templates from the book?
All 32 templates are listed on the templates page, in English, German and French. The links printed in the books, such as business-ecosystem-design.com/strategy or /fr/strategy, lead directly to the right template. The premium set is available in the dt-toolbook shop.
Can we bring ecosystem design into our organisation?
Yes. Keynotes, workshops and capability programmes are described on lewrick.ch. Or write directly to info@lewrick.ch.