I spent Monday and Tuesday at the wonderful Village Underground in Shoreditch for a two day masterclass led by Alexander Osterwalder on the development of the Business Model Canvas and how best to use it.

In 2004 Alexander wrote his PhD on business models and the opportunity and challenges of turning them into computer applications. To cut a long story short, this led to the development of the Business Model Canvas, which is now fast becoming one of the most fundamental tools in a business strategist’s armoury.

An interesting mix of people attended from global multinationals to local not for profits. All had the same goal, to discover how to forge better conversations within their businesses on how to remain competitive. The strength of the BMC is that it forces the use of a shared language, it simplifies an organisation’s business model to its key components and it allows rapid prototyping of alternatives. At Make Happy we have embraced it and now use it with all our clients and and on ourselves.