Distance LAB – remote service hub for SME’s and public sector
Distance LAB

Design for sustainable business models -tool

13 September 2023
Design for sustainable business -tool consists of a method for designing more sustainable business models, products, and services, and designing more sustainable operations in accordance with the sustainable business model and sustainable products and services. The tool is a self-reflection tool for the use of entrepreneurs, management teams, or product leaders.
Technical details

The tool has modules which means a user or a group of users can choose to focus on some activities of a business model, such as products or services, or an activity system or managing operations. The tool provides instant feedback and recommendations.

This tool is specifically developed to assist designing sustainability in remote work and services. We believe your organization could benefit from its capabilities and, more importantly, your feedback is crucial to refine and enhance the tool to direction that serves virtual firms and organizations in designing sustainability. We are committed to develop contents and methods that work for firms and organizations and we need feedback and ideas!

Tool is available here: Design for sustainability

What Our Tool Offers:

  • A multi-level assessment of your business’s sustainability practices, focusing on social, environmental, and economic aspects at the organizational, stakeholder, local, and international levels, where applicable. You can fill in the assessment with your management team. Also, individuals can utilize the assessment but we encourage discussion about the topics. We also encourage have dialogue about these issues with all organization and stakeholders! You get a feedback report and tips for designing sustainable business model.
  • A sustainable business model canvas to guide on creative work on co-designing sustainable practices.
  • The tool is for virtual, knowledge-intensive, service-centric business models but anyone can use it.

The aim of the Design for Sustainability tool is to support micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises in Finland, Sweden, Norway, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Estonia in improving competitive positioning and transforming their business in line with economic, social, and environmental sustainability. Design for Sustainability tool offers an instrument for reflection, creativity, management, and communication. It contains modules that serve different needs and goals, also for expert-intensive micro enterprises.

  • Why Your Participation Matters:
    Your insights and feedback will directly influence the development of the tool. Influence and next version will suit your needs better! Help us ensure the tool meets the real-world needs of businesses like yours.
  • Contribute to a project that aims to make designing sustainable practices practical for all organizations.
  • Send feedback by e-mail heidi.myyrylainen@lab.fi and get a certificate of participation

Pilot Program Details:

  • Duration: Until mid-October 2024
  • Cost: Free of charge
  • Future Availability: The finalized tool will be available online under a CC-BY-SA license in 2025. The tool will be free of change in future too.

We are eager to hear your thoughts on what features and functionalities would be most beneficial for you in developing and designing sustainability within your business. Your participation will not only help us create a more effective tool but also support the broader mission of advancing sustainable practices across industries.

If you are interested in participating in the pilot program or have any questions, please email heidi.myyrylainen@lab.fi. We would be delighted to provide further details and discuss how your organization can get involved.

Design for sustainability pilot is open for many kinds of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises from different industries from Baltic Sea program countries. Also, foundations, associations and other kinds of organizations can participate if they want to assess and get development insights for sustainable business models and sustainable products and services.

We offer positive learning and reflection experiences for business, product, service, and process developers. Participants have an opportunity to test a tool and materials online and give feedback. If a participant company, individual, or team wishes a guided workshop on the topic, they can book a time with developers of the Design for Sustainability Team for consulting for a facilitated workshop or open dicussion. Participants can also choose to participate in an online Design for Sustainable Business Models peer meetings to share experiences and learn from other entrepreneurs. Participants get a certificate for participating. Participants can also let organizers know if they want visibility for their enterprises and their business stories can be shared in transnational project publications.

Make the test here: Design for sustainability

No preliminary knowledge is required. Testing times can be booked from an organizer (LAB University of Applied Sciences). We collect anonymous feedback from experiences. The anonymous data collections are used for fine tuning a tool and researching and developing knowledge about sustainable business models and related services. The participants get all results and a tool for themselves. Inquiries or registration heidi.myyrylainen@lab.fi