Designing the Business Model of Herbal Pharmaceutical Knowledge based Companies

Mohammad Asadnezhad; Reza Hejazi; Morteza Akbari; Elham Hadizadeh

Mohammad Asadnezhad University of Tehran
Reza Hejazi University of Tehran
Morteza Akbari University of Tehran
Elham Hadizadeh University of Tehran

Abstract

Today, research has indicated Knowledge based companies as a potential area in promoting knowledge economy, and due to the substantial added-value they make in the knowledge economy of the countries, these companies play a pivotal role in producing national income. Considering the novelty of the field of designing business models for herbal pharmaceutical Knowledge based companies and the importance of these companies among Knowledge based companies on the one hand, and the lack of academic research on exploring these companies on the other hand, the need for a comprehensive business model to help understand the components of herbal pharmaceutical Knowledge based companies seems urgent. This study aimed at identifying and prioritizing the components of business models and also structuring a business model of herbal pharmaceutical Knowledge based companies around these components. The Friedman test was used to prioritize the importance of the components of Knowledge based companies' business models. The statements of the present study's questionnaire were collected from the literature and the experts' opinions, too. Out of the 130 distributed questionnaires, 119 were collected which were analyzed by employing the Cochran test of the SPSS Statistics software. The components of key activities with the mean ranking of 6.76, cost structure with 6.09, and key resources with 6.06 were the most important components and customer relationships with 5.67, value propositions with 5.45, key partnerships with 4.10, distribution channels with 4.04, customer segment with 3.60, and revenue streams with 3.24 were the least important ones.

Research paper

Keywords: Business model, Knowledge based companies, Herbs, Friedman’s test

Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Asadnezhad, M., Hejazi, R., Akbari, M. & Hadizadeh, E. (2017). Designing the Business Model of Herbal Pharmaceutical Knowledge based Companies, Journal of Entrepreneurship, Business and Economics, 5(2), 47–63.