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Fabian Takacs
Last Name
Takacs
First name
Fabian
Email
fabian.takacs@unisg.ch
Phone
+41 71 224 7620
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PublicationCircular Transformation: creating business models and ecosystems for a circular economySince the Industrial Revolution, humanity has risen to become a geological force through economic activities. The consequences accumulated over time are severe: global exploitation of finite and renewable resources, serious waste production, and the climate crisis being accelerated. Humanity and the biosphere are increasingly threatened by these consequences. Different approaches, both in research and practice, exist to counteract this overshoot of planetary boundaries, one being the circular economy. It offers a socially acceptable, ecologically necessary, and economically thrilling potential for change, and aims to close material loops efficiently and reduce negative externalities as much as possible. It is achieved through systemic, business, and personal changes. This cumulative dissertation focuses on the business implementation of a circular economy. To this end, this dissertation presents three standalone papers and a comprehensive introduction to the circular economy. The introduction explains why adopting different perspectives is pivotal while analyzing the complex problem of environmental degradation currently faced. Furthermore, it introduces different concepts and definitions. Based on a dataset of 59 interviews with Swiss small and medium-sized enterprise managers, Paper A identifies possible barriers to the entrepreneurial implementation of a circular economy. The barriers are related to each other and are embedded in a holistic and multilevel framework. Paper B explores the link between business models and circular ecosystems conceptually and based on existing literature. To this end, it presents a comprehensive framework for designing circular ecosystems based on pattern logic, which draws on a comprehensive literature review and over 200 business cases identified in practice. This is enriched by presenting an innovation process and analyzing a thriving textile ecosystem in which eight partner companies were interviewed and evaluated. Finally, Paper C approaches the driving factors of the transformation into a circular economy from a management perspective. The identified drivers are linked to the dynamic capabilities approach, which helps to explain the driving factors for the entrepreneurial implementation of business models in a circular economy. Finally, a conclusion is drawn, and the potential for further research is presented.Type: doctoral thesis