Comparing examples found in nature with examples of business enterprises, we highlight the different characteristics that make up an ecosystem's value chain. Including specialists, coopetitors, cross feeders, system developers, infomediaries, system service providers, sector shapers, aggregators, open platforms, intermediaries, sectors, clusters, geographic hubs, adaptors, communities. Providing a case study for each characteristic, this presentation helps you to understand your ecosystem positioning and using these levers, you will be able to visually map the different actors that make up your ecosystem.

1. 1
Aself-developed coexistence ofvarious creatures
ECOSYSTEMS

2. 2
Separatesuppliers,deliveringtocompetingproducers,deliveringtoseparatecustomers
VALUE CHAINS

3. Asymbiotic relationships between customers, competitors, suppliers,and stakeholders

4. 4
THE ECOSYSTEM IS A SELF-DEVELOPED,
LIVING HOME OF VARIOUS CREATURES
DYNAMIC AND CO-EVOLVING COMMUNITIES OF DIVERSE ACTORS
THAT CREATE AND CAPTURE NEW VALUE
THROUGH BOTH COLLABORATION AND COMPETITION

5. SPECIALISTS
Where could/should you outsource tospecializedactors todeliveraspecific function?
Perform onespecificfunctionandallowlargerentitiestooutsourceit

6. 6
SPECIALISTS
Where could/should you builda specializedoutsource thatdelivers a specificfunction?
ENTERPRISE NATURE
Smallenterprises that perform one specific function extremely well and allowa large
corporate tooutsource a particularfunction. As aresult, “virtualcompanies”
emerge, consistingentirely of specialists.
Dunnhumby provides CRManalyticsfor big
retailers,earning theirloyalty, anduncovering
new retailopportunities.
Cleanerfishremove dead skinand
ectoparasitesfrom otherfish, benefiting both
species.

7. COOPETITORS
Withwhichdirect competitorwould you liketocollaborate?
Directcompetitorsworkingtogethertosharecostsandeffortsof development

8. 8
COOPETITORS
Which direct competitorwouldyou liketocollaborate with?
Philips and Sony jointly set new industry
standards when developing the first CD-player.
Also, the open source movement is aform of
coopetition.
ENTERPRISE
NATURE
In the animal kingdom, different species sometimes
hunt together (e.g., coyotes &badgers) to form
unlikely but mutually beneficial partnerships.
Directcompetitorsworking together to share the costof development, set
standards, develop anew market, whilemaintainingtheir competitive offers in
the market.

9. CROSS FEEDERS
Which institution’ssuccesswould benefit you, without you sellingtothem?
Companiesthatpursue theirowninterestsandbenefitfrom eachother’ssuccess

10. 10
CROSS FEEDERS
Which institution’ssuccesswould benefit you, without you sellingtothem?
ENTERPRISE NATURE
“Wintel”, a partnership betweenMicrosoft
andIntel, toproduce micro-processors for
Windows PCs
Beespollinatingflowers enabling
fertilizationand reproduction of both
parties,and resultinginnuts and fruits.
Companies that pursuetheir owninterests and benefit from each other’s success, e.g.,
because one company’s product creates demand for the other company’s product. Or
twocompanies can stimulateeach other togo tohigher levels ofperformance.

11. SYSTEM DEVELOPERS
Which initiativeswouldqualify,promote, cleanseyour sector?
Activities that advance the health of an industry

12. 12
SYSTEM DEVELOPERS
Which initiativeswouldqualify,promote, cleanseyour sector?
Industry associations,
audit firms, guilds,and comparisonsites.
ENTERPRISE NATURE
Institutionsthatprovide marketinformation, quality audits, industrypromotion,
lobbying,standard setting, etc. – i.e., activities thatadvance the healthof a industry.
Bushfires allowcertainplantsto
reproduce andevolve.

13. INFOMEDIARIES
What type of information would improve ecosystem functioning?
Gatherandlinkinformationonbehalfoftheirenvironmentanditsusers

14. 14
INFOMEDIARIES
A special breed of systemdevelopers, infomediaries gather and linkinformationon
particular subjectson behalf of commercial organizationsand their potential customers.
It alsoworks tohelp them take control over informationgathered about them.
ENTERPRISE NATURE
What type of information would improve ecosystem functioning?
Skyscanneraggregates the most up-to-date
flight prices from different travel websites;
HumanRights Watchresearches andmonitors
human rights compliancearound the world.
Vervet monkeys have adistinct alarmcallfor
leopard predators; flockingbirds serve as
warning signforapproaching lions.

15. SYSTEM SERVICE PROVIDERS
Which serviceswouldempower sectorgrowth?
Resources andservicesthatempowerthegrowthofasector

16. 16
SYSTEM SERVICE PROVIDERS
Which serviceswouldempower sectorgrowth?
MailChimpoffers customersupport services;
HyperIslandoffers techeducation.
ENTERPRISE NATURE
Institutionsthatprovide resources and services thatempower the growthof asector,
e.g., educational institutions,technology providers, supportservice providers
(administration,logistics,consulting,etc.).
Soil nutrients, “circle of life”,
insects.

17. SECTOR SHAPERS
Identify the orchestrator inyour ecosystem.
What is your ecosystempositioning? Canand shouldyou assumeanorchestrating role?
Shapinganindustryby defining itsstructures, incentives,rules

18. 18
SECTOR SHAPERS
Identify the orchestrator inyour ecosystem.
What is your positioning? Canandshould you assumeanorchestrating role?
Apple, Google, Microsoft, Salesforce,
Tesla,Nike
ENTERPRISE NATURE
Beavers,HomoSapiens
Companies that attempttoshape an industry byredefining itsstructure,incentives,
rulesof conduct in order to develop the entiremarket (and itsshare init).

19. AGGREGATORS
Would your service be more valuable whencombined withothers?
Bundling products or services to provide an integrated service, rich in variety

20. 20
AGGREGATORS
Would your service be more valuable whencombined withothers?
Virgin, Amazon
ENTERPRISE NATURE
Companies that bundle productsor services (produced by others)to provide an
integrated service, a richvariety of choice or buyer assurance
The Amazon rainforest, grasslands

21. OPEN PLATFORMS
Where coulddemand andsupply meetinyour industry?
An open market place forbuyers and sellers to convene and develop

22. 22
OPEN PLATFORMS
Where coulddemand andsupply meetinyour industry?
EXAMPLES NATURE
Marketplaces, exchanges, catalogues, libraries,trade markets: opportunitiesfor buyers
and sellersto convene, connect, trade, compare and settleprices.
eBay,Force.com, NYStock Exchange Waterpools

23. INTERMEDIARIES
Where isyour industry off balance,inturmoil, confused, muddled– and whatopportunity does this provide?
Companiesthatworkasintermediatesbetweenbuyers andsellers

24. 24
INTERMEDIARIES
Where isyour industry off balance,inturmoil, confused, muddled– what opportunity does thisprovide?
EXAMPLE NATURE
.Companies that exploitmarket inefficiencies and lower transactioncosts and tend to
be marginalizedinstable ecosystems asplayers “godirect”.They become the
intermediates between buyersand sellers, either indistributionand access (retailers)
or in deal making and price setting(re-sellers,market makers, brokers).
Scavengers, likevultures andrats, feedon
deadanimal andplant material.
Consultants,real estatebrokers

25. SECTORS
If you are ina sector,not anindustry, canyou articulateyour systemcontribution?
Industries thatconsist of arichvariety of playersservicingeach other ina system

26. 26
SECTORS
If you are ina sector-not anindustry- canyou articulateyour systemcontribution?
ENTERPRISE NATURE
Industries thatconsist of arichvariety of playerscooperating, competing, servicing
each other in asystem instead ofa chain.
Coral reefs bring together innumerable
amounts of species forco-existenceand
evolution.
The complexityof medicaldevices
forces/incentivizes the healthcare sectortojointly
produce innovative products.

27. CLUSTERS
How might you group withcross-sectoractorstojointly promote your interests?
Sub-groupsworkingtogether withother sectors togrow and promotetheir interests

28. 28
CLUSTERS
EXAMPLES NATURE
Clustersare sub-groupsof actorsoperating ina particularsector thatwork together
withuniversities and publicsector togrowtheir sector and promote itsinterests(e.g.,
throughpublicfinancing, favorable treatments).
How might you group withcross-sectoractorstojointly promote your interests?
Frenchdefense industry Seagullscirclingaround fisher’s boats
toget accesstofish.

29. GEOGRAPHIC HUBS
Canyou identify hubs that willhelp you gainenhanced accesstoresources, knowledge and expertise?
A physical concentration of research and development ina particular industry

30. 30
GEOGRAPHIC HUBS
EXAMPLES NATURE
Geographic areas, e.g., a city or district,typicallywitha leading educational institution
and a leading corporate inthe middlethat concentrate on research and development
ina particular industryand includespecialist firms,startups,conferences, venture
capital.
Canyou identify geographic hub(s)that willhelp you gainenhanced accesstoresources,
knowledge and expertise?
Anting, Shanghai’s carindustry hub Anoasis inthe desert

31. ADAPTORS
How does your offering adapt withchanging needs of our customers overtime?
Value is createdbytheevolutionandadaptationtoconditionsandneeds

32. 32
ADAPTORS
How does your offering adapt withchanging needs of our customers overtime?
EXAMPLE NATURE
Rather than offering a staticproduct or service, businesses are offering value that
evolves withchanging conditions and needs over time.
Hibernation: chipmunks andbears go
intoa a deepsleepduring
wintertime.
Zara business model isdesigned around rapid
marketadaptation, chasinglatesttrends by
creatingshort turn-over cycles(from initial
design tosales).

33. COMMUNITIES
Is your enterprise part of acommunity?
Groups ofusers thatcombineefforts to protecttheirsurvival

34. 34
COMMUNITIES
EXAMPLE ANIMAL KINGDOM
Is your enterprise part of acommunity?
Groupsof consumers, producers or suppliersthat combine efforts toprotect or
further their interests.
Herds, i.e.,large groups of animalsthat
live andmove together for joint survival.
Buyergroups, cooperatives.

35. 35
ECOSYSTEM POSITIONING
• What kindof actor(s) / ”species” are you? What is your ecosystem positioning?
• Using these levers, visually map thedifferent actors that make up your ecosystem.
1. SPECIALISTS
Small enterprises that performonespecific functionextremely well andallowa largecorporate to outsource aparticularfunction
2. COOPETITORS
Direct competitors working together to share the costof development,setstandards,developannewmarket,while maintainingtheir competitiveoffers inthemarket.
3. CROSS FEEDERS
Companies that pursue their owninterests andbenefitfrom each other’s success. E.g.,because one company’s productcreates demandfor theother company’s product.
5. INFOMEDIARIES
A special breed ofsystem developers,infomediaries gather andlink informationonparticular subjects onbehalf ofcommercialorganizations andtheir potential customers.
6. SYSTEM SERVICE PROVIDERS
Institutions thatprovideresources and services thatempower the growthof asector,e.g.,educationalinstitutions, technology providers,supportserviceproviders (administration,logitistics,
consulting).
7. SECTOR SHAPERS
Companies that attempttoshape anindustrybytryingtodefineits structure,incentives,rules of conductinorder todevelopthe entire market(andits own share init).
4. SYSTEM DEVELOPERS
Institutions thatprovidemarketinformation,qualityaudits,industry promotion,lobbying, standardsetting,etc.– i.e.,activities thatadvance thehealth of anindustry.

36. 36
9. OPEN PLATFORMS
Market places, exchanges,catalogues, libraries,trade markets: opportunities for buyers andsellers toconvene,connect,trade,compareandsettle prices.
10. INTERMEDIARIES
Companies that intermediatebetweenbuyers andsellers, either indistribution andaccess (retailers) orin deal making and price setting(re-sellers, marketmakers, brokers).They exploitmarket
inefficiencies and lower transactioncosts,so tedtobemarginalizedin stable ecosystems asplayers “godirect”.
11. SECTORS
Industries that consist of arich varietyof players, cooperating,competing,and servicing eachother ina systeminsteadof a chain.
13. GEOGRAPHIC HUBS
Geographic areas (cities,districts), typically witha leadingeducationalinstitutionanda leading corporatethatconcentrateonR&Din aparticular industryandincludespecialist firms, startups,
conferences, andventurecapital.
14. ADAPTORS
Rather than offering astaticproductor service, business are offering value thatevolves withchangingconditions and changes over time.
15. COMMUNITIES
Groups of consumers,producers,or suppliers thatcombineefforts toprotectorfurther their interests.
12. CLUSTERS
Sub-groups of actors operating inaparticularsector thatwork together withuniversities andthe public secor togrowtheir sector andpromoteits interests (e.g., throughpublicfinancing,favourable
treatments).
8. AGGREGATORS
Companies that bundleproducts or services (produced by others) toprovideanintegratedservicea richvariety of choice of buyer assurance.