Circular economy and competitive advantage - development of an integrative model with enterprise architectures

Abstract

Circular Economy is increasingly gaining attention as an alternative to the predominant linear “take, make, waste” system of production. Yet, given the complexity of the concept, it poses challenges in incorporating the concept holistically into an organization’s strategy and processes. Considering the ability of Enterprise Architectures to align business strategy and operations, it presented itself a suitable tool to investigate whether a circular approach and competitive strategy can be successfully integrated in this context. Objective of this research was to develop an integrated metamodel of Circular Economy and competitive advantage theory with ArchiMate, ultimately serving as universal guide for practitioners.