Business Model Innovation in the Energy Transition: Navigating Sectoral Convergence Through Value Chain Repositioning Strategies

This study investigates how firms in the electric vehicle value chain strategically reposition themselves through business model innovation (BMI). Drawing on a multiple-case study of 18 Italian firms, we conceptualize BMI as a relational and configurational mechanism that enables firms to respond to systemic disruption and explore new roles within evolving industry architectures. Our findings reveal five mutually reinforcing dimensions — network-based value creation, technologyenabled delivery, multi-sided value capture, solution-oriented value propositions, and boundary-spanning strategies — through which firms reconfigure their positions, linkages, and revenue logics. We show that BMI functions both as an adaptive system and an exploratory platform, allowing firms to experiment with partial configurations, reduce risk, and navigate institutional complexity. This configurational perspective contributes to research on BMI, sustainability transitions, and value chain transformation, highlighting how firms move beyond firm-centric innovations to co-shape multi-actor value creation systems. Practically, the study underscores the importance of strategic elasticity, modular architectures, and relational capabilities in dynamic and contested value chians.