Introduction to House-Building Logic
What is the House-Building Logic?
The House-Building Logic (HBL) is a structured approach to developing data-driven business models – specifically designed for industrial contexts such as mechanical and plant engineering.
Classic frameworks like the Business Model Canvas are often too abstract: They show which building blocks a business model has, but not how to develop them. Teams face an empty canvas and don't know where to start. The HBL solves this problem by providing a clear process with concrete methods.
Why a House?
The framework uses the metaphor of a house because it's intuitively understandable:
- You enter the house through the entrance – here you clarify the initial situation and define your business idea
- You pass through different rooms – each room addresses a central question of your business model
- You exit the house through the exit – with a completed, validated business model
The rooms are color-coded and are traversed in a fixed sequence. Each room builds on the results of the previous one – creating a consistent overall picture.
Overview of the Rooms
Click on a room to see the details:
The process in brief:
- Entrance Area – Define business idea, set scope
- Blue Room – Understand customers: Who are they? What do they need?
- Red Room – Develop value proposition: What value do we offer?
- Green Room – Plan value creation: How do we create the value?
- Yellow Room – Check profitability: How do we make money?
- Exit Area – Synthesis and decision: Go, Review, or Stop?
At the end of each room is a Quality Gate – a checklist that ensures all important questions are answered before moving on.
How Can I Use the House-Building Logic?
There are three ways to apply the methodology: