A sustainable business model balances commercial viability with long-term societal and environmental value. In my experience, the most resilient models have:

1. A clear purpose anchored in real needs
   Sustainability starts with clarity: What problem are we solving, and for whom?
   Purpose is not a slogan – it is a decision-making filter. A business model becomes durable when it answers a genuine need in the community, the ecosystem or the market, and when that need remains relevant over time. 
2. Value creation that is measurable, not aspirational
   Organisations often overestimate their value proposition. I have noticed this in both for-profit and not-for-profit organisations, and it was a challenge that came up for the Techlab participants. It is only human to get excited by work we develop and believe in but we must remember what’s important to us maybe isn’t to others.
3. Diverse and balanced revenue streams
   Reliance on a single funding source makes organisations vulnerable. Sustainable models mix earned income, grants and public funding, partnerships and co-creation revenue, licensing or IP-based income where appropriate, and community contributions. When I worked with the Techlab participants on their sustainable Business Model Canvas we had to take a step back and identify potential partners that shared the same purpose, to be approached for funding and joint revenue creation. 
4. Lean, adaptive operations
   Especially today, we’re all experiencing the way that technology, audiences, and funding landscapes can change very quickly. A central principle of the Techlab was to use learning cycles as a strategic asset. This fitted into how a sustainable model is designed to adapt, with modular processes, the ability to scale up or down, data-driven decision making, and room for experimentation.

A meaningful partnership is more than collaboration; it is co-ownership of purpose, risk, and benefit. In the socio-cultural and creative sectors, meaningful partnerships are not transactional – they are transformative.

I always start partnership conversations with a simple question: Why are we better together? Meaningful partnerships align around a shared goal, complementary strengths and mutual benefit, not just transactional value, because when incentives diverge, partnerships fail. Alignment on purpose allows even very diverse partners – artists, municipalities, tech companies, funders – to move in the same direction. 

In the context of the Techlab we helped the participants define what partnership compatibility looks like for them. The group decided that any partnership needs to agree on why the collaboration matters, whose lives it improves, what cultural or community need is being addressed, and what impact looks like beyond KPIs.

Regardless of the sector that you need funding from, you first have to develop your business model. This also demonstrates to your potential funder that you have the right level of governance to make sure the funds are used appropriately.

When it comes to securing technology funding, as a minimum I would recommend that you have built and tested a prototype, so you have data to show your concept works. 

I would say the one quality that made the Techlab participants better positioned for success was curiosity. They were curious and open and willing to approach their work with a different mindset. The biggest lesson was that the ability to shift mindset is more important than the technological side of things.