Merging Viable Systems Approach (vSa) and System Dynamics to evaluate sustainable value creation

Aim of this paper is to propose the design and development of an Interactive Environment through a system dynamics model that, based on the conceptualizations of vSa, makes it possible to simulate the behavior of business organizations interested in measuring, and eventually increasing, their sustainable value. According to the above-mentioned theoretical framework, value, which has traditionally been considered as something objective and defined a priori, is characterized by a multiple nature and by strongly subjective contents. This last concept means that the definition of value passes through the perspective of the subjects towards whom it is created (i.e. Recipient), in relation to the perspective of the entity who is interested in its creation and measurement (i.e. the governing body of the organizations). This conceptualization, based on vSa assumes even greater significance when we refer to sustainable value, which is the result of the concurrent consideration of three dimensions: economic, social and environmental. In fact, given the priority of the economic dimension -as we refer to business organizations- sustainable value creation will only be achieved if companies will be able to concurrently include in their assessments also social and environmental elements. The model proposed herein, while considering value as a “vector” quantity (i.e. with a direction and a verse of its own), will enrich the traditional perspectives and tools for performance measurement with new elements that introduce a subjective weighting of the different stakeholders that may change according to the considered organization (e.g. subject A can be more interested than subject B in creating value towards environment and less towards society). Essentially, this means that sustainability can be defined as the result of the sum of several values that, in turn, are the result of the sum of different “subjectivities”. The reasons that have inspired this work derive from the consideration that, currently, there isn’t a theoretical/practical approach to sustainable value measurement for business organizations that considers, at the same time, the dimensions of the triple bottom line together with the subjective perspective of decision makers. From these considerations, derives the idea to integrate vSa and System Dynamics in analyzing the issue of sustainable value, whose triple dimension is usually (erroneously) seen in an optic that does not consider the interactions among those three dimensions.