When it comes to filling out a Business Model Canvas, the usual instinct is to gather your most experienced thinkers—the product manager, the head of marketing, the CFO, and maybe a creative or two to “add spice.” But if you want truly game-changing results, this approach may limit you more than help you.
The Business Model Canvas is a tool designed for innovation, but innovation doesn’t thrive in echo chambers. If everyone in the room shares a similar background or job function, you’re likely to end up with predictable ideas—ideas that resemble what your competitors are already doing.
Instead, the best insights come from assembling a diverse group of contributors. Not just in terms of business function, but across age, culture, experience, and expertise. This kind of cognitive diversity creates a melting pot of perspectives—and that’s where the magic happens.
Here’s how to create a truly diverse team for your next Business Model Canvas session:
Invite team members from different business units: Think beyond the usual suspects in strategy or product. Customer service reps, warehouse supervisors, or even IT staff see the business from angles leadership may never consider.
Mix generations: Younger team members may bring fresh digital-native ideas, while older colleagues can lend seasoned perspectives based on patterns and cycles they’ve seen before.
Blend expertise areas: Engineers think differently from marketers. Accountants focus on stability; designers focus on flow. Each lens can reveal new opportunities or overlooked risks.
Vary levels of seniority: Don’t overlook the insights from frontline employees. Sometimes, the most valuable feedback comes from those closest to the customer or the product.
Include people from different backgrounds: Whether it’s academic, geographic, or even personal experience, the way we process problems is deeply shaped by our life paths.
Embrace cultural diversity: Culture influences assumptions, priorities, and values. Someone from a different country might suggest a new partnership model simply because it’s the norm where they’re from—but unheard of in your region.
Research backs this up. According to Blue Ocean Brain, cognitively diverse teams are better at solving complex problems because they bring a wider variety of experiences, knowledge, and mental models to the table. This blend of thinking styles leads to more innovative solutions and stronger decision-making overall.
It’s not that experts don’t have value—they absolutely do. But when you’re looking to generate ideas rather than simply analyze them, diversity is your biggest asset.
In practice, this might mean your next canvas session includes a customer service rep, a Gen Z intern, a vendor partner, or even a trusted client. These voices won’t always agree—and that’s a good thing. Healthy tension can challenge assumptions and expose blind spots. And in today’s fast-moving business world, that’s exactly what you need.
So, the next time you sit down to map out a new business model, resist the urge to rely solely on the “creative” types or the “experts.” Instead, open the door to a wide range of perspectives.
Who might you invite to your next strategy session that thinks nothing like you?
