What do you think of when you hear the word model? And what do you see? Ill leave my own answer for myself.

Overture supplies a lot of different (key word combination) usages, of which business model is not one of them. That strikes me.

But this is not about a business model. A model can be something like an example. Or it could be a sort of image, portrait or even a metaphor to convey a message. It can be concrete, but not seldom it is abstract.

If you want to explain and discuss a complex (business) topic, an abstract model could help you in doing so. More complex than what we currently experience in Europe is hardly imaginable. In a situation that is so divers and complex to manage a model can express essentials without words.

Andr Sapir has designed a model to explain some main issues in the European community (Globalisation and the Reform of European Social Models). If you want to have a look at this you can explore the link below:

http://www.bruegel.org/Repositories/Documents/publications/working_papers/Sapir_Summary_080905b.pdf

The model itself called The Four European Models -- shows a simplified typology of countries about the distribution of Equity (Low and High) and (labour) Efficiency. It is used in the paper to stress a certain policy recommendations.

The strength of such a model is that you can enter the discussion using only your eyes, at a glance.

But that is only the beginning of that presentation. One of the disadvantages of a model is that a lot of people do not like abstract thinking. In the same way that you have students who are more at ease with microeconomics than with macroeconomics. Micro (I understand that there is now also something called pico-economics) is more dedicated to the man in the street. Macro is more about nations, people in general, culture and other abstractions.

The clue is that you need both. Like real teamwork. Also in your presentation.

To be continued