The purpose of this paper to investigate the process and role(s) of coaches and coaching Business Model Innovation (BMI) according to the definition of BMI by (Lindgren & Rasmussen, 2013) – to facilitate students learning, collaboration and innovation process – in order to find BM and BMI competence, language or framework about coaching university students in developing Business Model Innovation competences. From the 6-9 November 2017, CGC at Aarhus University did a practical anthropological ‘fieldwork in own culture’ understood as fieldwork in Business Model Innovation Challenge at the Biogas 2020 conference in Skive in the North of Jutland, Denmark. The three-day Business Model Innovation challenge in Skive were based on 3 Nordic Businesses challenge-cases represented by Thise Dairy (Denmark), VEAS Biogas Norway and Smögenlax (Sweden). For three days students from the three university’ worked in student teams to solve a Business challenge-case in a Business Model Cube and were measured by 360 degrees fixed cameras combined with participated observation and facilitation by two BMI coaches. BM and BMI coaching seem to take place in a kind of three-dimensional guidance continuum between teaching, guidance, consulting and inter-vision – in a process between ‘direction the answers and seeking the answers by questions’. This includes that the coach must master several roles and processes (layers): BM Tools, BMI process along with the Coaching process. It means that the BMI Coach must be very flexible and manage to change his/her position and perspective several times according to the student’ position. According to the pre-findings about perspectives, positions with different roles this study invites to closer investigation in the transitions of each shift in the coaching phases combined with shift in levels in three-dimensional model. What are the characteristics of these shifts and how are they visible and understandable for the team and the coach? This – together with the purpose how to investigate the process and role(s) of coaches.
