A Hybrid Framework for Digital Publishing: Integrating Lean and Design Thinking

Abstract Book of the 19th International Conference on Modern Research in Management, Economics and Accounting

Year: 2026

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A Hybrid Framework for Digital Publishing: Integrating Lean and Design Thinking

Prof. Rui Murta, Horácio Lopes

ABSTRACT:

This paper examines the strategic design of newDATAmagazine (nDm), a free-access digital publication situated within the cultural and creative industries and focused on data, technologies, and skills. Drawing on an applied qualitative case study, the study reconstructs the magazine’s conception and implementation as a hybrid business-design process amid post-pandemic uncertainty and resource constraints. Empirically, the analysis mobilises project documentation, a market scan of national and international magazines, and semi-structured interviews with 14 professionals and academics to trace how audience definition, value proposition, and operational model were shaped. Methodologically, the paper proposes an integrated four-phase framework that combines Design Thinking (empathy, definition, ideation), the Lean Model Canvas as the core architecture for hypothesis-driven business design, and selected blocks of the Business Model Canvas (key partnerships, activities, and resources) to strengthen implementation logic. The findings indicate that this hybrid approach supported sharper customer segmentation, a clearer and more credible value proposition, and a structured operating model for curated content and stakeholder engagement, while simultaneously revealing unresolved tensions around monetisation, dependence on the promoter, and limited analytics-based decision-making. Conceptually, the study contributes to the literature on media entrepreneurship and cultural and creative industries by demonstrating how hybrid methodological architectures can enhance analytical generalisation, strategic resilience, and implementation capacity in niche editorial ventures compared to single-framework approaches.

Keywords: Analytical Generalisation, Cultural And Creative Industries, Media Entrepreneurship, Monetisation Strategies, Value Proposition Design