Blue Ocean 4.0 for sustainability - harnessing Blue Ocean Strategy through Industry 4.0

The paradigm shift from red ocean to blue ocean instilled a unique mindset among the corporations to create an uncontested market space to rise above the cutthroat competition, centring on sustainability. Six years after the idea was proposed in Harvard Business Review, the world was introduced to the fourth industrial revolution, i.e. Industry 4.0. In this research work, we explore the possibility of collaboration between the two approaches; owing to the fact that there has been a paucity of approaches that discuss the integration of the two concepts. It is posited that the fourth industrial revolution is a boon to the Blue Ocean Strategy. Through a systematic literature review and using a grounded theory approach, we have elicited a relationship between the two approaches and conclude that Industry 4.0 supplements the blue ocean approach and is a key enabler in its implementation. The four-action framework of the Blue Ocean Strategy can be appositely approached via integration with various Industry 4.0 facets. Delving further, it has been observed that the implementation of the six paths framework of the Blue Ocean Strategy is strongly influenced by the Industry 4.0 constituents, specifically BigData, Artificial Intelligence and Internet of Things; thus helping in achieving market leadership and business sustainability.