✅ Why this step defines what actually keeps your business running
Every product needs work behind the scenes—this defines what that work is.
The Key Activities section of the Business Model Canvas helps you identify the most important actions your business must take to deliver your value proposition, serve customers, and make your model function. Whether you're building, marketing, supporting, or integrating, this step focuses your resources on what matters most.
📘 What you’ll define
- What your team must do to create, test, and deliver the product
- Critical design, engineering, or development work
- Operations, fulfilment, and logistics tasks
- Customer engagement or support activities
- Partnerships, certification, or platform integrations
- Any recurring processes to maintain or grow the business
🛠️ Tools and methods
✅ Key Activities Checklist
List the core activities needed to build and deliver the value proposition
Include post-launch tasks: support, onboarding, iteration
Link activities to the customer relationship and channel strategy
Highlight activities that drive revenue or prevent churn
Flag dependencies on people, tech, or partners
Prioritise by effort, timing, and risk
Example Key Activities Table
| Activity Area | Example Task | Why It Matters |
| Product Development | Build hardware and firmware | Delivers core user value |
| Quality & Compliance | Run CE and FCC testing | Enables legal sale in target markets |
| Sales Enablement | Create product demos and onboarding | Supports channel partners and direct buyers |
| Customer Success | Handle support tickets + improve FAQs | Retains users and builds trust |
- Use process maps, journey maps, or delivery plans to support this
- Treat it as a “what we must actually do” list—not just what we hope to offer
⚠️ Pitfalls to avoid
- Listing vague outcomes (like “scale” or “market”) instead of actual actions
- Overlooking post-sale activities like support or servicing
- Ignoring compliance or certification steps
- Forgetting business ops: finance, procurement, or data management
💡 From cross-functional teams
“Once we mapped our key activities, we realised we needed a second support agent before launch. It wasn’t a ‘nice to have’—it was mission-critical.”– Ops Manager, Assistive Tech Startup
💡 If you’re not doing it, it’s not part of your business model.
🔗 Helpful links & resources
- Business Model Canvas Template
- Download: Key Activities Planning Sheet
- Article: From Idea to Action: Mapping What Makes Your Business Work
- Follow-on: Key Resources
✍️ Quick self-check
Have we listed the real actions needed to deliver our product and value?
Are post-launch activities (support, updates) included?
Do we know which activities must be in-house vs. outsourced?
Are key activities aligned with partners, costs, and customer promises?
🎨 Visual concept (optional)
Illustration: A board showing sticky notes for each major activity: “Prototype Build”, “Compliance Testing”, “Onboarding Scripts”, “Support Helpdesk”. Each is linked to a business goal like “Launch-ready”, “Legal sale”, “User retention”.
Visual shows how Key Activities power the entire business model—not just the product.