Publications

14 Apr 2008
Research & Ideas

The Surprising Right Fit for Software Testing

If there is one job that many software analysts and programmers cannot stand, it is testing software on the path to launch. The grinding concentration and repetitive nature of the tasks serve to drive many... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace; Video Game; Web Services; Computer

September – October 2009
Article

Critical Decisions in Software Development: Updating the State of the Practice

By: Alan MacCormack, Michael A. Cusumano, Chris Kemerer and Bill Crandall

This article focuses on how to choose the "right" software development process, how to structure global software design chains, how to manage the interaction of project structure and software design, and how to balance innovation and efficiency in a software business. View Details

Keywords: Applications and Software; Product Development; Projects; Innovation and Management; Performance Efficiency; Information Technology Industry

February 2021
Article

Platform Diffusion at Temporary Gatherings: Social Coordination and Ecosystem Emergence

By: Tommy Pan Fang, Andy Wu and David R. Clough

Software platforms create value by cultivating an ecosystem of complementary products and services. Existing explanations for how a prospective complementor chooses platforms to join assume the complementor has rich information about the range of available platforms.... View Details

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12 Oct 2016
Blog Post

Interning as a Software Engineer while at HBS

Today, we’re catching up with Andrea Coravos (HBS ‘17). Before coming to HBS, Andrea worked in private equity at KKR Capstone. She also spent three years at McKinsey in the Houston and then DC offices. This summer, she interned as a View Details

Web

Software Tools - Research Computing Services

script with the bsub , make , make install sequence, otherwise just follow the instructions provided with the software you are installing. As an illustration, we can build the development version of the R... View Details

Article

Diasporas and Domestic Entrepreneurs: Evidence from the Indian Software Industry

By: Ramana Nanda and Tarun Khanna

This study explores the importance of cross-border social networks for entrepreneurs in developing countries by examining ties between the Indian expatriate community and local entrepreneurs in India's software industry. We find that local entrepreneurs who have... View Details

Keywords: Diasporas; Entrepreneurship; Applications and Software; Information Technology Industry; India

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March 2012
Article

China's Growing IT Services and Software Industry: Challenges and Implications

By: F. Warren McFarlan, Ning Jia and Justin Wong

The Chinese management software and IT services industry has grown dramatically over the past two decades and today is about the size of the Indian industry a decade ago. The objective of this article is to help CIOs in firms outside of China better understand the... View Details

Keywords: Growth and Development; Information Technology; Applications and Software; Problems and Challenges; Information Technology Industry; China

2024
Working Paper

Contributing to Growth? The Role of Open Source Software for Global Startups

By: Nataliya Langburd Wright, Frank Nagle and Shane Greenstein

How does participating in open source software (OSS) communities spur entrepreneurial growth? To address this question, we analyze novel data matching accounts from GitHub—the largest OSS hosting platform—to the universe of global software venture-backed firms... View Details

Keywords: Applications and Software; Open Source Distribution; Entrepreneurship; Business Growth and Maturation; Human Capital; Valuation; Corporate Strategy

SSRN

2007
Working Paper

Diasporas and Domestic Entrepreneurs: Evidence from the Indian Software Industry

By: Ramana Nanda and Tarun Khanna

This study explores the importance of cross-border social networks for entrepreneurs in developing countries by examining ties between the Indian expatriate community and local entrepreneurs in India's software industry. We find that local entrepreneurs who have... View Details

Keywords: Diasporas; Developing Countries and Economies; Entrepreneurship; Financing and Loans; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Social and Collaborative Networks; Technology Industry; India

March 2023
Case

Woven Planet - Designing Software for the Car of the Future

By: Gary P. Pisano and Catherine Piner

Founded in 2021, Woven Planet Holdings—a subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corporation—was developing Arene, an automotive software platform consisting of an operating system, development and simulation tools, and a cloud-based service that could store and analyze vehicle... View Details

Keywords: Technology; Automated Driving; Innovation; Organizational Culture; Applications and Software; Safety; Product Launch; Product; Auto Industry; Technology Industry

05 Sep 2018
Research & Ideas

The Hidden Benefit of Giving Back to Open Source Software

pixelfit Companies that contribute to open source software and use it in their own IT systems and applications can gain a competitive advantage—even though they may be helping their competitors in the short run. Open source View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz; Computer

August 2010 (Revised August 2011)
Case

Developing an App for That

By: Hanna Halaburda, Joshua Gans and Nathaniel Burbank

At a time when ever-rising smartphone sales are driven as much by demand for devices that run must-have third-party "apps" as by the quality of traditional voice and data services, there is a myriad of challenges facing the software developer who is looking to choose... View Details

Keywords: Product Development; Competitive Strategy; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Applications and Software; Digital Platforms; Banking Industry; Information Technology Industry

2017
Other Article

Designing an Agile Software Portfolio Architecture: The Impact of Coupling on Performance

By: Alan MacCormack and Robert Lagerstrom

The modern industrial corporation encompasses a myriad of different software applications, each of which must work in concert to deliver functionality to end-users. However, the increasingly complex and dynamic nature of competition in today’s product-markets dictates... View Details

Keywords: Applications and Software; Design; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Performance Effectiveness

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2020
Working Paper

Iterative Coordination and Innovation

By: Sourobh Ghosh and Andy Wu

Agile management practices from the software industry continue to transform the way organizations innovate across industries, yet they remain understudied in the organizations literature. We investigate the widespread Agile practice of iterative coordination: frequent... View Details

Keywords: Innovation; Goals; Specialization; Coordination; Field Experiment; Software Development; Organizations; Collaborative Innovation and Invention; Goals and Objectives; Integration; Software

2022
Working Paper

Post-market Surveillance of Software Medical Devices: Evidence from Regulatory Data

By: Alexander O. Everhart and Ariel D. Stern

Medical devices increasingly include software components, which facilitate remote patient monitoring. The introduction of software into previously analog medical devices as well as innovation in software-driven devices may introduce new safety concerns—all the more so... View Details

Keywords: Technological Innovation; Safety; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Health Care and Treatment; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry

25 Jun 2003 - 28 Jun 2003
Conference Presentation

Agile Software Development: Evidence from the Field

By: Alan MacCormack

Keywords: Applications and Software; Product Development

October 2001 (Revised March 2002)
Case

Siemens AG: Global Development Strategy (A)

By: Stefan H. Thomke and Ashok Nimgade

Describes how Siemens, the German electrical engineering giant, has developed and manages global R&D in its large Information and Communications Networks (ICN) division. In 1994, Siemens opened its Bangalore (India) center, which has now grown into one of its largest... View Details

Keywords: Global Strategy; Research and Development; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Product Development; Telecommunications Industry; Germany; Bangalore