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07 Feb 2022
News

Ask Help Desk: What Should I Do When My Job Gives Me Lousy Tech?

19 Feb 2019
News

Why the Trolley Dilemma Is a Terrible Model for Trying to Make Self-Driving Cars Safer

12 Feb 2009
Working Paper Summaries

Platform Competition, Compatibility, and Social Efficiency

Keywords: by Ramon Casadesus-Masanell & Francisco Ruiz-Aliseda; Computer

2010
Working Paper

Performance Tradeoffs in Team Knowledge Sourcing

By: Bradley R. Staats, Melissa Valentine and Amy C. Edmondson

This research examines how teams organize knowledge sourcing (obtaining access to others' knowledge or expertise) and investigates the performance trade-offs involved in two approaches to knowledge sourcing in teams. One approach a team can take is to specialize, such... View Details

Keywords: Information Management; Knowledge Sharing; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Performance Efficiency; Performance Productivity; Quality; Groups and Teams; Information Technology Industry; India

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When Google bought Nest, a maker of digital thermostats, for $3.2 billion just a few months ago, it was a clear indication that digital transformation and connection are spreading across even the most traditional industrial segments and creating a staggering array... View Details

15 Oct 2009
Working Paper Summaries

Mixed Source

Keywords: by Ramon Casadesus-Masanell & Gastón Llanes; Technology

July 2013 (Revised August 2017)
Case

TaKaDu

By: Elie Ofek and Matthew Preble

In December 2012, Amir Peleg, founder and CEO of TaKaDu, reflected on how to position his young firm for the next fiscal year and beyond. The small Israeli startup had developed an innovative software system that used patented algorithms and statistical analysis to... View Details

May 2024
Supplement

gWorks (A)

By: Richard S. Ruback and Royce Yudkoff

In January of 2019, Joe Heieck, CEO of gWorks, was deciding whether to proceed with his acquisition of Data Tech, that was a business roughly the same size as gWorks. gWorks, which provided geospatial software to small city and rural county governments, was acquired by... View Details

January 1986 (Revised March 1997)
Case

Horizon Group

By: William A. Sahlman

Contains a description of a situation confronting the co-founder of a company planning to produce software for microcomputers. The company has just completed raising money from some wealthy investors by forming an R&D Limited Partnership. Development of the program (an... View Details

Keywords: Business or Company Management; Venture Capital; Partners and Partnerships; Business Plan; Outcome or Result; Research and Development; Financial Strategy; Corporate Finance; Information Technology Industry

June 2020
Case

gWorks

By: Richard S. Ruback and Royce Yudkoff

In January of 2019, Joe Heieck (HBS '14), CEO of gWorks, was deciding whether to proceed with his acquisition of Data Tech, that was a business roughly the same size of gWorks. gWorks, which provided geospatial software to small city and rural county governments, was... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Decision Making; Entrepreneurship; Finance

15 Feb 2022
News

In 10 Years, ‘Remote Work’ Will Simply Be ‘Work’

June 2017
Teaching Note

Google to Alphabet: Two Job Opportunities

By: Robert Simons and Jennifer Packard

This is the teaching note for "Google to Alphabet: Two Job Opportunities" HBS No.116-046 The case describes two job postings for positions at Google. The first job posting is for a Software Engineer in the Google Maps unit and the second job posting is for an Account... View Details

Keywords: Strategy And Execution; Span Of Control; Span Of Accountability; Span Of Support; Management Control Systems; Entrepreneurial Gap; Motivation; Job Design; Strategy; Information Technology; Organizational Design; Jobs and Positions; Technology Industry

Spring 2016
Article

Performance Responses to Competition Across Skill-Levels in Rank Order Tournaments: Field Evidence and Implications for Tournament Design

By: Kevin J. Boudreau, Karim R. Lakhani and Michael E. Menietti

Tournaments are widely used in the economy to organize production and innovation. We study individual contestant-level data from 2,796 contestants in 774 software algorithm design contests with random assignment. Precisely conforming to theory predictions, the... View Details

Keywords: Competition; Innovation Strategy

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June 2011
Supplement

Arck Systems (F)

By: Ian Larkin

The Arck Systems series of cases describes the dilemmas faced by a senior sales manager in determining a sales compensation plan at an enterprise software company. The existing compensation plan is aggressive and highly rewards "star” performers. The cases track a... View Details

Keywords: Motivation and Incentives; Salesforce Management; Compensation and Benefits

May 2002 (Revised May 2003)
Exercise

Endeca Negotiation, The: Steve Papa

By: G. Felda Hardymon, Josh Lerner and Ann Leamon

Students play the role of Steve Papa, the CEO and founder of a venture-backed enterprise software company. In the challenging financing climate of the fall of 2001, he knows that two different groups are about to submit term sheets for his company's C-round. He is... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation Process; Negotiation Offer; Management Teams; Venture Capital; Valuation; Software; Information Technology Industry; Web Services Industry

April 1999 (Revised November 1999)
Case

Adams Capital Management: March 1999

By: G. Felda Hardymon and Bill Wasik

On February 24, 1999, the advisory board of Adams Capital Management convened for its quarterly meeting at the firm's headquarters. One point on the agenda: whether or not to proceed with due diligence on an investment in Three Points, a maker of Internet-based team... View Details

Keywords: Venture Capital; Governing and Advisory Boards; Management Systems; Investment; Goals and Objectives; Financial Services Industry

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June 1996 (Revised January 1999)
Case

XcelleNet, Inc. (A)

By: Stephen P. Bradley, Richard L. Nolan and James Leonard

XcelleNet, a $35 million system software company based in Atlanta, was founded in 1986 to address the computing needs of a class of remote and mobile users and data that were rarely connected to a network. Though the clear first mover and leader in the remote... View Details

Keywords: Technological Innovation; Opportunities; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Technology Networks; Computer Industry; Atlanta

2010
Working Paper

The Architecture of Complex Systems: Do Core-periphery Structures Dominate?

By: Alan MacCormack, Carliss Y. Baldwin and John Rusnak

Any complex technological system can be decomposed into a number of subsystems and associated components, some of which are core to system function while others are only peripheral. The dynamics of how such "core-periphery" structures evolve and become embedded in a... View Details

Keywords: Innovation and Management; Product Design; Practice; Core Relationships; Software; Information Technology Industry

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October 2023 (Revised February 2024)
Case

Loris

By: Shunyuan Zhang, Das Narayandas, Stacy Straaberg and David Lane

In December 2022, Loris’s executive team considered their go-to-market strategy. Loris was an artificial intelligence (AI) software startup for the customer service industry with two products on the market: 1) Agent Assist which provided customer service agents (CSAs)... View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Growth and Development Strategy; Product Launch; Product Positioning; Business Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Business Startups; AI and Machine Learning; Applications and Software; Marketing Strategy; Sales; Technology Industry; United States