Publications

2010
Working Paper

When Open Architecture Beats Closed: The Entrepreneurial Use of Architectural Knowledge

By: Carliss Y. Baldwin

This paper describes how entrepreneurial firms can use superior architectural knowledge to open up a technical system to gain strategic advantage. The strategy involves, first, identifying "bottlenecks" in the existing system, and then creating a new open architecture... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Investment Return; Growth and Development Strategy; Product Design; Organizational Design; Competitive Advantage; Technology Industry

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28 Sep 2006
Working Paper Summaries

Architectural Innovation and Dynamic Competition: The Smaller “Footprint” Strategy

Keywords: by Carliss Y. Baldwin & Kim B. Clark; Computer

2019
Working Paper

Design Rules, Volume 2: How Technology Shapes Organizations: Chapter 13 Platform Systems vs. Step Processes—The Value of Options and the Power of Modularity

By: Carliss Y. Baldwin

This is the first chapter in Part 3. Its purpose is to contrast the value structure of platform systems with step processes from a technological perspective. I first review the basic technical architecture of computers and argue that every computer is inherently a... View Details

Keywords: Platform Systems; Step Processes; Computer Architecture; Modularity; Information Technology; Digital Platforms

SSRN

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September 2000
Case

Renaming Computer Power Group

Presents results of a consumer survey used to guide selection of a new corporate brand name. Four alternative names are tested for their ability to communicate desired company attributes to consumers. The pros and cons of developing brand names at corporate versus... View Details

Keywords: Organizational Culture; Brands and Branding

April 1993 (Revised December 2001)
Case

General Dynamics and Computer Sciences Corporation: Outsourcing the IS Function (C)

By: F. Warren McFarlan and Katherine Seger

Outlines the full architecture of an outsourcing agreement and allows the class to discuss what should and should not be in such agreements. View Details

Keywords: Job Cuts and Outsourcing; Agreements and Arrangements; Technology Industry

08 Jul 2024
Research & Ideas

The Critical Computer Science Principles Every Strategic Leader Needs to Know

says. Not only that, but “increasingly, the tech architectures inside firms are a source of competitive advantage.” Wu suggests executives study up on these five computer science principles—and leave the... View Details

Keywords: by Ben Rand; Technology; Information Technology

Web

Database Best Practices - Research Computing Services

importing, determine whether cleanup is required. If it is, save interim files as you clean in case later on you need to modify any changes. You may decide that the delimiter is appropriate for loading the data (see Delimiters ). When you are designing your database,... View Details

25 Sep 2000
Research & Ideas

More Than the Sum of Its Parts: The Impact of Modularity on the Computer Industry

The computer age began some six decades ago with general-purpose machines with Star Wars-like names such as ENIAC and EDVAC. They were powered by vacuum tubes, big enough to fill an entire room, and developed by mathematicians under the... View Details

Keywords: by Staff; Computer; Computer; Computer

16 Jul 2013
Working Paper Summaries

Visualizing and Measuring Enterprise Architecture: An Exploratory BioPharma Case

Keywords: by Robert Lagerstrom, Carliss Baldwin, Alan MacCormack & David Dreyfus

Article

Big Other: Surveillance Capitalism and the Prospects of an Information Civilization

By: Shoshana Zuboff

This article describes an emergent logic of accumulation in the networked sphere, 'surveillance capitalism,' and considers its implications for 'information civilization.' The institutionalizing practices and operational assumptions of Google Inc. are the... View Details

Keywords: Surveillance Capitalism; Big Data; Google; Information Society; Privacy; Internet Of Everything; Rights; Economic Systems; Analytics and Data Science; Internet and the Web; Ethics

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12 Sep 2006
First Look

First Look: September 12, 2006

human capital are also important for the effect of FDI on economic growth. Download working paper: http://www.hbs.edu/research/pdf/07-013.pdf Architectural Innovation and Dynamic Competition: The Smaller "Footprint" Strategy... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

October 2024
Case

Nvidia

By: Andy Wu and Matt Higgins

This case study examines Nvidia's strategic pivot from gaming GPUs to becoming a leader in general-purpose computing and AI. It explores how Nvidia leveraged its GPU architecture to dominate the growing fields of data center acceleration and AI training, outpacing... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Technological Innovation; AI and Machine Learning; Product Development; Manufacturing Industry; Technology Industry; Electronics Industry; United States; China; Taiwan

15 Nov 2016
Working Paper Summaries

Algorithmic Foundations for Business Strategy

Keywords: by Mihnea Moldoveanu

Teaching Interest

Overview

Paul is primarily interested in teaching data science to management students through the case method. This includes technical topics (programming and statistics) as well as higher-level management issues (digital transformation, data governance, etc.) As a research... View Details

Keywords: A/B Testing; AI; AI Algorithms; AI Creativity; Algorithm; Algorithm Bias; Algorithmic Bias; Algorithmic Fairness; Algorithms; Analytics; Application Program Interface; Artificial Intelligence; Causality; Causal Inference; Computing; Computers; Data Analysis; Data Analytics; Data Architecture; Data As A Service; Data Centers; Data Governance; Data Labeling; Data Management; Data Manipulation; Data Mining; Data Ownership; Data Privacy; Data Protection; Data Science; Data Science And Analytics Management; Data Scientists; Data Security; Data Sharing; Data Strategy; Data Visualization; Database; Data-driven Decision-making; Data-driven Management; Data-driven Operations; Datathon; Economics Of AI; Economics Of Innovation; Economics Of Information System; Economics Of Science; Forecast; Forecast Accuracy; Forecasting; Forecasting And Prediction; Information Technology; Machine Learning; Machine Learning Models; Prediction; Prediction Error; Predictive Analytics; Predictive Models; Analysis; AI and Machine Learning; Analytics and Data Science; Applications and Software; Digital Transformation; Information Management; Digital Strategy; Technology Adoption

02 Nov 2010
First Look

First Look: November 2, 2010

http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTPREMNET/Resources/EP31.pdf Working PapersWhen Open Architecture Beats Closed: The Entrepreneurial Use of Architectural Knowledge Authors:Carliss Y. Baldwin Abstract... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

02 Dec 2002
Research & Ideas

The Secret of How Microsoft Stays on Top

numbers almost 40,000 firms. To understand the way Microsoft manages IP, you have to go back to the roots of the company. Back in the late 1970s, its first products were aimed at helping other programmers develop applications for the View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

April 2023 (Revised February 2024)
Case

AI Wars

By: Andy Wu, Matt Higgins, Miaomiao Zhang and Hang Jiang

In February 2024, the world was looking to Google to see what the search giant and long-time putative technical leader in artificial intelligence (AI) would do to compete in the massively hyped technology of generative AI. Over a year ago, OpenAI released ChatGPT, a... View Details

Keywords: AI; Artificial Intelligence; AI and Machine Learning; Technology Adoption; Competitive Strategy; Technological Innovation

June 2007 (Revised April 2009)
Case

Intel 2006: Rising to the Graphics Challenge

By: Willy C. Shih and Elie Ofek

Examines the evolution of the PC hardware industry over the span of two and a half decades. The open architecture design of the IBM Personal Computer followed by the rapid appearance of clones drove a high level of standardization and modularity in the industry, and... View Details

Keywords: History; Customer Value and Value Chain; Decision Choices and Conditions; Information Infrastructure; Competitive Strategy; Mergers and Acquisitions; Technology Industry

May 2000
Case

Intel 64 Fund

By: G. Felda Hardymon and Ann Leamon

Laila Partridge of Intel's Corporate Business Development group has been charged to create a special investment fund to speed the adoption of a new chip architecture. The last architecture upgrade, from 16 to 32 bits, had needed almost a decade to become fully adopted.... View Details

Keywords: Venture Capital; Investment; Technology Adoption; Innovation and Management; Computer Industry