Technology
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- 08 Nov 2018
- Cold Call Podcast
Could Big Data Replace the Creative Director at the Gap?
Is it time to throw out the creative director and rely on big data to predict what consumers want to wear next? Assistant Professor Ayelet Israeli discusses how Gap CEO Art Peck considers a bold idea to boost sales. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 30 Oct 2018
- Working Paper Summaries
Design Rules, Volume 2: How Technology Shapes Organizations: Chapter 6 The Value Structure of Technologies, Part 1: Mapping Functional Relationships
Technology shapes organizations by influencing the search for value—something that someone perceives as a good—in an economy made up of free agents. To understand the organizations that will develop and implement particular technologies we must first understand the technologies’ value structure, including three main issues that make it difficult to value technologies.
- 30 Oct 2018
- Working Paper Summaries
Design Rules, Volume 2: How Technology Shapes Organizations: Chapter 5 Complementarity
Even as economics has theories about what assets and activities should be grouped together under common ownership and unified governance, in practice it sometimes makes sense to distribute complementary assets, skills, and activities across separate organizations. This paper investigates when and how this happens.
- 30 Oct 2018
- Working Paper Summaries
Design Rules, Volume 2: How Technology Shapes Organizations: Chapter 14 Introducing Open Platforms and Business Ecosystems
Platform systems have existed in various forms for centuries. Beginning in the 1980s and 1990s, newly competitive technology of open platform systems based on digital technology and modular architectures changed the structure of entire industries. This paper lays the groundwork for a comprehensive theoretical investigation of open platform systems.
- 08 Oct 2018
- Working Paper Summaries
Developing Theory Using Machine Learning Methods
This paper provides a step-by-step roadmap for using machine learning (ML) techniques to explore novel and robust patterns in data. It introduces management researchers to a new use case for ML tools: building new theory from quantitative observational data. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 27 Sep 2018
- Working Paper Summaries
Ratcheting, Competition, and the Diffusion of Technological Change: The Case of Televisions Under an Energy Efficiency Program
The diffusion of innovation in many markets is greatly influenced by the presence of policy intervention. Importantly, diffusion is further affected by the fact that firms often also have a say in affecting the implementation of policy. This analysis of the Japanese TV market suggests that firms may delay the introduction of more high quality products when there are across-the-board policy standards.
- 05 Sep 2018
- Research & Ideas
The Hidden Benefit of Giving Back to Open Source Software
Firms that allow their software programmers to "give back" to the open source community on company time gain benefits—even though competitors might benefit too, says Frank Nagle. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 04 Sep 2018
- Working Paper Summaries
Some Facts of High-Tech Patenting
This study details the growth of patenting in software, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and related technologies in the twenty-first century, and the continuing dominance of inventors in large US, Japanese, and Korean companies. Researchers still need to understand the impact of such trends on social welfare more generally.
- 16 Jul 2018
- Working Paper Summaries
The Impact of Increasing Search Frictions on Online Shopping Behavior: Evidence from a Field Experiment
With even minor changes to the design of an online store, sellers may get more full-priced sales from price-insensitive shoppers. As shoppers spend more time on the website given higher search frictions, they may also be considering a larger set of products.
- 09 Jul 2018
- Research & Ideas
Overcoming the Challenges of Selling Brand New Technology (Hey, Need a 3-D Printer?)
Selling technology that is new to the market involves tricky tradeoffs around prospect targeting, channels, and tactics. Frank Cespedes makes the point with 3-D printers. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 30 May 2018
- What Do You Think?
Should Intellectual Property be Protected in International Trade?
SUMMING UP To do business in China, American firms often lose some of their intellectual property. James Heskett's readers think that price is too high. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 30 May 2018
- Research & Ideas
Should Retailers Match Their Own Prices Online and in Stores?
For multichannel retailers, pricing strategy can be difficult to execute and confusing to shoppers. Research by Elie Ofek and colleagues offers alternative approaches to getting the price right. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 24 May 2018
- Research & Ideas
Distance Still Matters in Business, Despite the Internet
The internet makes distance less a problem for conducting business, but geography still matters in the digital age. Shane Greenstein explains why. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 07 May 2018
- Research & Ideas
Why Online Retailers Should Hide Their Best Discounts
Online retailers should take a tip from brick-and-mortar shops: Shove your best deals to the back of the store. Research by Thales Teixeira and Donald Ngwe. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 20 Apr 2018
- Working Paper Summaries
Executive Education in the Digital Vortex: The Disruption of the Supply Landscape
The competitive landscape of executive education is feeling a tectonic shift even as demand grows for managerial skills. This study maps and analyzes the major providers of executive education programs, including business schools, consultancies, and corporate universities, to better understand and explain the industry’s present and future dynamics.
- 17 Apr 2018
- Working Paper Summaries
Digital Innovation with High Costs of Entry: Evidence from Software-Driven Medical Devices
Although technology shifts often allow new entrants to edge into a market, established firms seem to be maintaining leadership in the medical devices industry, where software integration is increasingly important.
- 30 Mar 2018
- What Do You Think?
What Should Mark Zuckerberg Do?
SUMMING UP: Facebook doesn't necessarily need a better data-privacy policy, James Heskett's readers suggest. Instead, Mark Zuckerberg needs a new business model. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 21 Mar 2018
- Research & Ideas
Why Artificial Intelligence Isn't a Sure Thing to Increase Productivity
As companies adopt artificial intelligence to increase efficiency, are their employees skilled enough to use those technologies effectively? Prithwiraj Choudhury looks to the US Patent and Trademark Office for a case study. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.
- 12 Mar 2018
- Working Paper Summaries
Using Online Prices for Measuring Real Consumption Across Countries
The increasing availability of big data can improve measurement of real consumption in closer to real time. This study shows that online prices may enhance data of the International Comparisons Program, dramatically improving the frequency and transparency of purchasing power parities compared with traditional data collection methods.
On Target: Rethinking the Retail Website
Target is one big-brand retailer that seems to have survived and even thrived in the apocalyptic retail landscape. What's its secret? Srikant Datar discusses the company's relentless focus on online data. Open for comment; Comment(s) posted.