Slides 0: Introduction
Slides 1: Industry Analysis
Slides 2: Competitive Advantage
Slides 3: The Nature of Information Goods
Slides 4: Monetization - Prices and Advertising
Slides 5: Switching Costs and Lock-in
Slides 6: Network Effects
Slides 7: Platform Markets
Slides 8: Innovation
Slides 9: Dynamic Pricing
Slides 10: Reputation
The cases can be found as a course packet: part 1 and part 2. You can also buy individual cases for $7 from the HBS website.
Notes on the case method of teaching.
Advice for the case write-up.
5th Apr: Introduction to Cases and Fortnite article.
12th Apr: Uber, HBS 9-316-101 with Rudy Tjiong.
19th Apr: Amazon Fresh with Jenn Hyman.
26th April: Ford, HBS 9-614-018 with Terry Kramer.
3rd May: Linden Lab, HBS 9-809-147 with Mark Kingdon.
10th May: Apple Pay, HBS 8-516-027 with Neil Pardasani.
17th May: Facebook, HBS 9-908-128 with James Min.
24th May: Zillow, HBS 9-913-021 with Ben Maslan.
31st May: Zappos, HBS 9-610-015 with with Devon Dickau.
7th June: Class Recap.
You will write the project about a company of your choosing. This will essentially be a mini case study. You should hand in a short proposal by Friday May 3rd (week 5); we will then check that the plan is realistic. The final paper is due on the last day of class (Friday June 7th). Please do not choose a company that we cover in class. Each group must cover a different firm; priority is awarded on a first-come, first-served basis - please email your TA with your firm to register it. The log of companies can be found here.
How do you find a firm? An ideal firm would do something you have a particular interest in. It doesn't need to be big, but you should be able to find data about it. Search for the winners of the Crunchies, Bloomberg's top tech firms, Fast Company's most innovative companies. And if you're interested in a particular sector, try the Economist's Technology Quarterly.
Advice on the final paper proposal.
Advice on the final paper.
When thinking about the current state of the company, a SWOT analysis can be a useful checklist.
Some projects from Fall 2012: Airbnb, Quantcast, Sodastream, Uber.
Some projects from Fall 2011: Gilt Group, Rovio, Zipcar, the Domino's Pizza.
Some projects from Winter 2011: BlackBerries, Mindjolt, Net-A-Porter, the NBC Universal Merger.
Some projects from Fall 2010: Groupon, Nintendo, Playfish, Tencent QQ.
Rules for the final: You can take 10 single-sided pages of notes with you into the final (or 5 double sided). Calculators are allowed, but will probably not be needed. Blue books are not needed - you will answer on the exam itself.
Here are the cases for the 2010-2012 finals, and the 2012-2016 finals. Here are the questions:
Fall 2016 final on LinkedIn, HBS 9-713-420.
Fall 2015 final on oDesk, HBS 9-411-078.
Fall 2014 final on Zillow, HBS 9-913-021.
Fall 2013 final on Brightcove, HBS 9-712-424.
Fall 2012 final on Foursquare, HBS 9-711-418.
Fall 2012 final on Dropbox, HBS 9-811-065.
Fall 2011 final on Electronic Arts, HBS 9-804-140.
Fall 2011 final on Huffington Post, HBS 9-810-086.
Winter 2011 final on Microsoft adCenter, HBS 9-908-049.
Fall 2010 final on Sermo, HBS 9-809-142.
Advice on the final
Startup UCLA has speakers and a summer accelerator program.
UCLA Blackstone Launchpad. Located in Covel Commons, Room 203. This is a resource center for students to find out about other groups, events, and have a place to meet other students to create their teams.
UConsulting host events related to consulting on campus.
Bruin Entrepreneurs is a student run group that meets weekly.
Other accelerators: Y Combinator, Start Engine, Amplify LA, Launchpad LA.
This American Life on pitching to a VC and the subsequent podcast on Startups.