1. Adams, Henry, The Education of Henry Adams (Massachusetts Historical Society, 1918), pp. 489-498 (“The Law of Acceleration”). Available in public domain format at: http://www.ibiblio.org/gutenberg/etext00/eduha10h.htm

2. Porter, Michael E., Competitive Advantage (Free Press, 1985), pp. xv-xviii and 1-61.

3. Porter, Michael E., “What is Strategy?” Harvard Business Review Feb., 2000. Product number 4134.

4. Hammer, Michael and Champy, James, Reengineering the Corporation (HarperBusiness, 1993), pp. 1-6 and 83-101.

5. Nick Carr, “IT Doesn’t Matter,” Harvard Business Review May, 2003. Product number 3566. For commentary, see http://www.fortune.com/fortune/fastforward/0,15704,456246,00.html, (Fortune Magazine);

http://harvardbusinessonline.hbsp.harvard.edu/b02/en/files/misc/Web_Letters.pdf (HBR)

Part II

Breakdown of the Academic Model

6. Porter, Michael E., “Strategy and the Internet,” Harvard Business Review, March, 2001. Product number 6358

7. Downes, Larry, Unleashing the Killer App: Digital Strategies for Market Dominance (Harvard Business School Press, 1998), pp. 57-72 (purchased book). Available for purchase at http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/087584801X/thestrategyma-20/002-1468382-8024068. Also available on-line at http://www.killer-apps.com/.

8. Mintzberg, Henry, The Rise and Fall of Strategic Planning (The Free Press, 1994), pp. 221-321 (optional)

9. “Rapid Rewards at Southwest Airlines,” Harvard Business School Case. Product number 9-602-065.

Part III

(In)Human Factors in strategy

10. Christensen, Clayton, The Innovator’s Dilemma (Harvard Business School Press 1997), pp. ix-xxiv and 61-76.

11. Downes, Larry, The Strategy Machine (HarperBusiness 2002), pp. 145-162 (purchased book). Available for purchase at http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0066211298/thestrategyma-20/002-1468382-8024068. See also http://www.thestrategymachine.com/.

Part IV

What’s New in the New Economy Anyway?

12. Kuhn, Thomas, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (University of Chicago Press 1962) (purchased book). Available at http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0226458083/thestrategyma-20/002-1468382-8024068.

13. White, Lynn Jr., Medieval Technology and Social Change (Oxford University Press 1962), pp. 1-38. (optional)

14. Coase, Ronald A., The Firm, The Market and The Law (University of Chicago Press 1988), pp. vii, 33-56.

15. Downes, Larry, The Strategy Machine, pp. xi-xvi and 1-31. (purchased book)

16. Downes, Larry, Unleashing the Killer App, pp. 35-55. (purchased book)

Part V

The Special Problem of Information as an Economic Good

17. Shapiro, Carl and Varian, Hal, Information Rules (Harvard Business School Press 1999), pp. 1-51 (optional)

18. Drucker, Peter, Post-Capitalist Society (HarperBusiness 1993), pp. 19-47.

19. Downes, Larry, The Strategy Machine, pp. 97-114. (purchased book)

20. Loveman, Gary, “Diamonds in the Data Mine,” Harvard Business Review, May, 2003. Product number 3647.

21. “Intuit, Inc.,” Harvard Business School Case, May 8, 2003. Product number 9-403-064.

Part VI

The New Technical Architecture

22. Hagel, John, “Your Next IT Strategy,” Harvard Business Review, Oct., 2001. Product number R0109G.

23. Downes, Larry, “Unleashing Killer Architectures, CIO Magazine (June 15, 2003). Available at http://www.cio.com/archive/061503/architecture.html.

(Mid-Term Exam)

Part VII

The New Strategy: Design

24. Downes, Larry, Unleashing the Killer App, pp. 73-162. (purchased book)

25. Downes, Larry, The Strategy Machine, pp. 32-96 and 115-141. (purchased book)

26. Mason, Heidi and Rohner, Tim, The Venture Imperative (Harvard Business School Press 2002), pp. ix-xiv and 109-258 (optional)

Part VIII

The New Strategy: Execution

27. Downes, Larry, Unleashing the Killer App, pp. 163-217. (purchased book)

28. Downes, Larry, The Strategy Machine, pp. 163-214. (purchased book)

29. Moore, Geoffrey, Crossing the Chasm (HarperBusiness 1991), pp. 9-59

Part IX

The Special Problem of Regulation

30. Sony Corp. v. Universal City Studios, Inc., 464 U.S. 417 (1984). Available at http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?navby=case&court=us&vol=464&page=417.

MBA 290T

ENG 298A

INFO SYS 290

Technology Strategies for Market Dominance

Mr. Larry Downes

Grades and Assignments

Grades will be based on a midterm exam and a final group project, as well as class participation and attendance:

Midterm exam – Short essay exam on the key concepts introduced during the first half of the course. 30% of grade.

§ Group project – Students will be divided into groups of three. Each group will be assigned a company and will be asked to do desk research to understand the challenges and opportunities for the company to develop a strategy portfolio. The teams will present their findings in class and turn in a final PowerPoint deck (more detailed than the class presentation) for grading. More specifics on the group project will be given after the midterm exam. 50% of grade.

§ Class Participation/Instructor Discretion – 20% of grade.

MBA 290T

ENG 298A

INFO SYS 290

Technology Strategies for Market Dominance

Mr. Larry Downes

Rules of the Road

I expect the following basic rules are agreed among us:

You and I will come to class and will not come late or leave early. You will let me know by email or voicemail if you will not be in class or need to arrive late or leave early.

You and I will read the material assigned for each class. You don’t need to completely understand each reading but you need to be able to turn any confusion into a question.

You and I will participate in class discussion. It is the quality, not the quantity, of participation that matters to me. I will not force people to speak in class, but if the same few people tend to be the only volunteers I expect you to accept conscription gracefully.

You and I will respect each other by turning off our cell phones and pagers throughout class. No exceptions. We will also show respect if not love for each other in agreeing or disagreeing on content of our comments and opinions.

5. You and I will respect each other by eating and drinking in class only if absolutely necessary and in a civilized way that our families would not be ashamed to watch.

6. You and I will discuss any problems with the course or course materials as soon as we become aware of them. Problems can be raised in class or in private as is most appropriate.