Platform Synergy: Architectural Origins and Competitive Consequences
by
Amrit Tiwana
Professor of Management Information Systems
Terry College of Business, University of Georgia
Friday, September 29, 2017
10:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Speakman Hall Suite 200
Abstract
The internal architecture of apps has yet to receive attention in platform studies, which predominantly study apps’ platform-facing, external architecture. We develop a theory of how the interplay between an app’s internal and external architecture shapes its ability to leverage the platform to outcompete rival apps. Primary and archival data spanning four years from 618 BlackberryOS apps show how internal architecture’s complementarity with external architecture influences an app’s competitive lead. Apps fare better in a competitive race when they are modular monoliths—externally modular but internally monolithic.
Bio
Amrit Tiwana (people.terry.uga.edu/tiwana) is a Professor of MIS at UGA’s Terry College of Business. He serves or has served on the boards of Information Systems Research, Strategic Management Journal, MIS Quarterly, Journal of Management Information Systems, and IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management. His work has appeared in various MIS, strategy, software engineering, finance, and marketing journals including ISR, MISQ, JMIS, SMJ, and ACM Transactions on Software Engineering.