ENGM 203 - Product and Platform Management

Description

This course is designed for students, managers, executives, investors, and entrepreneurs interested in product management in platform and technology-enabled enterprises. Platforms are economically important and widely observed in modern economies. Firms such as Amazon, Apple, Facebook, SalesForce, SAP, Uber and many more develop ecosystems in which third parties are key components of the value creation process. In this context, there is a continuous need for new products and services—and for managing all aspects of discovering, designing, developing, supporting, and making money from these products. The course is designed to serve two inter-related purposes. The first (1) is to explain the fundamentals of the product operating model including product discovery and delivery. The second (2) is to explain the fundamentals of the platform operating model including its unique economic underpinnings, governance structures, and methods of monetization. Product management concepts will be explained, and product management skills will be developed in the context of platform and technology enterprises. The course will combine theory with real-world experience. Case studies will be used to emphasize practical approaches and draw from diverse industries such as social media, healthcare, enterprise software, mobile services, and consumer products to provide foundations and definitions. This course will also illustrate established economic principles from the literature on industrial organization, two-sided and multi-sided network effects, information asymmetry, agency, pricing, and game theory. Some familiarity with microeconomics is useful but not required. A group term project is a key part of the course. Project proposals from companies will be offered. Students are also welcome to propose their own projects. The goal of the projects is to develop and understanding of product principles in the context of technology enabled organizations, including but not limited to platform enterprises.

Notes

Students who earned academic credit for ENGM 190 may not take ENGM 203, as ENGM 203 is an updated version of the course but significant overlap in content remains. Cannot be used to satisfy any A.B. degree requirements.