COURSE SUMMARY
Whereas the 2010s have been littered by rapidly evolving markets with patterns of digital disruption, business model innovation, boundary-less competition of platforms and the reconfiguration of global value chains, the 20s – and that is not just an outcome oft the COVID-19 pandemic – will demand robust strategies and business designs. The latter will be paramount to increase shareholder value and realize competitive advantage in times of disruptive change driven by technology innovation like AI and cloud computing. Business strategies have to be sensitive to their specific ecosystem and, therefore, should be tailor-made.
The course on "Platform & Digital Business Design Strategies" develops a dedicated framework for assessing, designing and implementing robust, value enhancing business models and platform strategies.
The course will center around 4 strategy days. We will apply a flipped class-room concept.
COURSE DESCRIPTION & METHODOLOGY
We will use flipped classroom sessions, case studies, discussions, mini-projects, and provide an overview of game changing strategic and innovation issues of the 2020s to create a productive in class learning environment.
The course will be structured around the following textbooks and groundbreaking articles:
- Amit, Zott, & Massa (2010). The Business Model - Theoretical roots, recent developments, and future research. IEDE Business School Working Paper.
- Feix, T. (2021). Valuing Digital Business Designs and Platform Companies - An Integrated Strategic and Financial Valuation Framework. Springer Science Global Book Series: The Future of Business & Science. Wiesbaden: Springer Science.
- Hamel, G. (2006). The why, what, how of management innovation. Harvard Business Review.
- Magretta (2002). Why Business Models Matter. Harvard Business Review.
Scientific articles, as well as a rich set of case studies from my latest book will supplement the lectures. We will emphasize theory and analytics, but also teach the course from an applied perspective.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Students are expected to carefully review the assigned reading materials before each session, diligently work on the assigned problems, questions, and cases, and to participate actively in the class discussions. You should be prepared to spend some time to digest the material, to work on the assignments and case studies. Timely submission of the assigned work is critical. Late submissions will not be accepted.
TIMING & CONTENT OF STRATEGY DAYS
(sessions will be on-campus, class-room W tbd)
# Day 1 - March 20, 2026, 9am-4pm: Digital Business Designs and the 10C Model
# Day 2 - April 10, 2026, 9am-4pm: Digital Business Designs, Patterns and Strategies
# Day 3 - April 24, 2026, 9am-4pm: Platform Business Designs, Strategies & Levers
# Day 4 - May 8, 2026, 9am-4pm: Presentation of Term Papers
- Dozent/in: Thorsten Feix