2026-09-20T07:03:54Zhttps://dspace.mit.edu/server/oai/requestoai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/1527462023-11-03T03:32:35Zcom_1721.1_7582com_1721.1_7581col_1721.1_131023
Cusumano, Michael A.
AlSadah, Yousif Fayez
System Design and Management Program.
2023-11-02T20:12:50Z
2023-11-02T20:12:50Z
2023-09
2023-10-10T21:04:30.426Z
https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/152746
http://orcid.org/0009-0008-0615-2482
Large-sample empirical research by Cusumano et. al. found that US privately-held unicorns with platform capabilities command on average 123% premium over non-platforms. However, measuring the extent to which a company is platform or non-platform based is a difficult problem given the complexities of business organizations and how these activities interact with each other in non-linear ways.
This thesis attempts to address this by proposing a systems thinking, case-based approach to evaluate the key business activities of a firm with potential platform capabilities using the author’s proposed Platform Classification Matrix on five of the largest US privately-held firms: Epic Games, Databricks, Plaid Technologies, Stripe, and Instacart. Each business activity for a firm is classified as platform or nonplatform, and if it is a platform then it is assessed based on its revenue contributions to the firm and three strength metrics: Network effects, strength against multihoming, and new entrant deterrence. This matrix generates a ‘platform strength’ metric and allows identification of the platform activity with the most potential towards a winner take all or most case.
The author further proposes combining this matrix with a system dynamic approach to identify how differing business activities can boost or hinder the leading platform service which allows decision makers to assess whether retaining or subsidizing seemingly low-performing business lines is strategic for their leading platform.
The thesis concludes by advocating for using both methods as well as the generated metrics to perform a holistic analysis when evaluating firms with platform capabilities potential.
S.M.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
Copyright retained by author(s)
https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC-EDU/1.0/
Industry Platforms: Case Studies to Measure Platform Capabilities for US Unicorns
Thesis
application/pdf
Master
Master of Science in Engineering and Management
Publication
unknown
unknown
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<Abstract>Large-sample empirical research by Cusumano et. al. found that US privately-held unicorns with platform capabilities command on average 123% premium over non-platforms. However, measuring the extent to which a company is platform or non-platform based is a difficult problem given the complexities of business organizations and how these activities interact with each other in non-linear ways.
This thesis attempts to address this by proposing a systems thinking, case-based approach to evaluate the key business activities of a firm with potential platform capabilities using the author’s proposed Platform Classification Matrix on five of the largest US privately-held firms: Epic Games, Databricks, Plaid Technologies, Stripe, and Instacart. Each business activity for a firm is classified as platform or nonplatform, and if it is a platform then it is assessed based on its revenue contributions to the firm and three strength metrics: Network effects, strength against multihoming, and new entrant deterrence. This matrix generates a ‘platform strength’ metric and allows identification of the platform activity with the most potential towards a winner take all or most case.
The author further proposes combining this matrix with a system dynamic approach to identify how differing business activities can boost or hinder the leading platform service which allows decision makers to assess whether retaining or subsidizing seemingly low-performing business lines is strategic for their leading platform.
The thesis concludes by advocating for using both methods as well as the generated metrics to perform a holistic analysis when evaluating firms with platform capabilities potential.</Abstract>
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