What do Uber (taxi services), Airbnb (lodging services), Facebook (social networking), Alibaba (e-commerce), and Paypal (online payment) have in common? The obvious things include: All of them drive their core operations on internet platforms and have astronomically high valuations without any notable physical assets. Not so apparent, however, is the fact that they excel at using Application Program Interfaces (APIs) to drive competitive advantage. As we highlighted in an earlier article, APIs are a technology that allow firms to interact and share information with other firms at an unprecedented scale, taking advantage of the far-reaching progress in digitization and the rising influence of software in our day-to-day lives.
Are You Using APIs to Gain Competitive Advantage?
Four approaches that work.
April 13, 2015
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New!
HBR Learning
Strategy Planning and Execution Course
Accelerate your career with Harvard ManageMentor®. HBR Learning’s online leadership training helps you hone your skills with courses like Strategy Planning and Execution. Earn badges to share on LinkedIn and your resume. Access more than 40 courses trusted by Fortune 500 companies.
How to develop a winning strategy—and put it to work.