• OverviewAcross the three courses I currently teach, the through-line is the same: take the most current research in economics, strategy, and the science of innovation, and translate it into frameworks that students can actually use to design the next generation of organizations — not merely describe them. The economy is being remade by digitization, networked business models, and the rapid embedding of machine intelligence into how firms create, deliver, and capture value. My courses confront this directly, but on the foundation of durable frameworks rather than the throwaway 2×2s and topical "AI for business" tours that proliferate elsewhere. The frameworks come from working research in industrial organization, organization economics, the economics of innovation, and the empirical and experimental study of markets, firms, and platforms — the same material I have used in earlier teaching of strategic management, technology-based innovation and entrepreneurship, and research methods at the MBA, Executive MBA, PhD, and undergraduate levels at institutions in the U.S. and internationally. The result is a sequence of courses whose intellectual scaffolding is built to last beyond any particular technology cycle, even as the cases, the prototypes, and the frontier examples are refreshed every offering.

• The CoursesPlatform & Ecosystem Strategy (MBA — INNO 6230). Designing the next generation of multi-sided, networked, and AI-embedded businesses. Students learn the frameworks for analyzing platform value creation, operating-model design, and value capture, and apply them to live cases and original platform designs.Platform Business Models (Undergraduate and Honors — INNO 3303 and HONR 3310). The same intellectual architecture, pitched at the undergraduate and honors levels. Students move from first principles of value creation through working AI-enabled prototypes and an end-of-term original analysis.Designing Human + Machine Operating Models (MBA, new). As machine-based intelligence becomes cheap, abundant, and deeply embeddable, firms are no longer simply "adopting AI" — they are rethinking how work is done, how decisions are made, and how value is created. This course treats AI not as a tool but as a design element of the firm's operating model. Students examine how organizations combine human judgment and machine intelligence — what stays human, what is augmented, and what is delegated to algorithms, data systems, or, in some settings, automated and physical execution — and how those choices reshape workflows, roles, coordination, and ultimately the structure of the firm. The course is anchored in stable analytical frameworks even as the empirical territory moves quickly, with current research and emerging evidence refreshed each offering. It culminates in a full operating-model assessment of a real organization, with students working directly with AI-enabled tools to analyze and prototype alternative designs.

• Prerequisites: You are Most Welcome to JoinThese courses are designed as advanced introductions: rigorous in their underlying logic, but accessible to capable and well-prepared students from a range of intellectual backgrounds. They are well-suited to:• Aspiring or future organizational leaders, consultants, and strategists• Technologists, scientists, product managers, and other "builders" who want to design and strategize better• Future graduate students and researchers• Future policymakers• Anyone who is simply curious about how the modern, digitally and algorithmically organized firm works

Learning Process

The learning approach to the class is based on learning cycles that will tend to be one-week long.

Each week, we will focus on a particular aspect of our question, "How to design a platform business model?". Over the weeks, these will accumulate into a coherent framework-of-frameworks.

The ultimate goal within a given week is to have students internalize concepts, theory, frameworks and tools--and to be able to apply them. These concepts and tools are distilled and integrated from the existing body of research and practice. It is also important that you understand how those concepts relate to and build upon ideas from previous weeks.

To internalize these ideas, the bulk of in-class interactions will involve collaboratively working through real-world problems, through the eyes of platform executives and strategists. These case study discussions will offer an "in the cockpit" appreciation of business model economics and tradeoffs--and illustrate key concepts--by having you work through difficult decisions. Case studies will cover a wide range of industries, cultural and country contexts. It is important that you are well-prepared for case study discussions; and this is an excellent opportunity to learn to productively contribute to the discussion. You will also be assigned readings to help internalize lessons.

MaterialsThere is no suitable textbook that currently covers this material. Instead the professor will provide a combination of readings, and concepts and tools summarized within slides and teaching notes.

Sample Topics

• Designing ‘Product’ Value + Designing ‘Network’ Value

• Designing Essential Platform Features into your Operating Model

• Open and Closed Platforms and Choosing How to Organize your Surrounding "Ecosystem"

• "Managing" and "Governing" an Ecosystem

• Embedding Data Science into your Operating Model 

• Platform Pricing and Other Means of Value Capture

• When Traditional Firms and Platforms Collide

• Platform Wars!

• Making a Platform Grow from Zero to Takeoff

• Information, Knowledge and Truth on (Media) Platforms

• Collaborative Communities

• Hardware, Software and Humans Working Together

• Blockchain, Crypto, Smart Contracts, Centralized versus Decentralized Worlds, Metaverse

• Integrating data science and machine learning into business operations systematically

• Large language models, like Chat-GPT, and innovation, problem-solving, entrepreneurship

• Open and Distributed Innovation

• Government and Policy

A range of different industries will be covered...

Course Professor

Dr. Kevin Boudreau has worked and researched platforms, digital and data-intensive industries for decades. He is primarily affiliated with the D'Amore McKim School of Business, but also holds courtesy appointments at the College of Social Sciences and Humanities (Dept. Economics), and the Khoury School of Computer Science. 

Prior to joining Northeastern, Dr. Boudreau taught courses related to Business Strategy, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship at Harvard Business School, London Business School, and HEC-Paris. He hold degrees from MIT (PhD), the University of Toronto (MA), and the University of Waterloo (B.Eng.). His research has been generously supported by Google, the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), Microsoft, the Paris Chamber of Commerce, the Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, the Kauffman Foundation, G.E., and the Management Lab. 

Dr. Boudreau has held secondary academic appointments as the Chief Economist of the NASA Tournament Lab, the National Bureau of Economic Research, and the Institute for Quantitative Social Science and Laboratory for Innovation Science at Harvard University. Prior to entering academia, he was responsible for business leadership, strategy consulting and engineering responsibilities at The Economist, Qualcomm, Braxton Associates (Deloitte Strategy Consulting), Nortel Networks, the Canadian Space Agency. He has founded and advise a number of startups related to building digital platforms, networking, open innovation, crowdsourcing, data science and machine learning.

Testimonials

This is a newly-designed course, but here are several early testimonials.  I will continue to work to improve the course.

The course is very different from what I've taken before. It taught me a lot that I was previously unaware about and I also gained ample knowledge about platforms that I didn't know existed. The discussions were really helpful in learning about other people's perspectives which made the learning more enriching.

The instructor build a sense of community online which was impressive

The instructor is very enthusiastic and knowledgable. I enjoyed the class tremendously

It's clear the professor cares and thinks deeply about the subject. It's also clear he's not just teaching this class for requirements but genuinely interested in sharing his knowledge and listening to others on the the topic. It made for a much more free-flowing and thought provoking class.

Very interesting topic, and Prof. Boudreau posed questions to the class that really helped us to learn.

The professor was able to present the information in the course in a very clear and intriguing manner.

Professor Boudreau was an absolute pleasure to have as a professor. Welcoming, kind, thoughtful, and incredibly well-versed with the material, every student is lucky to learn from him.

This was my most interesting course this semester. The instructor was super passionate and knowledgeable.

Prof. Boudreau is an amazing speaker and the lectures were really interesting,

The professor was very knowledgable and brought a lot of experience to the field. He taught extremely well and made sure everyone felt involved in the class. Amazing class!

He really cares about his students.

The textbook and "teaching notes" the professor wrote where very helpful!

Class discussion was engaging even when we moved to zoom.

The lectures we had in this class were some of the most powerful I've had throughout college

One of the most useful and relevant courses I have ever taken. Super applicable to business and allows you to view the world around you differently.

Professor Boudreau is great and cares about his students... I would highly recommend this class to anyone.

Kevin is a stellar teacher and engages the class is super meaningful discussion. He is also incredibly well versed in the subject yet communicates his knowledge well. He shows far more than he tells, and he tells a lot.

Kevin were able to build a constructive way of thinking by connecting different perspectives and analyzing data.

I think this is one of the most interesting courses I have taken as part of the MBA program. Something I have never studied, but now I feel that I have the tools, understanding, and frameworks to look at platform businesses confidently and effectively.

Kevin was very welcoming, making the class comfortable to argue and show the points of view during class. This made me learn a lot with not only Kevin but everyone in class. I believe that because there was a small group, it also helped.

Kevin Boudreau is a very effective instructor. He provides a great balance of conceptual/lecture material to accompany the cases and is sure to include the class in discussions. He pushes students to think and apply course material in creative ways, and doesn't "hand-hold" through the learning process. I would highly recommend the professor and the course to any student.

Professor Boudreau is passionate about the course and engages the students with his energy and knowledge.

Kevin was the best professor I had, he was able to capture the class attention throughout the entire lecture. I could see that he is an updated professor, so he is all the time studying and bringing fresh information to class. He provided helpful readings and case studies, was very clear in his words and teaching method.

There was no textbook for the class but the professor used case studies and slides which were important to learn about new concepts and apply those concepts and theories through discussions. I recommend the professor continue using this approach because it is an effective and engaging way of teaching platform models.

The instructor was very knowledgable about the subject and effectively communicated new theories. He also made the class very engaging by encouraging discussions by asking questions and using case studies to explain platforms and their mechanisms. I really enjoyed the class because I learnt something new and was able to voice my perspectives while gaining new insights from other students.

Great professor, highly recommend! Learned a lot as a non business major, favorite class this semester

Classes are always interesting and intellectually challenging. Professor Boudreau will always help students walk through question if they are unable to answer. The interactive environment Professor Boudreau cultivated was the ideal medium to maximise learning in this course.