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New research on open source distribution from Harvard Business School faculty on issues including crowdsourcing, diaspora-based outsourcing, and the free and open distribution of products into a developer community for modification and redistribution.
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How to Get Companies to Make Investments That Benefit Everyone

by Lane Lambert

Want more organizations to give back to their communities? Frank Nagle says the success of open source software offers an innovative—and unexpected—roadmap for social good. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

Open Source Software and Global Entrepreneurship

by Nataliya Langburd Wright, Frank Nagle, and Shane Greenstein

Does more activity in open source software development lead to increased entrepreneurial activity and, if so, how much, and in what direction? This study measures how participation on the GitHub open source platform affects the founding of new ventures globally.

The Hidden Benefit of Giving Back to Open Source Software

by Kristen Senz

Firms that allow their software programmers to "give back" to the open source community on company time gain benefits—even though competitors might benefit too, says Frank Nagle. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

Digital Initiative Summit: The Business of Crowdsourcing

by Dina Gerdeman

Gaining the community's trust is vital to building a successful business with crowdsourcing. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

The Tricky Business of Managing Web Advertising Affiliates

by Kim Girard

Advertising through numerous website affiliates potentially helps marketers get more bang for their buck. But the far-flung systems can also lead to fraud, says Ben Edelman. What's the best way to manage your advertising network? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.

How to Do Away with the Dangers of Outsourcing

by Ranjay Gulati

The collapse of the Rana Plaza garment factory in Bangladesh should be a warning to companies that embrace outsourcing, says Professor Ranjay Gulati. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.

Learning Curve: Making the Most of Outsourcing

by Paul Guttry

Companies that view outsourcing as an easy way to offload commodity work are missing powerful improvements to be gained by working closely with service providers, says Professor Robert S. Huckman. Open for comment; 0 Comments.

Diasporas and Outsourcing: Evidence from oDesk and India

Re: William R. Kerr

Diaspora-based exchanges have been important for centuries, but the online world reduces many of the frictions these networks solved. How do the Internet and diaspora networks connect? This study investigated the importance of Indian diaspora connections on the oDesk platforms for outsourcing. oDesk is the world's largest online labor market, processing $30 million per month in contracts as of May 2012. This research finds strong evidence that diasporas still matter and influence economic exchanges even when many frictions are minimized. In fact, the case study suggests more often than not that diaspora use increases as familiarity with the platform increases. This suggests a longer-term complementarity between diaspora networks and online tools that may aid the persistence of these networks. At the same time, the oDesk evidence also makes clear that the role of diaspora networks should not be overstated. While they contributed to India's success on oDesk, diaspora connections were clearly not a driving force in India becoming the top destination for oDesk contracts. Key concepts include: The frictions that online platforms like oDesk minimize are frictions that diaspora networks have historically been used to overcome. This makes their role for future economic exchanges uncertain. Diaspora connections still matter. Ethnic Indians working in countries outside of India are 32 percent (9 percentage points) more likely to choose a worker in India than non-ethnic Indians. Yet, even with the increased likelihood of outsourcing to India, diaspora connections played a very small role in India's rapid development on oDesk. In fact, diaspora connections appear to follow rather than lead the platform's development. Diaspora connections occur through the actions of many people in small ways and the extreme concentration of impact due to a few key people. Diasporas will continue to use online platforms in an effective manner, but diasporas will not be responsible for a country's overall success on the platform, at least in countries of moderate to large size. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.

Immigrant Innovators: Job Stealers or Job Creators?

by Carmen Nobel

The H-1B visa program, which enables US employers to hire highly skilled foreign workers for three years, is "a lightning rod for a very heated debate," says Harvard Business School professor William Kerr. His latest research addresses the question of whether the program is good for innovation, and whether it impacts jobs for Americans. Key concepts include: An uptick in the number of H-1B visas given to Indian and Chinese engineers correlates with an increase in the number of US patents. The H-1B program seems to have no overall effect on the number of jobs held by American-born scientists and engineers, nor does it affect the number of patents from inventors who have Anglo-Saxon names. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.

Mixing Open Source and Proprietary Software Strategies

by Julia Hanna

Open source and proprietary software development used to be competing strategies. Now software firms are experimenting with strategies that mix the two models. Researcher Gaston Llanes discusses recent research into these "mixed source" strategies. Key concepts include: Software companies are taking a "best of both worlds" approach by creating products that use a combination of OS and proprietary software code. The researchers wanted to get a clearer sense of when a profit-maximizing firm should adopt a mixed-source business model and what that model might look like under different circumstances. Results indicate recurring patterns and strategies that managers can take into consideration when setting strategy. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.

How Should We Think About the Exportation of Jobs?

by James Heskett

It looks like productivity increases in the U.S. are accommodating growth with little increase in the number of jobs. Doesn’t it suggest that the jobs that people do hold must be getting better? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.

Supply Chain Risk: Deal With It

by David Stauffer

Suddenly your supply chain is full of weak links, everything from terrorism to political instability to dock strikes. Could you and your customers withstand a disruption? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.

Should Global Business Initiatives Be Devalued?

by James Heskett

Are executives who ask this question overreacting to current events? Or, if the current geopolitical events are merely symptoms of a greater and longer struggle, should we begin to think about devaluing, discounting, or postponing global initiatives in favor of more predictable business investments "closer to home"? Closed for comment; 0 Comments.

The Future of IT Consulting

by Sarah Jane Johnston

A new Harvard Business School working paper traces the evolution of IT management consulting and trends for the future. Read our e-mail interview with professor Richard Nolan and HBS Interactive Senior Vice President Larry Bennigson. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.

Wrapping Your Alliances In a World Wide Web

by Andrew McAfee

HBS professor Andrew McAfee researches how the Internet affects manufacturing and productivity and how business can team up to get the most out of technology. Closed for comment; 0 Comments.