From Publishers Weekly
Cusumano, a professor at MIT’s Sloan School of Management and coauthor of Microsoft Secrets, offers a comprehensive overview of the software business and how the right approach is key to the success of technology companies. Cusumano first identifies the key distinction between software and other businesses. In fact, he believes it is unlike every other business because software doesn’t have one purpose but becomes whatever function it is handling for a particular customer or company. As a result, software companies must sell both products and services, according to the author. The two typical ways software companies operate is by getting the lion’s share of revenues from new product sales or via IT consulting. The third way is what the author calls “hybrid solutions companies—software firms that have some new product sales, but derive as much as 80% of their revenues from services and “maintenance.” However, what’s essential for company success in t (more…)

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