David S. Evans -
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David Evans is an economist, business advisor and a recognized global
authority on the design and implementation of complex business strategies and
business models.
David has more than 25 years of experience helping companies worldwide
design business strategies to overcome the “chicken and egg” problem of
getting multiple customer groups on board the same platform at the same time.
David and his long-time collaborator, Dick Schmalensee of MIT Sloan School
of Management, are among the early pioneers in the research of “multi-sided
markets” and the economic principles that inform the unique design of business
models, pricing and incentive structures, and product design for these platform-based
businesses. These insights and the proprietary framework that David
developed for multi-sided businesses are the underpinning of his latest book
Catalyst Code: The Strategies Behind the World’s Most Dynamic Companies (Harvard
Business School Press, May 2007). He has written more than 80 academic
papers, articles and op-eds related to this topic.
A frequent keynote speaker, David is often called upon to lead thoughtprovoking
industry discussions and to share his insights on the success and
failure of businesses worldwide. He has keynoted internationally, in a wide
range of executive forums in the payment, digital media and mobile fields.
David is the co-author of several books including Paying with Plastic: The Digital
Revolution in Buying and Borrowing (The MIT Press, 2005) which has been called
the "definitive source on the payment card industry," and Invisible Engines: How
Software Platforms Drive Innovation and Transform Industries (The MIT Press, 2006),
which won the award for best business book of 2006 from the Association of
American Publishers.
David is a visiting professor at University College London and the University of
Chicago. He is the founder of Market Platform Dynamics (MPD), a boutique
consulting firm that helps businesses leverage economics and quantitative
methods for growth and profit. David has a Ph.D. and undergraduate degree in
economics from the University of Chicago. He also serves on the boards of
several high-technology companies and is a longtime advisor to some of the
largest platform-based companies in the world.