創業成功模式研究以手機軟體應用程式開發為例

Abstract

本研究將以戲智科技股份有限公司為研究對象，探討自從2007年底蘋果公司(Apple, Inc.)的智慧型手機iPhone開放軟體開發平台後，2008年底創立的戲智科技如何在蘋果所掀起的軟體創業熱潮下，成功地以其創新的商業模式的在市場中殺出重圍，於創業兩年內營業淨利成長率達一點八倍，並於手機軟體市場中獲得消費者青睞，取得國內外多項軟體研發獎項，並吸引國內多家創投表達強烈投資意願。本研究以美國著名的創業管理學者J.A.Timmons教授所提出的Timmons Model(1999) (機會、資源和團隊，外加創業家精神) 的創新創業管理模型為理論基礎，採質性研究中的參與觀察與深度訪談為研究方法，探討戲智成功的關鍵。研究結果中發現： 1. 創業家特質：執行長徐三泰本身的創業家特質鮮明，身為公司的主導人物，徐三泰時時觀察業界動態，精準描準業界仍未關注的未來科技與趨勢，總是早一步卡位取得領先地位，取得先進者優勢。 2. 順勢觀察，逆向思考，創造機會：戲智科技在iPhone開放軟體開發平台後初期，便嗅出這波強大的商機。在軟體設計上除了以終端消費者需求作為最高考量原則外，並創新地反向積極參與蘋果公司及微軟公司的比賽，以取得關注與合作機會。除了自身開發軟體外，戲智科技亦兼營OEM與ODM服務項目，跨iPhone、Win7手機與iPad等平台進行軟體研發，擴大公司產線，分散風險延長命脈。 3. 以創意、人脈作為最佳資源：「簡單就大賣」是戲智於軟體開發時重要的依循指標。以創新創意開發符合終端消費者需求的簡單軟體，是戲智開發之軟體總能登上Apple Store前幾名的關鍵因素。執行長為公司建立的廣泛人脈亦為關鍵資源，讓小公司在困境中能夠得到適時的幫助與及時雨般的資源協助。 4. 高彈性、高效率的精簡團隊：為了順應軟體市場開發的高度競爭與激烈變遷，公司的彈性與積極主動的開發為成敗關鍵，因此精簡但高效率的團隊成為致勝關鍵之一。

Since 2007, after Apple Inc. launched its epochal smart phone “iPhone”, and created the platform for freely developing the Apps for the smart phone devices, the numbers of startups based on developing Apps surged and mushroomed in the world, including Taiwan. This research targets BungBungame Technology Co., Ltd. (BBG), a Taiwanese successful startup company established in the end of 2008, to investigate how this company became prominent in the App market through its innovative entrepreneurial business model. Within the first two years after BBG’s establishment, several of its popular App have become the best sellers and triggered its growth rate of the net operating profit to 188%. BBG also won numerous App’s awards, which has brought several venture capitals’ attention and shown their great interests in investing BBG. To analyze BBG’s successful business model logically, this research is based on Timmons Model (1999) (Opportunity, Resource, and Team, plus Founder’s Entrepreneurship), adopting qualitative research method combining participant observation and in-depth interviews to scrutinize the key success factors in BBG’s entrepreneurial business model. From the investigation of this research, the key successful factors of BBG are shown below. 1. Entrepreneurship: Santai Hsu, the CEO of BBG owns vivid entrepreneurship. He observes and forecasts the market trend precisely; He always discovers and targets the potential technology earlier than other competitors. Hsu, the veritable pioneer leads BBG to enjoy the first mover advantage in highly competitive App market. 2. Trend observation and backwards thinking: BBG sniffed the business opportunity in the very early stage when iPhone just established the APP sharing platform. As to the design of App, BBG not only considers the needs of end users, but also innovatively contemplates backwards to adjust its strategy to join the App contests held by Apple Inc. and Microsoft. In addition, for the purpose of extending its business’s battle fields and avoiding the latent risk, BBG developed its own Apps for the B to C market while adopting B to B business model for providing OEM and ODM services cross different platforms, including iPhone, iPad, and Win7 phone. 3. Innovation and efficient networking are the key resource: When designing App, BBG followed the philosophy - “Simple is the key for the best seller”. The reason why BBG’s Apps can always occupy the top seats on the APP’s ranking is because BBG always develops the contents which fulfill the needs of the end users. The broad and efficient networking of the BBG is also the key resource to help the startup obtain the aid when they need. The in-time helps from their networking partners boosted their growth quicker than other competitors. 4. Simple team with high flexibility and efficiency: In the high competitive and swiftly changing market, being flexible becomes a very significant characteristic for a newborn corporation to survive. BBG’s simple but high flexible structure contributed to the success. It also initiated innovation and fought back to any attack from outside timely.