MIT Sloan Management Review Article on How Would-Be Category Kings Become Commoners

Innovative companies may succeed in pioneering new markets, but often fail to dominate the categories they create.

Starting any business is hard, but creating a new category of business with a completely new model is a high-wire act. Companies have to convince investors, customers, the media, analysts, and others that something the world has long managed without is now a necessity and legitimately constitutes a new business category. While educating and selling the market on this new category, there’s also a business to build and a whole new business model to formulate. Pulling this off is like delivering a nonstop TED Talk while inventing the light bulb and building General Electric all at the same time.

About the Author

Rory McDonald is the Thai-Hi T. Lee Associate Professor of Business Administration in the Technology & Operations Management unit of Harvard Business School. Keith Krach, U.S. Under Secretary of State and the former chairman/CEO of DocuSign and Ariba (now SAP Ariba), was a founder of GMF Robotics and Rasna.

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