If you’re looking for a digital business ecosystem example, look no further than the IBM personal computer. The personal computer was born out of an ecosystem partnership between IBM, Microsoft, and Intel. IBM was the lead partner, orchestrating industry trends, but as the relationship grew, Intel and Microsoft gained power. They ultimately became the drivers of the ecosystem, earning more than IBM in the long run. But how does an ecosystem work? Let’s look at some of the most successful examples.
Consider two different digital business ecosystem examples. In the first example, Amazon is the core of the ecosystem, consisting of 67 partners. In the second example, the ecosystem includes Bright Pattern, a contact center software company, and Visual Contact, a customer experience solutions provider. Both companies have different focuses, but they share the same goal of improving customer experience (CX) without adding additional teams. Each ecosystem has different goals and varying degrees of flexibility, which allows the participants to innovate and respond to changing external conditions.
Developing a digital business ecosystem may extend beyond traditional markets. In order to stay relevant, organizations must think beyond discrete value propositions. For example, an organization in the air travel industry might be tasked with improving the passenger experience across multiple airlines. Similarly, an organization in the automotive industry may need to consider how self-driving cars will impact traditional car services. By enabling the development of digital applications for the automotive industry, organizations can build a digital ecosystem.