Innovation in the software industry: two case studies

This paper examines how two small companies adopted new business strategies to exploit the market opportunities for web-enabled software. The first case study (Beaumont Travel) transformed itself from a bus company into a software house for the transportation industry, producing software modules for central daily business management functions and field-bus passenger and vehicle maintenance information. In the second case study, a small software house (QEB Solutions) saw the opportunity to develop web portals to existing back-end systems, and has worked with a range of customers to develop a new revenue stream that will support the company in future years. Both these business projects were undertaken via the Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) scheme, which supports university academics working with industry on strategic projects