The Gorilla Game: An Approach to Investing in High-Tech Stocks

Geoffrey A. Moore The Gorilla Game was published in March 1998, before the internet bubble burst, and revised again in March 1999, at the bubble’s peak. XD For a master management consultant, inventing terms is the best marketing technique. The Gorilla Game’s central idea is that investors in high-tech stocks should choose the few companies with outstanding competitive advantages, improving their chances of profit. The book calls these companies ‘gorillas.’ Moore’s Crossing the Chasm and Inside the Tornado became bestsellers in high-tech venture capital. He also founded The Chasm Group around the conceptual frameworks in these two books. The framework describes the distinctive way high-tech markets, unlike other markets, develop in response to the challenges of the Technology Adoption Life Cycle. Specifically, in most cases these markets nurture vigorous companies able to sustain their competitive advantages. The book calls them ‘gorillas’ and builds a comprehensive investment strategy model to help investors buy and hold their shares more effectively. The chasm and tornado theories are highly regarded in high tech. At leading institutions such as Harvard, MIT, and Stanford, Moore’s two books are assigned as required graduate reading in business and engineering schools. Many VC firms also require managers of their portfolio companies to read them. At Cisco, HP, Microsoft, SAP, and other companies, they are desk references for senior executives.