About the Book
To the seasoned professional, competitive intelligence (CI) has long been an established discipline that delivers bottom line results. Several degree programmes teach CI analysis techniques and the value of understanding the competitive landscape is well known to business graduates. Nevertheless, despite the growing acceptance of CI as an ethical and valuable activity, it seems to be an entrenched feature in only the largest organisations and is, all too often, the first budget to be cut when economies have to be made. Yet gaining and maintaining a competitive advantage is essential if we are to spot new opportunities or avoid being blindsided by an unexpected entrant to our competitive set. This is all the more important when times are hard and businesses are forced to innovate or branch out into new markets in order to survive. In this report we look at the process of CI from start to finish: what benefits will it bring and how can it be incorporated into the business structure; how do we actually carry out CI and who is the best person for the job; what are the implications of technology and social media to CI; and how do we ensure that our activities are legal and ethical?
The report is aimed at new entrants to the discipline and those who would like to expand their existing activities, and will be useful for both the management group responsible for implementing CI and the professional or team responsible for conducting and maintaining the CI function itself. Chapter 1 is a broad introduction to CI, providing a working definition of 'competitive intelligence' and a consideration of what this definition means to the CI professional and his or her business. Next is a discussion of the key benefits of CI including the identification of new opportunities and potential threats to the business, customer relationships, business development, pitching and tenders, marketing, and R&D. We then move on to a consideration of some key concepts that will recur throughout the book: what is the difference between information and intelligence, and how can intelligence be used to maximum effect? Finally for this chapter, we dispel some common misconceptions about CI and some potential barriers to adoption.
These include arguing against the persistent perception that CI is unethical or illegal, as well as touching on points of resistance such as a lack of resource to carry out CI activities and a belief that the business already knows everything it needs to know about its competitors. The competitive landscape incorporates both broad influences that are beyond the control of the company - the macro environment - and factors that are closer to home and have a two-way interaction with the business, such as its customers, competitors, and suppliers. Chapter 2 considers these issues, beginning with the PESTEL model for analysis of the macro environment: what are the political, economic, social, technological, environmental, and legal forces that surround and act upon the organisation? We also include ethical factors within this breakdown of the external competitive environment (the STEEPLE model).
Moving on to the micro environment, we look at Porter's classic 'five forces' model: the potential for new competition in the market; the threat of substitute products and/or services; the buying power of customers; the bargaining power of suppliers; and the strength of rivalry that exists within these forces. Finally, we look at the business environment in terms of your immediate competitor set. It should be remembered that your organisation's competitors may be gathering intelligence on the strength of your recruitment pool, your new product, or the likelihood of your best team members to defect, so this section offers an opportunity to reflect on how the business projects its own image into the competitive landscape After considering the competitive landscape, we turn in Chapter 3 to the nature and process of CI itself. First we look at the CI cycle from planning through to review, bearing in mind that CI can include both ongoing activity and discrete projects for a particular purpose, such as a marketing campaign.
The planning stage looks at key intelligence topics and questions (KITs and KIQs respectively); the section on gathering intelligence highlights some of the richest resources available to the CI professional; the analysis stage includes details on turning your data into actionable intelligence on which to base strategic decisions; and the dissemination section discusses ways to distribute and present intelligence internally to ensure it is used and exploited by the right people, to maximum effect. This chapter also covers the 'review' stage which, in fact, occurs more than once in the cycle. We look at the need to review data collected during the gathering stage, to ensure that appropriate information is being gathered and in volumes that can be reasonably handled and analysed. As well as this interim review stage, the chapter also discusses the need to review the CI cycle itself after dissemination, to ensure that KIQs have been met and the CI has delivered on its objectives before the cycle begins again.
In Chapter 4 we look at the importance of building a business case for CI to ensure that the organisation has bought into the concept at every level - from the board or most senior managers to those at the front line of customer engagement. CI has the power to create bottom line gains but its effects, if conducted and used properly, should be felt at numerous points throughout the business and thus much of the benefit is intangible or unquantifiable. When budgets are cut, many CI professionals and researchers comment that their skills are the first to be dismissed yet the truth is that in difficult economic conditions, ensuring the business maintains a competitive edge is more important than ever. In this chapter we look at ways to build the business case for CI and encourage organisation-wide buy-in to the value of intelligence. Chapter 5 gives practical tips for integrating the CI function into your organisation. Beginning with a discussion of the ideal structure, in which there is a dedicated CI professional or team sitting beside the organisation's decision makers, we move on to consider how some of these ideals can be incorporated into a more flexible model.
In particular, Chapter 5 outlines the need to audit your organisation's existing knowledge, information distribution systems and employee skills in order to identify where an intelligence function could reasonably be incorporated. In addition, this chapter describes the attributes and skills an organisation should look for in its CI professional or team. The role of technology in CI is in a constant state of flux, making it difficult to choose the right technology for your needs. Moreover, once you have committed to putting in place a CI function, a review of existing KM and CRM systems will be important. CI requires not only solutions for the gathering and analysis of information but also systems to ensure the resulting intelligence is stored in a manner that makes further analysis, retrieval, and distribution an efficient process that encourages intelligence sharing. There are numerous dedicated CI software packages on the market and Chapter 6 is not intended to provide reviews of the merits of these packages.
However, it does consider the difficulties associated with managing huge volumes of data and outlines some of the options available, including proprietary CI software, existing KM and CRM systems, and Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions. In Chapter 7 we look at the important and growing role played by social media in CI. This chapter takes both an inside-out and outside-in approach; in other words, what can your organisation learn about its competitors from analysis of their social media activity, and what can your competitors learn about you from your own online presence? The latter section covers topics such as organised social media releases and ad hoc activity that might be performed by individual staff members or teams, highlighting the potential for inadvertent information leaks if this data is analysed as a whole. We therefore also address the importance of putting in place social media policies to regulate the information flow from your organisation. Chapter 8 is dedicated to the legal and ethical implications of CI.
The book takes as its starting point an assumption that the CI professional does not intend to carry out illegal or unethical activities in the line of duty, and it is hoped that accusations of 'economic espionage' against the CI community are now outdated. However, it is still essential to understand the legal and ethical landscape within which CI activity will be carried out so that the intelligence professional can not only be sure that his or her activities are acceptable but also that the ethical values of the profession are upheld and promoted. There is, of course, a flip side to this argument: the point of CI is to create and maintain a competitive edge for the organisation, so having a clear understanding of where the line lies between ethical and unethical activity means that the CI professional can use every technique available provided it does not overstep that line. Being over-cautious about what is permitted could mean that the organisation loses competitive advantage if its rivals are gainfully employing more sophisticated CI techniques that are, in fact, perfectly legal and ethical.
Although this chapter is not intended to provide an exhaustive account of the legal and ethical rules that might be applicable in every circumstance, it can be used as a basis to build your own understanding of the rules within which your CI activity should be conducted. Part II consists of case studies from professionals and experts in the CI field and covers a range of industries. We hear how Greggs, the UK's leading bakery retailer, keeps up with the challenges of a changing High Street environment whilst ensuring that its customers are delighted with their experience. GVA, a leading UK property management company, tells us how CI is used to support a service-led culture that reinforces the brand. Next we take a look at the benefits that market research - both bespoke projects and off-the-shelf or syndicated programmes - can bring to CI activity in a case study from Acritas, a specialist professional services research consultancy with clients spanning the globe.
Wates Group, one of the UK's largest building and construction companies, describes how the competitive landscape is monitored and highlights the value that a centralised CI function can bring to a busy organisation with multiple information streams. Atos, a global IT services company and worldwide IT partner of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, talks us through the challenges faced by businesses when dealing with 'big data' - the huge volumes of information that need to be gathered and analysed by CI professionals on a daily basis.
Table of Contents:
Part 1: Making Competitive Intelligence Work for Your Organisation...1 Chapter 1: Introduction to competitive intelligence.3 What is competitive intelligence?...3 An introduction to some key concepts...4 Common concerns and misconceptions...6 Exploring the benefits of competitive intelligence - ...7 Chapter 2: The competitive landscape11 The macro environment...11 The micro environment...15 The business environment...20 Chapter 3: Competitive intelligence - a practical guide from planning to review...21 The competitive intelligence cycle..21 Planning...21 Gathering information23 Analysis...29 Dissemination and action...33 Review...34 Chapter 4: Building the business case for competitive intelligence.37 Assessing the value of competitive intelligence.37 Resources.38 Encouraging buy-in...41 Chapter 5: Integrating the competitive intelligence function.45 Auditing your existing resources...45 What else do we need?...47 Who is responsible for the competitive intelligence function?...48 Chapter 6: The role of technology...51 Introduction...51 Choosing a solution for your organisation...52 Chapter 7: Social media..55 Leveraging value from social media...55 From the inside out: information leaks...57 Chapter 8: Ethical and legal issues...61 Introduction...61 Legal compliance...62 Ethical compliance...66 Drawing up guidelines...68 Protecting your organisation against counter-intelligence activity.69 Summary..70 Part 2: Case Studies73 Case study 1: Greggs - Competitive intelligence in bakery retail...75 Identifying customer needs through the competitive intelligence programme..75 Monitoring the competitive environment in the changing high street...76 Innovation at Greggs.77 Product development..78 Tracking success...79 Case study 2: GVA - Using competitive intelligence to create a service-led culture that reinforces the brand81 Case study 3: Acritas - Insight to sharpen your competitive edge..85 Achieving synergy...86 Commissioning research - best practice.87 Making the case for research...88 Case study89 Case study 4: Wates Group - Managing competitive intelligence in the construction industry...93 Transforming the CI function from a dispersed to a centralised function...93 Using our intelligence95 Storing, disseminating, and using intelligence...96 The future97 Case study 5: Atos - The challenges of dealing with Big Data...99 What is Big Data?...99 How can Big Data help with competitive intelligence?...100 The back story to Big Data101 The challenges of handling Big Data...101 How Atos helps its clients..103 What technical solutions are available?104 The future...104 Further Reading...107
About the Author :
Soo Darcy has more than 12 years' experience as a market researcher and writer, and has worked for clients ranging from one-man start-ups to blue chip corporates. Her expertise includes new market assessment, product concept testing, customer and employee satisfaction, and competitor analysis. Soo is Managing Director of Papyrus Research, a market research consultancy she established in 2010 and now runs with her husband, Kieran. In 2008, Soo authored Competitive Intelligence for Law Firms (Ark). She holds a first degree in English literature and a Masters in Modern and Contemporary Studies, along with a Graduate Diploma in Law; in her spare time Soo is now studying for a PhD in contemporary literature. She lives in north east England with her husband and three children.
