2_What CI is and is Not

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What Competitive IntelligenceIs And Is Not

Summer 2011

Dr. Ahmed Nassar


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Dr. Ahmed Nassar

Information that has

been analyzed to the

point where you can

make a decision.

Spying or espionage.

Spying implies illegal

or unethical activities.

While spying does takeplace, it is a rare activity.

Corporations do not

want to find themselves

in court, nor do theywant to upset

shareholders.

What CI Is And Is Not 2

1. CI Is CI Is Not


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Dr. Ahmed Nassar

2. CI Is CI Is Not

A tool to alert

management to early

warning of both threats

and opportunities.

A crystal ball. There is

no such thing as a true

forecasting tool.

Intelligence gives

corporations good

approximations of

reality, near- and long-term. It does not

predict the future.

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Dr. Ahmed Nassar

A means to deliver

reasonable

assessments.

CI offersapproximations and

best views of the

market and the

competition. It is not a

peek at the rival's

financial books.

Database search.

Database searches offer

just that data.

They do not replacehuman beings who

need to make decisions

by examining the data

and applying their

common sense,

experience, analytical

tools, and intuition.4

3. CI Is CI Is Not

What CI Is And Is Not


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Dr. Ahmed Nassar

CI can mean many

things to many people.

A research scientist

sees it as competitor'snew R&D initiatives.

A salesperson considers

it an insight on pricing.

A senior manager sees

it as a long-term view

on markets & rivals.

The Internet is not a

deliverer of intelligence.

It is a communications

vehicle. You can find hints at

competitive strategy,

but also rumors.

Its reach is great, but

you need to sift, sort,

and be selective on its

content.5

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A way for companies to

improve their bottom

line.

Companies, such as

NutraSweet, have

attributed many

millions of dollars inearned revenue to their

intelligence usage.

Paper info.

Paper info does not

deliver intelligence.

Face-to-face discussions

are most effective to

convey CI information.

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5. CI Is CI Is Not



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A way of life, a process

for everyone in the

company not just

the strategic planning

or marketing staff.

It is a process by which

critical information isavailable for anyone

who needs it and their

ability to use it.

Its not a job for one

smart CI person, as

he/she cannot do it all !

The CI specialist keeps

management informed

and ensures that others

in the organizationbecome trained in ways

to apply this tool within

each of their SBUs.

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6. CI Is CI Is Not




Part of all best-in-class

companies.

High-quality, best-in-

class corporations

apply CI consistently.

CI is not an invention

of the 20th century.

CI has been around as

long as business itself.

CI may have operated

under a different name

or under no name atall, but it was always

present.

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7. CI Is CI Is Not




The best-in-class

intelligence efforts

receive their direction

and impetus from the

CEO.

While the CEO may

not run the program,he dedicates budget

and personnel and

promotes its use.

Software.

Software does not yield

intelligence nor truly

analyze it.

It collects, contrasts, and

compares.

True analysis is a processof people reviewing and

making sense of the

information.

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8. CI Is CI Is Not




Seeing outside yourself.

Companies that

successfully apply CI

gain an ability to see

outside themselves.

CI more often than not

triggers new innovative

ideas and products.

A news story. Mediareports may contain

interesting CI info, but

they are very broad and

are not timely enough

for managers concerned

with specific competitive

issues.

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Dr. Ahmed Nassar

Both short- and long-

terms. A company can

use CI for many

immediate decisions: e.g.How to price a product

or place an ad.

The same set of data can

also be used to decide onlong-term product

development or market

positioning.

A spreadsheet (Excel).

Spreadsheets give some

quantifiable result.

Numbers only addressone aspect of the problem.

Other aspects are

qualitative. They include

management thinking,marketing strategy, and

ability to innovate.

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Dr. Ahmed Nassar 12

Thank You Very Much


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2_What CI is and is Not