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out of the box
CI SOFTWARESANITYCHECK KNOW
WHATTECHNOLOGIESARERIGHTFORYOURAOUL FARCOT, Cipher Systems
In todays increasingly complexcompetitive environment,
softwareapplications are essential in successfulcompetitive
intelligence (CI)organizations. Various technologiessupport the
search, analysis, anddissemination of strategic research
details. And relational databases oftenstore the information
gathered for itsfuture use. Weve come a long way frompaper-based
filing systems and bulgingrolodexes.
A key concern for intelligenceprofessionals is choosing the
right toolsto meet current needs, while preparingfor the future.
Unfortunately, alltechnologies are not created equal. Inaddition,
if you choose the wrongsolution for your specific needs,
yourproject is bound to fail. Increase yoursuccess rate by
understanding the basicsoftware categories before you beginyour
search for the right application.
There are two major softwarecategories available to support
CIprocesses: enterprise solutions andstand-alone software. Each
fulfillsdifferent organizational needs and posesa unique set of
selection criteria. Youneed to understand which category isright
for you and then you can evaluateyour options within that
category.
ENTERPRISE SOLUTIONSEnterprise solutions provide the
answer to the problem of too muchdata spread across
multipledepartments. They supply acomprehensive solution for
CIorganizations. Some examples ofenterprise CI solut ions are:
eWincite Intranet Server
Knowledge Xchanger Knowledge.Works
Strategy! Enterprise Wincite LAN Server Wisdom Builder
Enterprise solutions are typicallyserver-based with minimal
softwarerequired on users machines. They
support multiple users, accessing thesesolutions simultaneously.
Throughcollaborative functions, they typicallycreate and enhance
synergy amongseveral user groups. Enterprise solutionsoften support
all phases of the CIprocess including informationacquisition,
analysis, and widespreaddissemination.
An important distinguishing factorof enterprise solutions is
their capabilityto grow with your organization and beextended to
multiple divisions, acrossregions, or even across borders
forinternational organizations. They canoften be integrated with
your existingsoftware infrastructure on multiplelevels. For
example, enterprise solutionscan leverage data from your
CRMapplication and take advantage of yourexisting email and
messaging systems.
Enterprise solutions in the CI spacesupport organizations with a
significantamount of data (such as news feeds,web sources, existing
repositories) and
established processes within a researchanalysts group overseen
by a CImanager. They enable the processeswithin the dedicated group
whilesupporting the dissemination of theresults throughout the
entireorganization.
An effective enterprise solutionusually relies on an internal
serverconfiguration that allows mult iple usersto access, search,
retrieve and shareinformation across your entire
organization. You must have thetechnical resources necessary to
build
and support this environment. I f youdo not, you may consider
externalhosting, or application service provider(ASP) options.
Because CI is not aone-size-fi ts-al lprocess, most enterprise
solutions arenot out-of-the-boxinstallations. They
require extensive configuration andcustomization to meet your
specificneeds. Consequently, they can be rathercostly and require
time to implement.
Overall, enterprise solutionsimplementation requires
significantsupport from management andtechnical resources. An
extensiveamount of time should be spentdefining functionality and
technicalrequirements up front to make sure theresulting
implementation is a success.
STANDALONE SOFTWAREStandalone software meets specific,
immediate needs. These technologiesgive a productivity boost to
your CIorganization. Selected wisely, these toolsmay be pieced
together over time toform a complete enterprise solution.
Standalone software tools areusually client-based. They may
requirethe installation of the main softwaredirectly on each users
machine. These
tools are typically focused on one ortwo specific CI functions.
Theyenhance the productivity of individualresearch analysts or
businessprofessionals, rather than whole groups.Most CI tools in
this category areconsidered unstructured informationmanagement
technology geared tosupport the day-to-day production ofcompetitive
intelligence.
Standalone software tools in the CIspace often fall into one of
the
following categories. This is in directcontrast to enterprise
solutions that are
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out of the box
typically comprised of all or many ofthese functions, in
addition todocument or content managementfeatures and workflow
support.
Search and retrieval (CopernicAgent, BullsEye)
Web monitoring (Botbox, C4U) Text/data mining (BrandPulse,
TextAnalyst, QL2 Software) Graphical analysis/text
visualization
(Anacubis, Brimstone Intelligence) Text categorization (Temis -
Insight
DiscoverertmClusterer, ClearForest) Report production
(Crystal
Reports, Ciphers Report Wizard)
Standalone software tools have amuch smaller impact on
theorganizations budget and technicalresources. Designed primarily
forindividual or small group use, you oftendo not have to get
buy-in from uppermanagement or rely heavily on internaltechnical
resources. Time toimplementation is much less than forenterprise
solutions. However, there arestill some important
organizational
considerations.Although you may purchase
individual software tools in a piecemealfashion, you cannot do
so blindly. Makesure that the tools you select are incompliance
with your organizations ITstandards (such as operating
systems,security requirements, and downloadprocedures). Consider
future growthand focus on tools that embrace openstandards and easy
integration,especially those that offer a migration
path to a total enterprise solution.Now that you know the
categories,
define the selection criteria.
ENTERPRISE SOLUTIONS SELECTION CRITERIA
Select an enterprise solution if youhave a large organization to
support andhave access to the technical resourcesnecessary to
implement a complexsolution. You should also gain
management support and spend a goodamount of time defining and
validating
your system requirements prior toselecting a solution. Consider
thefollowing details when evaluating yourenterprise solution
options:
Technical requirements:
storage/server client requirements connectivity security
Content management
requirements:
selected websites and webinformation sources
specialized trade information
databases existing legacy databases fee-based news databases
Collaboration and sharing
requirements:
Ability to capture information fromfield representatives who are
incontact with key customers orother key groups in the
financialmarketplace.
Ability to capture information from
internal and external experts(research analysts,
executives/managers) who have an extensivenetwork of contacts and
in-depthknowledge of the industry.
Once you have defined these andconsidered other related
businessrequirements, you will need to look forapplications that
meet your specificneeds. For details on some of the moreprevalent
CI enterprise solutions
consult The Fuld CI Software Report(www.fuld.com). For a
morecomprehensive listing of selectioncriteria referenceAssessing
CompetitiveIntelligence Software: A Guide to
Evaluating CI Technology, by FranceBouthillier and Kathleen
Shearer.
STANDALONE SOFTWARE SELECTION CRITERIA
Individual software tools are
usually less costly and easier toimplement than enterprise CI
solutions.
Most tools also provide you with thepossibil ity of a trial
period before youpurchase the product, usually not anoption with
larger enterprise solutions.Select software in this category if
youhave a relatively small group ororganization to support and few
coreproduct users. These tools are also agood selection if you have
limitedresources.
The main challenges in selectingstandalone software
technology:
Lots of tools lots of vendors so little time!
No comprehensive product surveys
available, only partial surveys of themarket (e.g.,
UnstructuredInformation Management - AnOverview of the Enterprise
Search,Text Analysis, and VisualizationMarket published by
Infosphere inMarch 2003 www.infosphere.se).
No reliable non-biased organizationcurrently evaluating, ranking
andproviding recommendations fortools in each functional area.
Before beginning your evaluation,determine which technology area
ismost critical to your day-to-dayoperations (document
management,search and retrieval, textsummarization, etc.). Then,
select asubset of vendors within that categoryto review. Sites
likeknowledgestorm.com and ciseek.comare good places to start.
Finally, contacteach individual vendor to assess thequality and
capability of their particular
software offering.Here are a few basic criteria to
consider:
Do the features and key userbenefits meet your
userrequirements?
Do the technical requirementsmeet your company guidelines?
How many years has the vendorbeen in business?(we recommendat
least two)
How many customers are activelyusing the product?
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How many dedicated programmerssupport the product?(werecommend
at least three)
What is the fixed and recurrentlicensing cost?
What are the maintenancerequirements of the product (costand
labor)?
In the end, you need to selectsoftware that not only meets
yourneeds, but that you feel confident willbe enhanced and
supported for sometime to come. Further, the softwareshould have
the capability to beintegrated into a larger enterprise
solution as your organization grows.
ENTERPRISE VS. STANDALONE THE FINAL VERDICT
When it comes down to it, thecategory of technologies you pursue
willbe based on your available resources andspecific organizational
needs. In anycase, the decision is an essentialcomponent of the
software selectionprocess. It is the only way to properly
define the subset of vendors andproducts that can appropriately
satisfyyour requirements.
Raoul Farcot is vice president at Cipher
Systems. He is responsible for managing
Ciphers technology and strategic research
projects for Ciphers corporate cli ents.
Raoul can be reached at
[email protected] or
(410) 349-0537.
