research

How Executives Find & Value Information

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A recent Forbes survey of 354 executives at large US companies indicates that competitor analysis is the most critical area for research. The Internet is valued more than any other information source, including internal, external and personal contacts as well as newspapers, magazines, TV, radio, conferences and trade shows. Connecting with the executive suite has always been a challenge for competitive intelligence professionals, but now that they can access information so readily, it’s even worse since it can give one a false sense of power! Today more than ever, we need to help our executives realize the value of accurate, insightful intelligence–which is NOT posted on the Internet!

Improve your Competitiveness: Learn about AIIP

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Read excerpts from Chris Kenneally’s interview with AIIP leaders Marcy Phelps and Linda Rink and find out about this great organization of 600 information professionals in over 20 countries who run their own businesses and support businesses which range from start-ups to Fortune 1000 companies. AIIPers do a lot more than simply find information: many members provide analysis to help clients make sense of the information, and provide ongoing updates.

How Corporate Recruiting Adds to a Competitive Intelligence Effort

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Dorothy Beach shares her experience in setting up competitive intelligence in the recruiting space. Through her experience, Dorothy shows how counterintelligence is often more valued in recruiting than in other parts of a company. She outlines 6 steps to obtain high level management buy-in to develop a CI gathering process.

Develop Proactive Competitive Intelligence through Business Blindspot Analysis & Executive Personality Profiling

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I find it interesting to partner two analytical tools: business blindspots and executive personality profiling to predict where a company is going. In business blindspots, you seek to uncover the biases of your company, competitors or co-workers and recognize that you have them too. We all have blind spots based on our experience in life! When you combine this with executive personality profiling, you can come up with some insightful conclusions such as predicting company’s actions, including your competitors.

Intelligence 2.0: Creating New Business Models–SLA 2009

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Asymmetric information models are passé and information interpretation is NOW: the ability to understand and anticipate! Many of the models and processes that we use to collect competitive intelligence and conduct our various forms of analysis–including voice of the customer and market research–do not lead to innovation. So often these processes concentrate on what customers “want” rather than what they “need,” and they don’t know what they need. Innovation is most easily defined as productivity. Yet innovation is a sloppy process. Employees innovate best within a culture of “learning and growing from mistakes” rather than being punished for making mistakes. Learn how to articulate the truth in ways that management will listen (cooperative leadership).

Just How Social is Social Networking?

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In most cases on LinkedIn, it’s a loose connection, and you’ll never hear from that person again unless they want to sell you something, fill jobs or find a job. Yet I do connect with many of my pals and meet new people who share my interests on Twitter and we do engage through tweets, albeit with the 140 character limitation. The pendulum is swinging back to more traditional marketing for me since I still get more business from word of mouth marketing and referrals from existing customers and friends.

2014 Update: Books on Analytic Tools for Competitive Intelligence

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This is an update of books on competitive intelligence tools and techniques from a 2009 blog. Analysis Without Paralysis was updated in 2012 and now includes 12 techniques, 2 more than the first edition in 2006. Mercyhurst University students and staff published The Analyst’s Cookbook, Volume 2, available only in Kindle format.

Take a Cooperative Approach to Conflict Resolution

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I like the cooperative approach shared in Hot Buttons to solve conflicts with colleagues as it’s objective, focuses on constructive communication, and not “who dunnit? While cooperative intelligence skills of leadership, connection and communication don’t guarantee job security, they will help you stand out since many people have lower emotional intelligence: that is they have weak people skills.

Print Media Demise: Farewell to Colorado’s Rocky Mountain News

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Today is the last day for Colorado’s Rocky Mountain News. While we will miss our Rocky Mountain News, Denver is a mid-tier large city which challenges the limits of supporting two local papers. Print media in its many forms is threatened as people read their news, for free, on the Internet before it hits the newspapers. We have become a nation of “6 or 10 points of how to do something,” which while interesting, is cursory communication. Will we lose our competitive edge due to relying on this more shallow electronic communication?

© 2024 Ellen Naylor