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Wednesday, November 25, 2009
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VOLUME 1
ISSUE 11
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Using profit optimization tools to guide CI (Heads Up Systems).
Puget Sound SCIP Chapter May meeting.
Gail Thomas, gfmine@netscape.net
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Summary: The Puget Sound SCIP chapter continues to have excellent programs. Here Gail Thomas reviews the May meeting, including a description of the featured linear equiation programming software and how CI professionals can use it to create a product-market scenario.
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If you missed the May PSBIG May presentation, you missed another outstanding presentation! Heads-up Systems, located in West Linn, Oregon, offered our members and guests insight into how using linear equation programming software can help give CI professionals an edge in the marketplace. Head Ups’ Enterprise Optimizer Model, unlike traditional spreadsheet computation software, allows the user to input specific variables unique to the company or industry to compute optimum results. For years computations for production, sales, and revenue has been based on averages. However, with EO, the user can make value based decision-making for operations such as increasing efficiency in multi-plant systems, determining more profitable product mixes, and supporting incoming orders with real time pricing data.
So how does this relate to the CI professional? The tools relates directly to scenario research in the competitive market, combining constraints, opportunities and creative thinking. Heads Up gave an excellent example of applying the EO model to a product-market scenario, using the following:
- your competitor’s increase in ad spending.
- the suppliers’ capacity.
- your usual “small” budget resources to compete.
Using a few basic rules such as industry optimization, market evolution and economic strength, the model can compute various cases of profit optimization, offering value to unknowns. Of course, the more information a CI professional has at his or her disposal, the better!
We wish to thank Chris Nelson and Harry Turvey for their stimulating presentation. Chris and Harry can be reached at Heads Up Systems, LLC, 5695 Hood Street, West Linn, OR 97068, 503-577-2258, Hturvey@att.net.
Other organizational information
There were quite a few new attendees at the May meeting, both at the presentation and afterward. Approximately 25 people from large and small Puget Sound companies attended. PSBIG/PS-SCIP chapter is strong financially and attendees were reminded of the voluntary $30/year dues and the value of joining SCIP.
The term "intelligence" was discussed, including strong interest in changing our group name from “Puget Sound Business Intelligence Group” to “Puget Sound Competitive Affairs Forum” or some iteration thereof. Additional discussion about this will take place at the next meeting.
PSBIG strongly encourages local members to get involved as speakers at SCIP events and with other groups interested in beefing up their competitive affairs/intelligence skills. An esprit de corp effort will be made among chapter members to peer-review speaking proposals. The goal is increase the acceptance percentage of the chapter’s proposals at SCIP events as well as other conferences, from local to international.
The group engaged in a lively roundtable discussion about how to present an analyst’s work in an "immediately useful" way for other business professionals within their own company who aren’t necessarily analysts or researchers but could find value in the analysis being presented. Ideas were exchanged about proven techniques. Other topics discussed included possible themes for SCIP's 2003 international conference and the growing acceptance of the practice of CI as a mainstream business function.
Background:
Gail Thomas is a former environmental scientist who began her interest in CI and Knowledge management during her MBA internship with Benchmarking Partners (now Surgency) in Boston, MA.Starting as a field geologist and laboratory analyst with Woodward-Clyde Consultants, she worked her way up into environmental policy analysis with ICF Consulting as a technical analyst.Her most recent position involved conducting market research and sales for the Women in Technology (TechNet) Forum helping to expand the venue from technology to the broader scientific community. Gail is an avid health enthusiast and her hobbies include sport fencing, conducting cosmetic industry research for several online Rosacea support communities, and lecturing on the evils of refined sugar. She is an active member of DigitalEve, the MIT Enterprise Forum as well as the Puget Sound Business Intelligence Group and considers her greatest accomplishment the 21-year lifespan of her beloved dog, Mincemeat (RIP).
Copyright 2002 Society of Competitive Intelligence Professionals
SCIP.online, volume 1 number 11, June 18, 2002
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