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Thursday, November 26, 2009
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VOLUME 1
ISSUE 15
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European growth of competitive intelligence.
Matthew Blagg, EMEA Consulting, sheilac@emeaconsulting.com
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Summary: CI in Europe is still at an early development phase, but there are definite signs that recognition and adoption are growing. Half the battle in growing CI acceptance is building awareness of CI as a discipline. Sheila Chaiban looks at CI from a European perspective, providing an overview of conflicting definitions, levels of awareness, and future challenges to integration and implementation.
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U.S. organizations have long recognised the importance of Competitive Intelligence (CI) as a strategic tool for competing in today’s economic environment. Behind every market leader is an integrated CI function that is incorporated into that organization’s strategy planning. Successfully gathering and analysing intelligence on your competitive landscape is essential.
CI in Europe, on the other hand, is not as advanced: it is still at an early development phase. Organizations on this side of the Atlantic are starting to recognise that CI can be the differentiating factor in positioning themselves against the competition. 2002/2003 is an important time for CI across Europe, with definite signs that recognition and adoption are growing. However, as a discipline, it is still shrouded by confusion and misconception.
Definition
Ask 50 professionals what they understand CI to be and I guarantee you will get a different answer every time. European definitions of CI range from web searching and basic market research to strategy consulting. The confusion doesn’t stop there, with several organizations associating CI with industrial espionage and raiding competitors’ rubbish bins for sensitive information.
CI as a discipline is still considered by some in European organizations as an unethical practice with which they do not wish to be associated. Compare this view with another commonly accepted opinion that CI is simply profiling your organization’s direct competitors, and you begin to understand why CI is a misunderstood concept in Europe.
Unfortunately, the conflicting definitions are not limited to end users but are also apparent within the industry when you consider the ranging services on offer from CI consultancies.
There is no standard, accepted definition of CI. However, one way to explain it is:
Competitive Intelligence is the discipline of breaking down the matrix of a market, and of providing targeted intelligence on an organization’s competitive landscape. It is the continuous investigation of a market landscape providing intelligence on strategic issues that will arise in the short to medium term affecting an organization’s competitiveness or market position.
Awareness
Half the battle in growing CI acceptance in Europe is building awareness of CI as a discipline. Establishing a coherent market education is critical. CI professionals must take it upon themselves to educate organizations on the uses of CI, how it is incorporated into a company’s strategy, and what the expected value measures are.
As many of us know, CI becomes increasingly important in times of rapid change and economic downturn. However, budgets also become tighter in such circumstances and hence defining and justifying the need for a CI program and its expected ROI becomes even more difficult.
A recent conference included presentations from several leading European organizations such as BP Amoco & Astra Zeneca who have embraced CI as a strategic management tool across their organizations. A growing number of companies are following suit and signs of growth are finally beginning to show. Reemtsma (now part of Imperial Tobacco) have been an early pioneer in Germany in setting up a CI capability, and are now looking towards amplifying the importance of CI under the theme “the intelligence-led organization”. More companies are following suit across Europe and signs of growth are finally beginning to show.
Integration and implementation
CI is only as useful as the action it leads to. Implementation in this case is the key. The intelligence gathered by a CI analyst or through an external consultancy must in all cases be directed, implemented, and communicated across the organization.
At its simplest level a CI program can be directed and implemented from an operational perspective. However, taking into considering that the true value of CI is to give an organization a competitive edge against their counterparts, it becomes evident that it should sit alongside corporate strategy.
When a CI function works closely with its senior management, it allows them to utilise the information to formulate new strategic decisions, support their current strategy, or, at worst, identify that their current stance is incorrect. CI does not develop an organization’s strategy but allows a board of directors to implement strategic decisions based on that analysis.
Future challenges
The market as a whole in Europe is beginning to appreciate the importance of CI as a corporate tool. The future of this industry is certainly very promising if one looks at the potential growth. The industry will continue to face challenges and these will undoubtedly change as the market matures. However, in ten years time I have no doubt that all MBA programmes in Europe will include CI as a core subject area and that the investment community will be looking at companies’ track record in terms of Competitive Intelligence. To be the best you have to have access to the best tools.
Copyright EMEA Consulting 2002. Article originally appeared in Critical EYE, August 2002. Competitive Intelligence in Europe is becoming an important issue, but one of the problems the industry has faced is how to promote itself. EMEA Consulting launched Critical EYE at the beginning of this year. It is aimed at both CI practitioners and the business community as a whole. The publication is edited by Matthew Blagg, and is published electronically. Issue 2 is available at: http://www.emeaconsulting.com/Critical_Eye/Critical_EYE_aug_2002.pdf
SCIP.online, volume 1 number 15, September 4, 2002
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