© 2019 All Rights Reserved
© 2019 All Rights Reserved
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About Cookies OKWhat is Competitive Intelligence
This is an extract from a lecture we gave to MBAs, business school students & graduates at the University of Westminster in London. Watch for a taste or click here for the full lecture.
We’ve done many other presentations including Zoom / online presentations and webinars. You can view more on our Videos / Webinars page which includes a 2024 talk on how AI (artificial intelligence) can be used to support competitive intelligence.
Contact us if you would also like us to talk to your employees or students on any aspect of competitive or marketing intelligence.
Businesses (and people) over time develop habits and patterns of working. Sometimes these lead to success. However often they stop management from seeing reality – especially when the business environment changes. Competitive intelligence can identify these business blindspots – both in the company itself, and in its competitors. Taking advantage of competitor blindspots is a major way that a company can beat its competitors, so it is crucial to understand one’s own blindspots so as to protect oneself from possible attack.
Business problems can be shown through humour. Humour allows businesses to take a step back and see a problem applied to a situation that appears different to their own. One can also sometimes see similar behaviour in one’s own organisation – thus highlighting a possible blindspot. Humour is just one technique for showing blindspots. Others include the use of drama workshops and story-telling, or war-gaming where the business environment is modelled and management try and take an external look at themselves and their competitive situation.
The following “stories” and office “theories” are taken from our humour database – with a random selection shown. Refresh the page for further examples.
A woman walked up to the manager of a department store and asked. Are you hiring any help?
The manager answered: No - We already have all the staff we need!
The woman responded: Good - then would you mind getting someone to serve me?
How is your customer service?
Are you risking sales and customer dissatisfaction because the staff you have do not focus sufficiently on your customers?
It's easy to recognise the department store or shoe shop with sales agents busy talking to each other about what they were doing the night before, rather than helping us make a purchase. The same applies to non-retail businesses. Rather than hire new staff, make sure that the staff you have focus on the customers you need.
The lesson is to think about how you view your customers?
Do you see them as simply profit-streams, or customer reference numbers or do you genuinely care about them. If the former, how do you ensure that your customers stay happy with your services, when you don't recognise their individuality and humanity?
Think how you would feel if you were treated like a number, especially if you could switch to a competitor who made you feel special! As Stanley Marcus, who ran the department store Nieman Marcus for many years as President & Chair, once said Consumers are statistics. Customers are people.
Businesses (and people) over time develop habits and patterns of working. Sometimes these lead to success. However often they stop management from seeing reality – especially when the business environment changes. Competitive intelligence can identify these business blindspots – both in the company itself, and in its competitors. Taking advantage of competitor blindspots is a major way that a company can beat its competitors, so it is crucial to understand one’s own blindspots so as to protect oneself from possible attack.
Business problems can be shown through humour. Humour allows businesses to take a step back and see a problem applied to a situation that appears different to their own. One can also sometimes see similar behaviour in one’s own organisation – thus highlighting a possible blindspot. Humour is just one technique for showing blindspots. Others include the use of drama workshops and story-telling, or war-gaming where the business environment is modelled and management try and take an external look at themselves and their competitive situation.
The following “stories” and office “theories” are taken from our humour database – with a random selection shown. Refresh the page for further examples.
The Talmud (the main source for Jewish law and tradition other than the Bible) tells a parable about a gathering of all the animals in nature. The lion was asked why he was the king of all the beasts. He replied:
Because I can roar the loudest, and when I roar, everyone else is silent.
At that point, the thrush stood up and said:
That may be true, but if we go a mile or so from where you are roaring, your roar is not heard. However when I begin to chirp, all the birds chirp along with me and the whole forest is filled with song.
Making an impact and influencing others does not depend on how loud you shout to put over your own views. It depends on influencing people so that everybody sings from the same song-sheet.
Silence does not necessarily signify approval. It may just indicate that people are scared to argue with you.
When everybody joins in and contributes, then you can be sure that you will reach agreement!
