Insight Management

This paper identifies the state of Competitive Intelligence (CI) in Asia, specifically, two of its most prominent economic powers, China and Japan.  Comparisons with Western, mainly US practice, are made, particularly where data and management research from those countries supports this approach.  In terms of current practice, CI in Japan is more developed than in China, although China continues to devote increasing attention and resources to the area.  Decision makers in multinational companies, competing in China or Japan, or with firms which originate there, should be aware of the competitive implications emanating from their utilization of CI.

It is anticipated that any Competitive Intelligence (CI) professional would want to perform the analysis task and execute their responsibilities successfully over time. Such competencies would normally come with added experience on the job, as should the ability to reduce the risk of failure by diagnosing potential pitfalls. This paper presents: (a) a unique four-level hierarchical model of analysis failure;

Cet article présente une étude sur l’évolution des pratiques d’Intelligence Économique (IE) des PME, dans le contexte de la politique publique française d’IE. Ont été interrogés quinze directeurs de programmes d’IE des chambres de commerce et 176 dirigeants de PME. Il en résulte une typologie de PME intégrant contraintes perçues, conseillers et attitudes envers l’IE. Les auteurs concluent que les PME trouvent dans les programmes subventionnés un soutien pertinent aux premiers stades de pratique de l’IE, alors que les consultants sont efficaces aux stades supérieurs. Les résultats intéresseront les gestionnaires de PME, les professionnels de l’IE et les décideurs publics.

This paper reports on an empirical study conducted within the SME sector in the city of Istanbul, Turkey.  The findings from this study enabled the creation of a Behavioural and Operational Typology of Competitive Intelligence Practice, one developed from the work of Wright, Pickton and Callow (2002).  Using responses to questions which indicated a type of behaviour or operational stance towards the various strands of CI practice under review it has been possible to identify areas where improvements could be made to reach an ideal situation which could garner significant competitive advantage for the SMEs surveyed.

It is with a modicum of pride and some satisfaction that I see this collection of papers being published by the Journal of Strategic Marketing (JSM). They have been selected from
successful submissions to Academy of Marketing Conferences. Prior to 2009 it had become obvious that there was no natural home for papers which were of a Competitive Intelligence,
analysis and strategy (CIAS) orientation whereas what could be regarded as very general subjects such as Tourism, Arts & Heritage Marketing, Asia Pacific Marketing, Sports
Marketing and the like had all been awarded their own space by way of named tracks. This seemed to require most authors to orientate and/or apply their work towards an industry
sector or in the case of Interactive Marketing, Brand Identity and Consumer Behaviour, place their efforts into a fairly well defined subject boundary. The lack of a natural home for work which most would consider to be an essential element of the marketing domain prompted the introduction in 2009 of a dedicated track. This did not mean that work of a CIAS nature had not previously been presented at AM Conferences because it had. It had just become buried in other tracks, as authors had
attempted to shoehorn their work into an area which might seem remotely related. The CIAS track was successful in 2009, hitting its target acceptance rate easily and was retained for the 2010 Conference. It is hoped that this success along with this Special Issue of JSM will further encourage researchers to address the wider issues of competition, competitive behaviour matters and similarly related elements of marketing decision making.

Purpose – To address the viability of planning and executing the integration of four, often independent marketing information management techniques: competitive intelligence (CI), customer relationship management (CRM), data mining (DM) and market research (MR).

Design/methodology/approach – longitudinal, exploratory and descriptive case study, covering a three year period during a critical development phase of a medium-size, national employer association which sought to improve the quality of marketing-based insights to its strategic planning capability as well as improve economic outcomes.

Practical implications – The need to generate greater insight from popular marketing information management and planning techniques is routinely experienced by marketing and other executive decision makers. This article provides a multi-year roadmap of the successful execution of technique integration, including identifying barriers that arose as well as suggesting solutions for achieving progress.

Findings – It is possible to achieve profitable and capability enhancing integration of diverse marketing information management techniques. Successful integration and the use of a highly focused cross functional team generated better market strategies and bottom line benefits.

Originality/value – There are very few case studies published that demonstrate the successful evolution and integration of CI, CRM, DM and MR into the enterprise's strategy-making process.  The unique element of this example was that it was achieved within the context of a medium-sized, national, not-for-profit employer association.

Keywords - Competitive Intelligence, Case Study, Cross-Functional Teams, Customer Relationship Management, Data Mining, Information Systems, Integration, Market Research.

Paper type Research paper/case study