Business Intelligence E-Book

Corine Cohen

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 336

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2013

Beschreibung

Effective Strategic Intelligence (SI) is vital for organizations in an international context of instability, complexity and intense competition. Following a long process of qualitative, quantitative and empirical research next to SI experts and large companies, this book proposes a way to improve SI and its impact on the performance of an organization. From an exploration, description and evaluation model of SI, a measurement tool in two parts, for the producer and the user of SI, has been built. For all kind of firms and all advancement levels of SI, it allows the construction of a control panel which can be used to pilot SI and its impact on the performance of an organization.

Leseprobe

Table of Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1: Scanning the Environment: A Vital Necessity for Companies

1.1. Getting informed: a very well-established and necessary requirement

1.2. The corporation and its environment

1.3. Innovation and Japan

1.4. Conclusion

Chapter 2: Evolution of the General Concept of Surveillance

2.1. The emergence phase

2.2. Phase of development

2.3. Phase of consolidation

2.4. Conclusion

Chapter 3: The Global Measurement Model of Strategic Intelligence

3.1. Overview of the literature on SI effectiveness evaluation

3.2. Intelligence and performance

3.3. Definition of corporate performance and surveillance effectiveness

3.4. The definition of the concept of measurement

3.5. A measurement model for surveillance effectiveness

3.6. The importance of total quality management (TQM)

3.7. The measurement of corporate performance

3.8. Conclusion

Chapter 4: Objectives, Products, Use and Context of Strategic Intelligence

4.1. Functions of surveillance

4.2. Objectives of intelligence

4.3. SWI product and services

4.4. SI uses

4.5. Context of surveillance

Chapter 5: Evaluation of the Organizational Resources of SI

5.1. Formalization of the watch and SI activity

5.2. Seniority of the SWI function

5.3. Centralization, decentralization and the number of SWI points

5.4. The hierarchical connection

5.5. Network organization

Chapter 6: Evaluation of the SI Process

6.1. Phase 1: the determination of information needs

6.2. Phase 2: information research and collection

6.3. Phase 3: information processing

6.4. Phases 2 and 3 bis: storage

6.5. Phase 4: distribution

6.6. Phase 5: information use

6.7. Feedback

6.8. Control

Chapter 7: Evaluation of Human, Technical and Financial Resources of SI

7.1. Human methods

7.2. Technical methods

7.3. Financial resources

7.4. Conclusion

Chapter 8: SI Measurement Tools for SI Managers

8.1. Organizational methods

8.2. Resources for the intelligence process

8.3. Human methods

8.4. Technical methods

8.5. Financial methods

8.6. The SI context

Chapter 9: Measurement Tools for SI Users

9.1. SI product and services

9.2. Using SI

9.3. SI results: the intelligence-performance control panel

9.4. Conclusion

Conclusion

Bibliography

Index

First published in France in 2004 by Hermes Science/Lavoisier entitled: Veille et intelligence stratégiques © LAVOISIER, 2004

First published in Great Britain and the United States in 2009 by ISTE Ltd and John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Apart from any fair dealing for the purposes of research or private study, or criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, this publication may only be reproduced, stored or transmitted, in any form or by any means, with the prior permission in writing of the publishers, or in the case of reprographic reproduction in accordance with the terms and licenses issued by the CLA. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside these terms should be sent to the publishers at the undermentioned address:

ISTE Ltd27-37 St George’s RoadLondon SW19 4EUUKwww.iste.co.ukJohn Wiley & Sons, Inc.111 River StreetHoboken, NJ 07030USAwww.wiley.com

© ISTE Ltd, 2009

The rights of Corine Cohen to be identified as the author of this work have been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Cohen, Corine.

[Veille et intelligence stratégiques. English]

Business intelligence: the effectiveness of strategic intelligence and its impact on the performance of organizations / Corine Cohen.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-84821-114-8

1. Business intelligence. 2. Strategic planning. 3. Information technology--Management. I. Title.

HD38.7.C6413 2009

658.4'72--dc22

2008054466

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN: 978-1-84821-114-8

Introduction

The world in which we live has never been more troubled — recent years have seen wars, and attacks of several types — natural, economic, sanitary, social, political; industrial catastrophes, financial crises, technological revolution etc. People, companies and governments survive and change in an environment which is at a constant breaking point, with sometimes dramatic consequences. In every sector, a fundamental and recurring question should be raised: how can we predict the unpredictable?

To anticipate unexpected events and to avoid fatal surprises, governments and companies use specific strategic intelligence devices. Nations have always developed information services, whether they are military, political or economic. Organizations have always monitored their environment. Ever since the late 1960s, an increasing number of them have made this a formal activity. This movement progressed overseas in the 1980s, and in the 1990s in France, to cope with an unstable, complex and competitive environment. Surveillance has become Strategic Intelligence (SI).

However, looking at the harsh reality of international terrorism, demonstrated by the New York attacks in September 2001, the Moscow hostage crisis in October 2002 and others in increasing numbers all over the world, it is natural to question the usefulness of these government information agencies. Similarly, countless threat (or opportunity) examples are wrongly ignored by companies, and we can question the use of company Strategic Watch and SI systems. The unprecedented financial crisis governments and companies are facing today is more evidence of the weaknesses of existing Strategic Watch and Intelligence systems.

Unfortunately, monitoring and/or intelligence problems are always more visible than their advantages, and despite all poor performance demonstrations, nations and companies are still investing in this activity which is vital, as it represents a sort of “life insurance”.

Government information devices and company SI systems are obviously interdependent, with areas in common, but their purposes are different. The parallel established exists in all intelligence-focused documentation. It describes the shortcomings, but also the absolute necessity of SI activities.

The usefulness of strategic intelligence services should not be in question, but their effectiveness should be:

1) Why and how do companies manage the monitoring of their environment?

2) How should strategic intelligence be defined? What are the effectiveness factors of SI?

3) How should we measure SI effectiveness and its impact on the performance of organizations?

This book attempts to answer these different questions. Its general goal is the result of these multiple questions: understanding the strategic intelligence activity in order to propose a model to measure its effectiveness and its impact on organizational performance.

In this new millennium, the importance and usefulness of monitoring the corporate environment are clearly recognized: the company with an efficient SI system has a major competitive advantage. Anticipation is not its only goal. Satisfying the need for information and knowledge and providing decision support are other central objectives of efficient SI. Before presenting the origins and challenges of SI for the organization, we must first explain the terminology and define what we will use.

The general surveillance field covers notions of watch, scanning, intelligence, competitive intelligence, vigilance, business intelligence, economic intelligence, economic and strategic intelligence, etc.

SI is defined here as a formalized process of research, collection, information processing and distribution of knowledge useful to strategic management. Beside its information function, the main goals of SI are to anticipate environmental threats and opportunities (anticipatory function), propose and/or engage in action (proactive function), help in strategic decision making and improve competitiveness and performance of the organization. It requires a organizational network structure, and human, technical and financial resources.

A distinction must therefore be made between Strategic Watch and SI. SI goes beyond Strategic Watch with its proactivity and its deeper involvement in the strategic decision process. Watch can (must) indicate the impacts of a detected event for example. However, it becomes intelligence when it produces recommendations and provides instructions to the recipient (all the more so when it implements them).

Now that this difference is explained, this book focuses on the most advanced level of SI.

By proposing a tool to measure SI effectiveness and its impact on the performance of the organization, this book is mainly aimed at SI users and managers. It can also be used by consultants for internal or external SI system audits.

Chapter 1

Scanning the Environment: A Vital Necessity for Companies

1.1. Getting informed: a very well-established and necessary requirement

The rapid evolution of the concept of scanning the corporate environment naturally leads to questioning its origin(s) and the reasons for its development within organizations. Is this concept really new? Where does it come from? Why do managers feel the need to monitor the environment of their companies?

Whether it is at the individual, government or company level, getting informed is a very well-established requirement.

1.1.1. A fundamental need

Getting informed is first and foremost a basic human need. In an often hostile natural environment, man had to acquire information to ensure his survival.

However, man is also curious by nature and eager to learn. He searches, interprets and constantly uses this information to improve his understanding of the world and to act in accordance with his environment. The discoveries of great explorers and the evolution of sciences are constant reminders. This natural curiosity seems to be different from one country to another. We observe for example that it is more prevalent in Asian cultures than in Western cultures.

1.1.2. “To be beaten is excusable, but to be taken by surprise is unforgivable” (Napoleon Bonaparte)

Obtaining information has always been vital in battlefields. All great commanders-in-chief were familiar with the strategic importance of information in armed combat. Obtaining strategic information was vital to better understand the enemy, avoid surprises and to be able to implement defensive and offensive actions. The military thus has long-standing knowledge of fact finding — intelligence — and companies find this expertise appealing. That is the main reason why we see so many military professionals go into the private sector. In addition to the necessity of finding new opportunities after the fall of the Eastern Bloc and the end of the Cold War, the defense department is now linked to economic defense. In fact, the activity of information collection and processing is also well-established in economic and political fields. It has often made it possible to ensure the supremacy of empires and continues to be a development lever for governments.

1.1.3.