The Internet Age of Competitive Intelligence

John J. McGonagle and Carolyn M. Vella

• ABOUT THE BOOK
  　 　Combining a scholarly approach with hands-on advice, McGonagle and Vella, two of the most prolific authorities on competitive intelligence (CI) have written the first work to guide CI professionals through the emerging literature of their field. Among the important changes in the field the authors cover are: the radical changes in online database searching and ways in which the Internet has fundamentally modified how we think of accessing data. Their book explores the major body of work from the Society of Competitive Intelligence Professionals, now that more businesses worldwide are using CI and either writing about their experiences with it, or joining in new benchmarking studies. The result is the latest information on what really works, what doesn't work, and who is doing what with it. The book is thus a starting point for people new to the field of CI as well as a resource to help experienced professionals do their jobs better.

　　　　　　A new Archetype for Competitive Intelligence
　　　　　 "The authors, both highly regarded in their field, offer techniques that 　　　businesses can use to cope with the information explosion, and more 　　　importantly, to exploit the available information and intelligence to add 　　　value to a firm and remain competitive."-- Choice

　　　　　　Protecting your company against competitive intelligence
　　　　　 "This book couldn't be timelier. As McGonagle and Vella point out, the 　　　growth of the CI profession over the past decade means that every company 　　　must be on guard… All told, McGonagle and Vella have produced a fine 　　　resource for anyone interested in keeping rivals from obtaining the 　　　competitive advantage that systematic competitive intelligence can 　　　produce."－－Competitive ntelligence Review

• ABOUT THE AUTHORS
  　　John J. Mcgonagle is Managing Partner, The Helicon Group, a consulting firm in Blandon, PA. Author or co-author of 11 business books and numerous articles in business, law, and economics, including Protecting Your Company Against Competitive Intelligence (Quorum, 1998), he has been an adjunct lecture at Lehigh University and Allentown College, where he developed and taught the course on competitive intelligence.

　　　　　Carolyn M. Vella is Founding Partner of The Helicon Group. She has 　　　published widely in the journals serving the business community and 　　　on competitive intelligence (CI) specifically, and is the author or 　　　coauthor of five other books on CI, including A New Archetype for 　　　Competitive Intelligence (Quorum, 1996).

• CONTENTS

Preface
Notes
1 What Has Happened to Competitive Intelligence?
A New Era of Business Research-Thirteen Years After......................1
Competitive Intelligence's Growth and Development.......................1
CI and Its Variations.....................................................................2
Functions Which Are Linking to CI ...............................................8
Notes ........................................................................................13

2 Who Is Using Competitive Intelligence?
Where Is Competitive Intelligence Now?......................................17
What Kinds of Businesses Now Use CI? .........................................17
How Are Businesses Using CI?.....................................................18
Where Are They Using CI? .........................................................19
Notes........................................................................................23

3 The CI Process and Its Problems...............................................25
Problems in CI............................................................................26
Summary .................................................................................30
Appendix: Basic Principles for Producing CI...................................31
Notes ........................................................................................34

4 Needs Determination for CI Research and Analysis ....................37
Direct Interviewing...................................................................38
Using Internal Customers to Determine CI Needs .........................39
Using a Formal CI Needs Process.................................................41
Using a Competitor Analysis Checklist........................................42
Using the Plain Paper Process....................................................42
Notes.....................................................................................44

5 Collection Issues: Research Strategies and Techniques................45
Visualize Data as a Commodity.................................................45
Research Constraints................................................................49
Developing CI Research Strategies and Techniques.....................52
Conducting Supplemental Data Gathering...............................56
Notes....................................................................................57

6 The Rise in the Importance of Secondary Sources ......................59
The Rising Use of Secondary Sources ..........................................59
Reasons for This Trend ............................................................61
Are Secondary Sources Best-or Even Better?..............................62
The Future..............................................................................62
Notes......................................................................................63

7 Using Online Databases.........................................................65
What Do Online Databases Contain?.........................................66
What Do Online Databases Not Contain? ....................................66
Using Online Databases Efficiently ...........................................70
Notes.......................................................................................74

8 How to Use the Internet..........................................................75
Fifteen Years Ago.....................................................................75
The Internet...........................................................................76
Smart Agents and Other Search Developments ...........................82
What Is the Future? ...............................................................84
Notes ......................................................................................84

9 Effective CI Techniques to Supplement Secondary Research.......87
Why Should You Be Involved with Human Intelligence? ..............88
Telephone Interviews ...............................................................88
Handling Surveys ...................................................................93
What You Can Learn On-Site ...................................................94
Notes ......................................................................................96

10 Analysis .............................................................................97
The Basics of Analysis ...............................................................97
Business Disinformation .........................................................113
Specific Analytical Techniques.................................................118
Notes......................................................................................122

11 Presentation and Dissemination ..........................................127
Timeliness and the "Half-Life" of Intelligence ...............................127
What Forms Can Finished Intelligence Take?............................. 128
Structuring Your Intelligence Results........................................129
How to Disseminate Intelligence .............................................130
Sample Intelligence Documents ...............................................133
Problems in Communicating Intelligence ...................................139
Notes ...................................................................................142

12 Legal and Ethical Issues .........................................................145
Overview ................................................................................145
Intellectual Property Protection Programs and CI ........................147
Trade-Secret Laws and CI ............................................................148
Other Legal Protections of Confidential Information and CI .............151
Classified Government Materials ................................................153
Corporate Policies and Ethical Codes .............................................154
Resolving Legal versus Ethical Questions ....................................155
Notes .......................................................................................156

13 Securing and Protecting Competitively Sensitive Information ...159
Defensive CI ..............................................................................159
Cloaking .................................................................................161
Corporate Security ...................................................................165
Notes ......................................................................................166

14 Management Issues ................................................................169
Do You Need a CI Unit? .............................................................169
What Is Involved in Setting Up a CI Function? .............................170
Specific Management Issues .......................................................173
Growth and Development ..........................................................182
Appendix: Training and Accreditation .........................................184
Notes .......................................................................................184

15 Operational Issues .................................................................187
Developing CI Using Outsiders .................................................187
What Should You Expect in Working with Outsiders? ....................191
Marketing ...............................................................................197
Measuring CI's Performance .....................................................198
Sample CI Unit Mission Statement ..............................................199
Notes..................................................................................203