Competitive Intelligence Analysts:: Are you an Administrator or Innovator?

Brand Killer Robots reveal::

What drives the seeming relentless desire for innovation? Is it the desire for wealth, the desire for acknowlegment, the desire for power?

We have published articles stating that most companies have little or no desire to innovate, seeking rather to concentrate resources on yesterdays feature set and yesterdays business practices.

Competitive intelligence to them is more about utilising knowledge sourced from the past or in the here and now to try to predict future moves. To achieve this the analyst must develop a clear perspective on the identity of the company-self and a clear identity of the competition and customer relationships, in order to arrive at intelligence resources that support justified decision making in the here and now - for the future.

This approach is entirely opposite to that of competitive innovators, in that the innovator may develop an appreciation of the fixed reference perspective of the CI analyst, but in practice does not seek to skew analysis first toward justification, rather the innovator asks, without any restraint - "what would empower my company and what would blow my competitors out of the water?". Once the innovator arrives at the "what", they then seek to justify the "what". As opposed to the competitive intelligence analyst, who base futures on known, justifiable, quantifiable, qualitative assessment evidence, based on historical data and data in the here and now.

In essence, the "Competitive Intelligence Analyst" is driven by their desire to understand todays and yesterdays identity in order to visualise the future identity of the marketplace and dynamics. The "Competitive Innovation Analyst" is driven by their desire to invalidate the identity of competitors and to reshape the identity of the company they serve into the dominant player in the marketplace. In order to begin to achieve this the innovator much project a vision of how the scene should look to achieve an impact and then retrofit, credible, justifiable strategies to achieve this vision.

So the CI analyst projects futures on the basis of "known identities" (which he justifies against evidential data) and the innovator projects futures on the basis of "unknown identities" (which it can justify by offering influential strategies to turn "unknown identities" into very desirable "known identities" in the future). What drives innovation is the refusal to accept the world as it is - rather preferring to draw the world as it should be. It is this desire that is at the heart of the innovator.

Whilst different things drive them - both have a part to play in any serious competitive intelligence focused environment.

At BKR we believe that 'competitive innovation' is a much more motivating and lucrative device for business, likening 'competitive intelligence' to an essential 'administrative function', but one that rarely results in setting the markets alight.

So we say to students:: choose your CI path carefully. Are you an administrator or innovator?

BKR launches - Competitive Intelligence Innovation Agency!

Brand Killer Robots Reveal::
99.9% of businesses and 99.9% of the security industry is concentrated on just 0.1% of the total risks to those businesses - 99.9% of the time.
99.9% of businesses are concentrated on just 0.1% of the total opportunities available to those businesses - 99.9% of the time.
99.9% of organisations don't employ an innovation specialist. The 0.1% that do employ innovators, invest 0.1% in innovation - leaving 99.9% of the workforce to tasks that are not innovative.
99.9% of investment goes to 0.1% innovative products and the rest to non-innovative products. 99.9% of the worlds wealth is controlled or owned by 0.1% of the worlds population.

At BKR we concentrate 99.9% of our time on innovation and 0.1% of our time preparing to innovate.

Contact BKR and find out :
1. How innovation modeling can be used to improve your own brand value
2. How innovation modeling can be used to reduce your competitors brand value

Competitive Intelligence Agency designing strategic modeling systems for visualising innovation blindspots in organisational thinking

For more details e-mail Stephen at sryan@intrench.com

Competitive Intelligence Students:: Add Innovation to your Karate?

Brand Killer Robots reveal::

Here are just ten of the essential ingredients that you need to begin learning if you want to be an effective competitive intelligence analyst.

1. The language of competitive intelligence, ethics & SCIP

2. Formal Corporate Strategic Process and Enterprise Models

3. Marketing dynamics

4. Relationship management

5. Knowledge engineering

6. Intelligence Acquisition Tradecraft

7. Business Intelligence Data Modeling

8. Tools & Perspective template design

9. Time Management/ Budgetary control / CI KPI measurement etc

10. CI Reporting and Visual presentation

Perhaps just as importantly, albeit not a currently perceived as so is the requirement to be a skilled innovator. It is just not exceptable for CI analysts to contribute the most effective intelligence input to the decision-making process, only to fall short by being unable to process this intelligence and offer credible ways and methods of solving problems through innovative thinking.

It is akin to a CIA officer developing a credible knowledge base about a target, but who when reporting fails to offer any more advice than the intelligence he has provided.

An example of this would be where an analyst has spent many years in intelligence in a specific area, where they have been involved in viewing a number of different of outcomes and decisions. Under such circumstances you would expect the analyst to both contribute intelligence and comment on the likely design of the counter-strategies and the decision-making process.

We're not saying that the CI analyst should replace the CEO or Marketing Executive in terms of making the final decisions on the back of intelligence. What we are saying is that the CI analyst should at least be capable of formulating decisions on the back of intelligence and more importantly be able to innovate around this intelligence - in order to better support the decision making process.

We think it could be time for the Competitive Intelligence & Innovation Analyst.

99.9% of businesses use 0.1% of their innovative potential 99.9% of the time?

Brand Killer Robots reveal::

99.9% of businesses and 99.9% of the security industry is concentrated on just 0.1% of the total risks to those businesses - 99.9% of the time.

99.9% of businesses is concentrated on just 0.1% of the total opportunities available to those businesses - 99.9% of the time.

Ok, don't believe it - then ask yourself "how do i not believe it"?

What calculation am i making that results in me knowing that the above statements are not true? After all, have you ever taken time out to invest in hiring innovation specialists who ruthlessly hunt out innovative strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats and who have absolutely no axe to grind?

99.9% of organisations don't employ an innovation specialist. The 0.1% that do employ innovators, invest 0.1% in innovation - leaving 99.9% of the workforce to tasks that are not innovative.

Here is another one. 99.9% of investment goes to 0.1% innovative products and the rest to non-innovative products. 99.9% of the worlds wealth, is controlled or owned by 0.1% of the worlds population.

Whether you like it or not - innovation is a much downplayed facet in business and those who can perceive the future terrain, (in terms of risks and opportunities) - are not necessarily going to be joining the most wealthy 0.1% any time soon. The 0.1% most wealthy, seemingly prefer to invest less in innovation - whether this be in R&D or business intelligence.

The most wealthy 0.1% prefer to invest in non-innovation 99.9% of the time?

So we ask - Is there really any place for innovation in this world?

The answer seems to be - "hardly no room at the INNovation"

Real innovation or innovation according to Microsoft and IBM?

Brand Killer Robots reveal::

Just what is all this about innovation? What innovation? What do you mean by innovation? Do you mean yesterdays innovation, innovation according to Microsoft or IBM - or do you mean innovation beyond the current Windows and computing paradigms? Innovation today is at best "innovation according to the 1980's /1990's paradigm" i.e the same cognitive computing paradigms - but smaller, prettier and faster. There is no real leap of science involved in the technology arena. Today's high-tech products are simply a variation on the same theme we've known about for 20 - 30 years. There is a lot more hype and noise and a lot less innovation involved. So where is the real innovation? Like in the medical profession or with bio-sciences?

So we ask - when you talk about innovation - really focus on the algorithms that are applied and the meaning of the word "innovation" and ask....

Is this innovation according to Microsoft and IBM - or am i looking at "real innovation"?