How is Competitive Intelligence Different?

[Vivek Raghuvanshi]

Just Brainstorming ideas:

Given a choice, why should an organization choose competitive intelligence firm over:

1. A Futurist Firm

2. Risk Management Firm

3. Management Consulting Firm

4. Market Research Firm

What is the Focused Differentiation?

[Sridhar]

am new here and new to CI. Nice framing Vivek.

My understanding that 1.futurist is about conceptualizing future, 2. risk weighs more on concerns of financial and reputation side of things, 3. management consulting...leadership looking to navigate doldrums or choppy seas, 4. market research - validate actions before committing to it. In this context, CI seems to be a tool that supplies 'actionable' information to 1., 2. and 3. So CI could be an underlying enabler for the futurist, risk manager and management consultant, and is a complement to these. That leaves 4. market research and CI to choose between. Here my view is, IMHO, market research is a validation where your model of the external world where some action is to be created is sort of static. Market research will support traditional strategy and introverted processes. CI can be relevant more when the action stage i.e. external world or outside the enterprise boundary, things are not as simple or so static. CI there fore is useful for one who is alert to external stimuli that guides its strategy, requiring openness that aids the introverted processes.

Hope to hear more on this challenge of choice!