Competitive intelligence in a multinational consulting engineering company: A case study

Intelligence is not a new concept and dates back to over 5000 years of Chinese history. The concept of competitive intelligence is, however, still an evolving field and consists of three main streams, i.e. military intelligence, national security and political science and business intelligence. The modern-day business interpretation of competitive intelligence has been changed and refined by various researchers, but the essence of these interpretations is the same and lies in the ethical gathering and interpretation of information to drive innovation and inform strategic decision-making. If successful, this assists companies in gaining a competitive advantage. The consulting engineering industry is experiencing major disruptions, such as rapid advancement in technology, the global economic downturn and changes in the traditional business arena. To combat these disruptions and gain long-lasting competitive advantage and growth, competitive intelligence must not only be embedded in the culture of a company, but also form the cornerstone of innovation and inform strategic business decisions. The aim of this study was to determine how competitive intelligence is implemented in an anonymous multinational consulting engineering company. To establish this aim, the nature of competitive intelligence was firstly investigated by defining the competitive intelligence process, identifying the influencers and attributes of useful information, studying the need for and challenges of competitive intelligence implementation and exploring some of the competitive intelligence tools/techniques. Secondly, the need for establishing a competitive intelligence culture was examined by explaining the concept of corporate culture and exploring the ways to foster a competitive intelligence culture and community. The challenges relating to the implementation of competitive intelligence across borders were also examined. Thirdly, the relationship between competitive intelligence and innovation and competitive intelligence and business strategy were studied. Lastly, the types of information gathered, stored and distributed within the company as part of competitive intelligence activities and its importance to employees were investigated. The research method of the study was a survey, the results of which were combined in 11 conclusive findings: • The existing information function of the company is not used as part of competitive intelligence activities • The business strategy is client-centric and the company views information on clients as most important • The company relies heavily on people as sources of information • War gaming is not seen as an important competitive intelligence tool, even though the industry is experiencing numerous disruptions • The company has a weak knowledge-sharing culture, resulting in a silo effect complicated by the multinational nature of the company • There is a need for a more formalised process, information repository/system and/or tools that will support information-sharing within the company • There is insufficient awareness, support and use of intelligence by the senior and top management of the company to drive a knowledge-sharing culture and support competitive intelligence efforts • The company views competitive intelligence as essential for gaining a competitive advantage, but is average when it comes to responding to changes in the business environment • The company believes competitive intelligence has a positive influence on decision-making and strategies are updated regularly based on intelligence received • Innovation is viewed as essential to the survival of the company and current initiatives to cultivate innovation should be expanded • The multinational nature of the company significantly increases the need for a more disciplined focus on competitive intelligence. Based on the findings, it was established that competitive intelligence is applied with relative success in some areas of the company, but that a more formalised approach will be beneficial. In conclusion, several actions the company could consider were recommended to enhance its current competitive intelligence activities.Intelligence is not a new concept and dates back to over 5000 years of Chinese history. The concept of competitive intelligence is, however, still an evolving field and consists of three main streams, i.e. military intelligence, national security and political science and business intelligence. The modern-day business interpretation of competitive intelligence has been changed and refined by various researchers, but the essence of these interpretations is the same and lies in the ethical gathering and interpretation of information to drive innovation and inform strategic decision-making. If successful, this assists companies in gaining a competitive advantage. The consulting engineering industry is experiencing major disruptions, such as rapid advancement in technology, the global economic downturn and changes in the traditional business arena. To combat these disruptions and gain long-lasting competitive advantage and growth, competitive intelligence must not only be embedded in the culture of a company, but also form the cornerstone of innovation and inform strategic business decisions. The aim of this study was to determine how competitive intelligence is implemented in an anonymous multinational consulting engineering company. To establish this aim, the nature of competitive intelligence was firstly investigated by defining the competitive intelligence process, identifying the influencers and attributes of useful information, studying the need for and challenges of competitive intelligence implementation and exploring some of the competitive intelligence tools/techniques. Secondly, the need for establishing a competitive intelligence culture was examined by explaining the concept of corporate culture and exploring the ways to foster a competitive intelligence culture and community. The challenges relating to the implementation of competitive intelligence across borders were also examined. Thirdly, the relationship between competitive intelligence and innovation and competitive intelligence and business strategy were studied. Lastly, the types of information gathered, stored and distributed within the company as part of competitive intelligence activities and its importance to employees were investigated. The research method of the study was a survey, the results of which were combined in 11 conclusive findings: • The existing information function of the company is not used as part of competitive intelligence activities • The business strategy is client-centric and the company views information on clients as most important • The company relies heavily on people as sources of information • War gaming is not seen as an important competitive intelligence tool, even though the industry is experiencing numerous disruptions • The company has a weak knowledge-sharing culture, resulting in a silo effect complicated by the multinational nature of the company • There is a need for a more formalised process, information repository/system and/or tools that will support information-sharing within the company • There is insufficient awareness, support and use of intelligence by the senior and top management of the company to drive a knowledge-sharing culture and support competitive intelligence efforts • The company views competitive intelligence as essential for gaining a competitive advantage, but is average when it comes to responding to changes in the business environment • The company believes competitive intelligence has a positive influence on decision-making and strategies are updated regularly based on intelligence received • Innovation is viewed as essential to the survival of the company and current initiatives to cultivate innovation should be expanded • The multinational nature of the company significantly increases the need for a more disciplined focus on competitive intelligence. Based on the findings, it was established that competitive intelligence is applied with relative success in some areas of the company, but that a more formalised approach will be beneficial. In conclusion, several actions the company could consider were recommended to enhance its current competitive intelligence activities.Dissertation (MIS) --University of Pretoria, 2016.Information ScienceMISRestricte