(Note to self – using “all”, “always” and “never” guarantees that you will sometimes be wrong.)

Beware of consultants (like me) that tell you that they know what to deliver and how to deliver it to your organization. Be especially cautious when the consultant knows a lot about competitive intelligence but only a little about your situation. Maybe, after you have talked with them awhile, it is more reasonable to accept the opinions of an outsider but only after they have demonstrated knowledge about your competitive challenges.

And what are your competitive challenges? Who cares most about these challenges?

Common challenges are growing the business, reacting to a competitors’ initiatives, clarifying a product or market strategy, deciding a business strategy question and cutting costs effectively. In many organizations, strategists of one type or another are the decision-makers. They are responsible for overcoming these important challenges and, thus, are the customers of the related competitive intelligence.

Competitive intelligence has a significant role in addressing all of these challenges.