Competitive Intelligence Process Research Articles

The Use of Theories in Competitive Intelligence: a Systematic Literature Review

The field of competitive intelligence is growing as organisations are looking to increase their competitive advantage in a global society. As this field grows, so does the research and academic literature on this practice. While theory that specifically focuses on competitive intelligence may be limited, theories from other popular and related fields such as management and psychology have been used to explain or guide some the popular competitive intelligence processes with the competitive intelligence cycle. This paper attempts to lay a foundation of relevant theory from previously published literature on competitive intelligence by mapping these theories against the six identified competitive intelligences processes.
 The qualitative approach used to achieve this was a literature analysis, involving thematic analysis through a process of coding. The resulting consolidation and processing of these theories led to the development of a useful framework from which other current and future theories can be added, paving the way for further theory development in the field of competitive intelligence.

One decade of big data for firms' competitiveness: insights and a conceptual model from bibliometrics

PurposeUsing analytics for firms' competitiveness is a vital component of a company's strategic planning and management process. In recent years, organizations have started to capitalize on the significant use of big data for analyses to gain valuable insights to improve decision-making processes. In this regard, leveraging and unleashing the potential of big data has become a significant success factor for steering firms' competitiveness, and the related literature is increasing at a very high pace. Thus, the authors propose a bibliometric study to understand the most important insights from these studies and enrich existing conceptual models.Design/methodology/approachIn this study, the authors use a bibliometric review on articles related to the use of big data for firms' competitiveness. The authors examine the contributions of research constituents (authors, institutions, countries and journals) and their structural and thematic relationships (collaborations, co-citations networks, co-word networks, thematic trends and thematic map). The most important insights are used to enrich a conceptual model.FindingsBased on the performance analysis results, the authors found that China is by far the most productive country in this research field. However, in terms of influence (by the number of citations per article), the most influential countries are the UK, Australia and the USA, respectively. Based on the science mapping analysis results, the most important findings are projected in the common phases of competitive intelligence processes and include planning and directions concepts, data collection concepts, data analysis concepts, dissemination concepts and feedback concepts. This projection is supplemented by cross-cutting themes such as digital transformation, cloud computing, privacy, data science and competition law. Three main future research directions are identified: the broadening of the scope of application fields, the specific case of managing or anticipating the consequences of pandemics or high disruptive events such as COVID-19 and the improvement of connection between firms' competitiveness and innovation practices in a big data context.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings of this study show that the most important research axis in the existing literature on big data and firms' competitiveness are mostly related to common phases of competitive intelligence processes. However, concepts in these phases are strongly related to the most important dimensions intrinsic to big data. The use of a single database (Scopus) or the selected keywords can lead to bias in this study. Therefore, to address these limitations, future studies could combine different databases (i.e. Web of Science and Scopus) or different sets of keywords.Practical implicationsThis study can provide to practitioners the most important concepts and future directions to deal with for using big data analytics to improve their competitiveness.Social implicationsThis study can help researchers or practitioners to identify potential research collaborators or identify suitable sources of publications in the context of big data for firms' competitiveness.Originality/valueThe authors propose a conceptual model related to big data and firms' competitiveness from the outputs of a bibliometric study.

Unveiling the Value of Competitive Intelligence: Coordinated Communication and Added Value

Recently, a lot of attention has been paid to several aspects of CI, which influence the decision-making of organizations and the acquisition of competitive advantages. Organizations must leverage data, artificial intelligence (AI), and social capital to enhance their competitive intelligence processes. Social media data, AI and machine learning, big data analytics, dynamic capabilities, and intraorganizational social capital all play significant roles in driving strategic decision-making and improving customer experiences. By integrating these elements effectively, organizations can gain valuable insights, mitigate risks, and stay ahead of the competition.

Advancing competitive advantage in manufacturing firms through competitive intelligence

This study investigated the relationship between Competitive Intelligence Practices and Competitive Advantage in Manufacturing Industry: A study of selected Aluminum Firms in Nigeria. The specific objectives of the study are to ascertain the effect of the selected measures of Competitive Intelligence, namely; Strategic Intelligence (SI) and Innovative Intelligence (II) on Competitive Advantage (CA). The responses from the respondents were collected with the aid of five (5) Likert scale questionnaires and descriptive survey research. A total of one hundred and sixty-nine (169) questionnaires were administered, out of the one hundred and sixty-nine (169) questionnaires administered to staff of selected registered Aluminium Firms. One hundred and forty-six (146) were retrieved and properly filled. These one hundred and forty-six (146) respondents represent 86.39 per cent of the total questionnaire administered, which shows that one hundred and forty-six (146) respondents are sufficient for the study. Thus, the sample used for the study was the one hundred and forty-six (146) respondents from the staff of Aluminium Industries used. The questionnaire was coded with the aid of an excel spread sheet, the respondent's profile was analyzed with manual simple percentage, and the research questions were analyzed with the aid of descriptive statistics, correlation matrix and multiple regression statistical tools with the aid of SPSS version 23 as the basis of testing hypotheses. The findings revealed that Strategic Intelligence (SI) and Innovative Intelligence (II) have a significant relationship with Competitive Advantage (CA). From the findings of the study, it can be concluded that overall the competitive intelligence practices had a positive significant effect on the competitive advantage in selected Aluminum Firms. Thereby the study recommends that there should be adequate investment in the competitive intelligence process, facilities, and activities by the manufacturing firms to be innovative in their product, services and competitive dispositions.

Identifying the information behavior in competitive intelligence process: a paradigm model for medical sciences universities

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to identify and design a paradigm model for universities' information acquisition behavior in competitive intelligence process.Design/methodology/approachThe sampling has been conducted in two stages. First, purposive sampling has been done among Iranian universities of medical sciences. Second, 20 university staff members were selected using the snowball method. The research was conducted through semi-structured interviews.FindingsThe purpose of acquiring information in competitive intelligence process is to meet organizational and individual information needs in active and passive ways. The characteristics of information acquisition and how to acquire it are varied. Enablers include the information sources, individual, organizational characteristics and environmental pressures. Barriers are individual, organizational, environmental factors. The consequences of information acquisition are success, failure and partial success. Accordingly, a paradigm model of information behavior has been designed.Originality/valueThis is the first study to identify information behavior of universities in competitive intelligence process. In addition to why and how to acquire information, this study also looks at facilitators and barriers factors.

Competitive intelligence process and strategic performance of banking sector in Pakistan

Competitive intelligence process and strategic performance of banking sector in Pakistan

Social media analytics, competitive intelligence, and dynamic capabilities in manufacturing SMEs

Dynamic capability is an emerging field for firms facing a turbulent environment. Previous studies highlight that firms with little dynamic capabilities to enhance organizational performance face many survival challenges. This study proposes how small and medium enterprises (SMEs) can enhance their dynamic capabilities through learning mechanisms such as social media analytics and competitive intelligence processes that include the planning, collection, analysis, and dissemination of information. Specifically, this study focuses on the effects of social media analytics on four phases of competitive intelligence to improve the dynamic capabilities within manufacturing SMEs. Social media analytics are better used in certain large companies but less acknowledged in SMEs. However, limited empirical studies have used the dynamic capabilities approach and examined the causal links between social media analytics and competitive intelligence processes. A survey was conducted among 140 manufacturing SMEs in Quebec to obtain a better understanding of this relationship. Accordingly, a closed-structured questionnaire was distributed to the SMEs’ chief executive officers and managers. The data collected were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Our research findings show that social media analytics positively affect four phases of competitive intelligence, especially the phases of collection and analysis.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN COMPETITIVE INTELLIGENCE PROCESSES AND HOTELS' INFORMATION QUALITY: EVIDENCE FROM MALAYSIA

The information quality (IQ) and the tools used to generate it such as competitive intelligence (CI) are the most critical competitive competencies for businesses today, particularly in the tourism and hotel sectors. However, there is still ambiguity about the impact of each phase of the competitive-intelligence process (CIP) on IQ, particularly in the hotel industry in a developing country such as Malaysia. Thus, the purpose of this research is to detect the level of IQ resulting from CIP in Malaysian hotels, as well as to investigate the impact of each phase of CIP (planning and focus, gathering, analysis, and communication) on IQ (contextual and representational) of Malaysian hotels. A quantitative research design was adopted in this study. To collect the data required to analyse the study's hypothesised model, 505 questionnaires were distributed to marketing managers at Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) member hotels, yielding a total of 184 analysable questionnaires with a response rate of 34.44 percent. The research data were analysed using structural equation modelling with partial least squares (SEM-PLS). Despite that half of the responding hotels practiced CI informally, the study found that the level of IQ resulting from CIP was high. Furthermore, the results indicate that the planning and focus, gathering, and analysis phases of CIP had a positive and significant impact on hotels' IQ, while the communication phase had a slight negative but insignificant impact on hotels' IQ. Additionally, the results show that the analysis phase is the most relevant, followed by the gathering phase, and finally the planning and focus phases phase. These findings enrich those in positions of power like owners, managers, and practitioners, as well as academicians, with greater knowledge of the relationship and influence of CIP on firms' IQ, particularly for hospitality and tourism firms.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN COMPETITIVE INTELLIGENCE PROCESSES AND HOTELS' PERFORMANCE: EVIDENCE FROM MALAYSIA

Competitive intelligence (CI) is a proven systematic process used to improve an organization's competitiveness through the systematic collection, analysing, and communication of information to decision-makers. However, there is still ambiguity about the impact of each process of competitive intelligence process (CIPs) on performance, particularly in the hotel industry in a developing country like Malaysia. Thus, the purpose of this research is to detect the level of CIP practiced in Malaysian hotels, as well as to investigate the impact of each process from the CI processes (planning and focus, gathering, analysis, and communication) on the financial and non-financial performance of Malaysian hotels. A quantitative research design was adopted in this study. To obtain the necessary data for analysing the hypothesised model of the study, 505 questionnaires were issued to marketing managers in member hotels of the Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH), and a total of 184 analysable questionnaires were gathered, with a response rate of 34.44%. The research data were analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling. Despite that half of the responding hotels practiced CI informally, and many of these hotels began practicing CI five years ago, the study found that the level of CIP practice was high. Furthermore, the results indicate that the planning and focus, gathering, and analysis processes of CIP had a positive and significant impact on hotels' performance, while the communication process had a negative but insignificant impact on hotels' performance. Additionally, the results show that the planning and focus process is the most relevant, followed by the analysis processes, and finally the gathering process. These findings enrich those in positions of power like owners, managers, and practitioners, as well as academicians, with greater knowledge of the relationship and influence of CIPs on firms' performance, particularly for hospitality and tourism firms.

Towards an anticipatory system incorporating corporate foresight and competitive intelligence in creating knowledge: a longitudinal Moroccan bank case study

Since banks are competing in challenging and dynamic market environments, an anticipatory system generating futures-relevant knowledge is of primordial importance for an effective bank strategy. The objective of this research is to investigate how corporate foresight and competitive intelligence, considered as parts of an anticipatory system, create knowledge. Our main contribution lies in arriving at a better understanding of these processes in the mainstream of knowledge creation grounded in the SECI model. To this end, we followed a longitudinal case-study methodology for more than eight months within a leading bank in Morocco. The findings show that while the competitive intelligence unit focuses more on commercial and competitor intelligence targeting hence other banks market strategies, the corporate foresight unit tries to identify the bank market weak signals and major trends in the banking sector. Knowledge creation is mainly triggered in the social interaction context in the competitive intelligence unit, while the externalization phase involving interacting Bas is critical to knowledge creation in the corporate foresight unit. The results also confirm the presence of a black hole strategy problem and a lack of coordination between competitive intelligence and corporate foresight processes, thus highlighting the need for dynamic integrated anticipatory systems.

An exploratory study on competitive intelligence: Managers' information needs in higher education sector

Competitive intelligence is the collection and analysis of information to support strategic decision making for an organisation, as a means to achieve competitive advantages. Identification of information needs is a prerequisite for the subsequent actions and activities in the competitive intelligence process, and, if not done well, optimal intelligence will not be provided. Intending to identify the information needs of university managers in higher education sector, this study addressed the different dimensions of information needs, information sources, and channels used by them. Due to the nature of the subject and research objectives, the research approach was qualitative based on Grounded Theory, an inductive, theory discovery methodology. Twenty-three university managers in Iran were purposively sampled for interviews. It was found that their information needs were mostly about university competitors, university customers and their higher education providers. Their information needs for strategic decisions and actions were about their collaborators in education and information field, effective marketing about product and services, as well as economic, socio-cultural and legal aspects. They need to pay attention to political and economic information in dealing with unexpected topics. Managers obtained information they needed from four types of information sources and channels - human, organisations, open source documents and captured media, and mixed channels. Electronic information sources were considered to be more abundant for them than printed sources. The paper suggests that the findings can contribute to the design, implementation, and development of competitive intelligence information systems that managers and decision-makers are among its major users.

Organizational experience of social media: impacts on competitive intelligence

PurposeThe paper aims to clarify the potential impact of data gathered from social media (SM) in the competitive intelligence (CI) process of organizations. As use of SM expands, analysis of this data becomes a critical business need providing essential support for decision makers. This paper seeks to examine how SM be used to enhance CI in an organizational context.Design/methodology/approachThis paper adopted an exploratory mixed-method approach followed by a sequential and equal status design, with qualitative semi-structured interviews, accounting for the qualitative study and serving as precursor to a quantitative structured survey. Interviewees included a university professor and CI consultant, an SM analyst and a subject in a management position – all in the field of CI. A survey was sent to Fortune 1000 companies. Some 227 companies replied.FindingsThe findings were that the majority of respondents produce CI reports at least monthly, and that information transmitted mainly by presentation within organizations. Over 70% of companies outsource CI activities to specialized firms, while 80.9% of organizations felt CI improved their relationship with their customers. Not surprisingly, as the number of people dedicated to CI activities increased, the likelihood of an organization hiring outside companies specializing in CI diminished.Research limitations/implicationsAll organizations sampled were large US companies; thus, small- and medium-sized enterprises were excluded, as were non-US viewpoints. As survey respondents were anonymous, the source of data at the level of the individual is missing. Finally, only three interviewees provided the qualitative data.Practical implicationsThis investigation determined organizations should have an established and well-structured CI department. Furthermore, such a department should have between five and ten employees to maximize the potential. Outsourcing depends on the company’s specific needs. Nevertheless, regardless of whether it outsources CI activities or not, each firm should monitor SM to enhance the CI process.Originality/valueMuch SM-based CI is either non-existent or in “embryotic” stages in most companies, and therefore still a work in progress. Furthermore, as SM is a relatively new phenomenon, studies supporting its implementation are scarce. Companies stand to gain significant improvements to CI if SM is effectively used.

Interpreting, analyzing and distributing information: A big data framework for competitive intelligence

This paper aimed to develop a data-based technological innovation frameworkfocused on the competitive intelligence process. Technological innovations increasinglytransform the behavior of societies, affecting all sectors. Solutions such as cloud computing, theInternet of Things, and artificial intelligence provide and benefit from a vast generation of data:large data sets called Big Data. The use of new technologies in all sectors increases in the faceof such innovation and technological mechanisms of management. We advocated that the use ofBig Data and the competitive intelligence process could help generate or maintain a competitiveadvantage for organizations. We based the proposition of our framework on the concepts of BigData and competitive intelligence. Our proposal is a theoretical framework for use in thecollection, treatment, and distribution of information directed to strategic decision-makers. Itssystematized architecture allows the integration of processes that generate information fordecision making.

Analysis and Modeling of Enterprise Competitive Intelligence Based on Social Media User Comments

AbstractUnder modern information conditions, competitive intelligence has an important strategic role for an enterprise to reduce market, financial and other risks. How to correctly evaluate the value of competitive intelligence and make the right decision for an enterprise directly determines the survival and development of an enterprise. By establishing a co-occurrence relationship between the two, the core themes of corporate microblog communication are discovered. Proceeding from the basic theory of the value of competitive intelligence, it is proposed that due to the connection of business departments within the enterprise system, the transfer value of competitive intelligence within the enterprise system is changed, and a mathematical analysis method is used to establish a value transfer analysis model. The value-added process of enterprise competitive intelligence and the internal and external operational processes of the enterprise are unified, and the internal and external competitive intelligence value-added operation modes of enterprises led by different strategies are studied. This provides a new and widely-referenced operational reference for different companies to effectively formulate and implement their competition and cooperation strategies through internal and external competitive intelligence operations.

COMPETITIVE INTELLIGENCE IMPACT IN THE GROWTH OF FRANCHISING NETWORKS

This paper endeavored to identify how the competitive intelligence process influences the growth and performance of franchise networks. The research employed a qualitative method and the field work was done with 15 franchisors from different sectors of activity. Two data analysis techniques were utilized: discourse analysis and critical incident technique. As a result, five critical incidents were found, that is, five competitive intelligence processes which would lead to the growth of a franchise network. In addition, three direct effects on performance were discussed: 1) increase sales and revenues; 2) increase the number of franchise units; 3) boosts chances of survival and growth of the network in local and external markets. On the other hand, it was possible to notice the existence of a dissonance between the perception of the franchisors regarding the rigor and structure of competitive intelligence process in the multiple franchise networks in the market.

La gobernanza corporativa como factor estratégico para el desarrollo de la inteligencia competitiva en empresas de servicios turísticos: El caso de Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, México

Definida como el mecanismo que tienen las empresas para administrar el uso de los recursos de análisis de negocio, a fin de distinguir y analizar información competitiva, la gobernanza corporativa es un factor relevante para el despliegue de la función de inteligencia. Por esta razón, el propósito de este trabajo es estudiar la relación que existe entre la gobernanza corporativa y la inteligencia competitiva en las empresas de servicios turísticos de una importante zona turística de México. El tipo de estudio es descriptivo y correlacional, con un enfoque cuantitativo que comprende la revisión de literatura científica, el análisis crítico de datos, el procesamiento y sistematización de esos datos, y la comprobación de la hipótesis planteada mediante el coeficiente de correlación rho de Spearman. Los resultados indican que el proceso de inteligencia competitiva en estas empresas es influenciado positivamente por la gobernanza corporativa, existiendo una relación lineal positiva entre ambas variables.

Big Data Analytics in Building the Competitive Intelligence of Organizations

Abstract Over recent years, organizations have started to capitalize on the significant use of Big Data and emerging technologies to analyze, and gain valuable insights linked to, decision-making processes. The process of Competitive Intelligence (CI) includes monitoring competitors with a view to delivering both actionable and meaningful intelligence to organizations. In this regard, the capacity to leverage and unleash the potential of big data tools and techniques is one of various significant components of successfully steering CI and ultimately infusing such valuable knowledge into CI strategies. In this paper, the authors aim to examine Big Data applications in CI processes within organizations by exploring how organizations deal with Big Data analytics, and this study provides a context for developing Big Data frameworks and process models for CI in organizations. Overall, research findings have indicated a preference for a rather centralized informal process as opposed to a clear formal structure for CI; the use of basic tools for queries, as opposed to reliance on dedicated methods such as advanced machine learning; and the existence of multiple challenges that companies currently face regarding the use of big data analytics in building organizational CI.

The competitive intelligence diamond model with the approach to standing on the shoulders of giants

Organizations that implement a competitive intelligence process are more successful in a competitive environment. To do so correctly there is a need for a comprehensive model that, in addition to eliminating the defects of the previous models, describes the phases and indicators and also illustrates the relationship between them. This research meets such a need and presents a developed model. The ongoing research is based on a mixed approach. The meta-synthesis method was used to identify the initial model in the first stage and the delphi method was used to validate and modify the initial model, as well as to understand the relationship between all the phases of this process in the second stage. Two samples were used, the first included all the papers in the competitive intelligence field, of which 45 were selected. The second sample included experts in intelligence. Organizations can use this comprehensive model for deployment, correct implementation, and the practice of competitive intelligence.

COMPETITIVE TECHNICAL INTELLIGENCE: USING PATENT DATA TO DETERMINE SMART CITY TRENDS

The aim of this paper is to define a method for uncovering smart city technology trends using competitive technical intelligence processes focused on intellectual property analysis using data visualisation. The authors introduce ways of gathering relevant core bibliographic data on the desired technology together with search preparation and query building. For demonstration purposes, the authors have used the European Patent Office datasets. The aim of this paper is to define a method for smart city competitive intelligence analysis focused on the main innovative companies and organizations and specific technology trends. The time period between the years 1997 and 2017 is used. Based on the results, the authors have indicated that Samsung is the leader in intelligent city innovations in this period. Five main product invention categories were also identified.

Competitive Intelligence Process and Strategic Performance of Banking Sector in Pakistan

Competitive Intelligence Process and Strategic Performance of Banking Sector in Pakistan