Competitive Intelligence (CI) Dictionary
Posted by | Fuld & Company
Competitive Intelligence is the collection and analysis of information to anticipate competitive activity, see past market disruptions and dispassionately interpret events. To cover off on the most commonly used terms, Fuld & Company produced a resource, the CI Dictionary, to help define the commonly discussed elements of competitive intelligence.
Examples include:
Competitor Intelligence – Similar to competitive or business intelligence, this phrase refers to legally and ethically collected information on a rival that has been analyzed to the point where you can make a decision. Example: “Our chief rival, a stock brokerage firm, is reducing its brokerage force by onethird over the next five years in favor of direct Internet electronic sales and transactions. This will reduce their costs, allowing them to cut their transaction fees by onehalf, placing us in a high-cost, non-competitive position.”
Intelligence Cycle – The four-step description of how intelligence develops. Intelligence develops in a cyclical manner. Step 1: The questions Step 2: The collection of the information Step 3: Analysis of the information Step 4: Delivery of the intelligence to the individual or individuals asking the question in Step 1. At this point, the person asking the question digests the intelligence delivered and may change the questions once again, starting the intelligence cycle all over again. This question-information-analysis- intelligence cycle may occur a few more times before the person asking the questions is satisfied and makes a decision. At that stage, the cycle stops.
Intelligence Maps – Figurative maps formed by a pattern of intelligence antennas. Because the combination of intelligence antennas differs from country to country, so too will the maps they form. For example, in the United States, the Federal Government and Publications form two dominant antennas on its map; in Italy, it might be the Chambers of Commerce and Publications. The combinations of intelligence antennas create the intelligence map for each country. See also Intelligence Antennas.
Full List of Intelligence Definitions in the Document:
Alerting Services
Analysis
Anti-Trust
Awareness
Bellweather
Benchmarking
Cardinal Intelligence Rule
Competitor Intelligence
Constancy
Core Issues
Cost Drivers
Counter-Intelligence
Creative Sources
Credibility
Credit Report
Critical Factors
Cultural Filter
Customer Intelligence
Data
Data Mining
Debriefing
Disincentives
Disinformation
Displays
Dissemination
Economic Espionage Act (EEA)
Environmental Scanning
Espionage
Ethics and Legalities
Filters
Focus
Framework
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)
Fudge Factor
Gap Analysis
Groupware
Humint
Incentives
Information
Information Bridges
Information Channels
Information Proxy
Intelligence
Intelligence Antennas
Intelligence Assets
Intelligence Audit®
Intelligence Cycle
Intelligence Factors
Intelligence Maps
Intelligence Pyramid
Intelligence Rep
Intelligence System
Intelligence Team
Intranet
Involvement
Leaks
Literature Search
Local Sources
Longevity
Milking
Misinformation
Mission Statement
Moment of Change
Monitoring Programs
Online Sources
Open Source
Patent Analysis
Personality Profiling
Photoint (photographic intelligence)
Porter’s Five Forces Model
Predator Analysis
Pricing Analysis
Proprietary Information
Public Information
Public-Domain Information
Qualitative Information
Quantitative Information
Reporting Forms
Ringmaster
Ripple Effect
Rumor
Scenario Planning
SCIP – Strategic and Competitive Intelligence
Professionals
SDI (Selective Dissemination of Information)
Secondary Sources (Creative and Basic)
Shadow Competitor
Strategic and Competitive Intelligence Professionals
(SCIP)
Soft Information
Strategic Intelligence
Supplier Intelligence
SWOT
Tactical Intelligence
Technobabble
Time
Timelining
Trade Secret
Traditional Source
UCC
Usenet
War Game
War Room
Winnowing