Competitive Intelligence
Instructor: Dr. Yan Ping Chi
Email: ypchi@mis.nccu.edu.tw
Course Description:
In today’ business, surprise can be a powerful strategic weapon. Business
success begins with deep clarity about competition and business environment.
Certain high-performing enterprises are now building their competitive strategies
around data-driven insights that in turn generate impressive business results. It is
vital for organizations to use company analysis to gain understanding of their
limiting and enabling factors and strategic capabilities. This course introduces
various concepts of competitive intelligence and the different contexts where
these concepts are applied. Upon successful completion of this course, students
will be able to analyze and design the information systems necessary to support
the strategic decision for senior management organization.
Learning Objectives
Upon successful completion of this course, you are expected to:
1) Become familiar with the modern approaches to competition. (strategic
analysis and synthesis, the importance of information in a competitive fight)
2) Become familiar with the modern approaches to Competitive Intelligence (CI
mission and the mission, active, passive, strategic, tactical, technological /
technical, market and targeted CI)
3) Become familiar with the techniques related to competitive analysis：
Competitive analysis techniques, such as Nine Forces, Competitive Positioning,
Business Model, SERVO, and Supply Chain Analyses; Enterprise analysis
techniques such as Benchmarking, McKinsey 7S, Shadowing, Product Line, and
Win/Loss Analyses; Environmental analysis techniques such as Strategic
Relationships, Corporate Reputation, Critical Success Factors, Driving Forces,
and Country Risk Analyses; Evolutionary analysis techniques such as
Technology Forecasting, War Gaming, Event/Timeline, Indications and Warning
Analyses; Financial, probabilistic, and statistical techniques such as Basic
Statistics, Competitor Cash Flow, Analysis of Competing Hypothesis (ACH), and
Linchpin Analyses.
Approach to Learning
Lecture
Case discussion
Competitive analysis techniques presentations
Text and Required Materials:
Text Book:
Thomas H. Davenport and Jeanne G. Harris, Competing on Analytics: The New
Science of Winning, Harvard Business School Press, 2007.
David Hussey, Company Analysis: Determining Strategic Capability , Wiley,
2001.
References:
John E. Prescottand Stephen H. Miller, Proven Strategies in Competitive
Intelligence: Lessons from the Trenches, Wiley, 2001.
Craig S. Fleisher and Babette Bensoussan, Business and Competitive Analysis:
Effective Application of New and Classic Methods, FT Press, 2007.
Craig S. Fleisher and Babette Bensoussan, Strategic and Competitive Analysis:
Methods and Techniques for Analyzing Business Competition. Prentice Hall
2002.
Class Schedule
Week
Content
01
02
Introduction
CI and Business Strategy
03
Competitor Analysis
04
Key Intelligence topic
05
Road Map to Enhanced Analytical Capabilities
Assessing Performance.
War room
CI resources
Case discussion 1
Case discussion 2
Case discussion 3
Case discussion 4
06
07
08
09
10
11
12
13
Competitive analysis techniques presentations1
14
Competitive analysis techniques presentations2
15
Competitive analysis techniques presentations3
16
Competitive analysis techniques presentations4
17
Competitive analysis techniques presentations5
18
Competitive analysis techniques presentations6
Methods of Student Evaluation:
40% case study
20% Participation
40% Competitive analysis techniques term papers.