Hermosa Beach, CA

Monday, January 11, 2010

Companies that went out of business or lost sales readily blame the economy. But, competitive intelligence expert, Seena Sharp, attributes many of these losses to bad decisions rather than bad times.

She says that "too many executives don't take responsibility for their bad decisions, and seek to put the blame elsewhere, favoring a non-human entity such as the economy.

No doubt that the economy hurt many businesses, but far more companies might have stayed in business if they changed their thinking from what they knew in a growing economy, to what they need to know about a recessionary one.

In addition, decision-makers need to shift their thinking and recognize that past successes may have little relevance to the current market. They need to investigate their customers and current market conditions.

So what does it really mean to collect the dots and connect them? Sharp's book, Competitive Intelligence Advantage and the chapter on Data, Information, and Intelligence detail the crucial differences.

Collecting the dots means getting the right information. Not just data. It's all the input that impacts your business, including what's true and changing with distributors, packaging, regulations, customers, competitors, substitutes, and so forth. Further, the right information is current, accurate, relevant, and objective.

Sharp states that while data is valuable and provides context, it reflects what has happened in the past. But, because decisions impact the business today and tomorrow, the basis for the decisions must reflect today and include a look at tomorrow.

Connecting the dots is more than analyzing the information. It requires the next step of understanding how the objective information matches the capabilities and personality of the firm. Companies that make decisions that don't fit how they currently do business will meet significant challenges and a diminished likelihood of good results.

Finally, connecting the dots is not the end of the story. Decisions must be followed by action. Without execution, connecting the dots is an exercise in "nice to know."

Collect the dots. Connect the dots. Complete the picture.

Seena Sharp

Principal

Sharp Market Intelligence

Hermosa Beach, CA

310.379.5179