Early Warning : Using Competitive Intelligence to Anticipate Market Shifts, Control Risk and Create Powerful Strategies

In the turbulent waters of business, companies run the risk of being blindsided - and sunk - by unexpected developments. "Early Warning" reveals the key to staying on (or successfully changing) course: a CEW, or Competitive Early Warning system, which interlocks strategic planning, competitive intelligence, and management action.

Such systems let companies manage risk more effectively and prevent "industry dissonance" - when corporate strategies are not in touch with market realities.

Effective competitive intelligence (CI) is a critical competency which many organizations are still sorely lacking. "Early Warning" is filled with "horror stories" of failed (or nonexistent) CI at one-time world-beaters such as Lucent, Levi Strauss, Polaroid, and AT&T.

The book then features case studies of CI success in companies using the author's methodology, including Citigroup, Pergo, DASA, and Shell.

It describes the three phases of a CEW: identifying risks and opportunities, intelligence monitoring, and management action; and shows how to design and implement them.Each section ends with a Manager's Checklist of key points, and includes charts, tables, and other tools Shows how to implement "war games" as part of risk analysis, and explains why companies should use their own people to conduct them - instead of expensive consultants or software products.