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MANAGEMENT
THROUGH
COMPETITIVE INTELLIGENCE
[SYNOPSIS]
PRADHUMAN SINGH
DEPUTY MANAGER
I would like to thank Dr Vikas Prakash Singh and Prof. Subir Ranjan Das from the
bottom of my heart by guiding me in this most significant academic endeavor of my life. I
would also acknowledge the support of my CEO Emaar MGF Ms Ananta Raghuvanshi
for the motivation
Thanks again.
PRADHUMAN SINGH
DEPUTY MANAGER
• Problem Statement
• Background
• Objectives
2. Research Methodology -
• Theoretical framework
• Sources of data
• Statistical tools,
3. Review of Literature
5. Bibliography
THE GAP
Infrastructure, by far has been the Achilles Heel of the Republic of India when it comes
to creating Competitive Advantage as an investment destination vis-à-vis other growing
economies such as Brazil, Philippines, Ireland and especially PRC (People’s Republic of
China). The visible impact of this great shortcoming translates into greater funds being
pumped into PRC from all the major corporations of the world despite the fact that India
is a democracy and the level of transparency in various transactions is far better than
what exists in PRC. The direct reflection of the great gap is reflected both at the macro
as well as micro level in almost all key sectors as well as sections of the Indian Nation.
The national income takes a beating in ways more than one. The significant components
of Infrastructure such a road networks, power systems, water replenishment, fuel supply
chains etc are undergoing improvements at a far lesser rate than desired, in order to
support the fundamental goal of national development. It is ironic to see a situation in
states of India where one is experiencing drought and the neighboring state has a flood
situation at a distance of less than 10 kms.
THE IMPLICATIONS
More so to say, Infrastructure has great implications for strategic state of a nation in
general and the National Security aspect in specific. From the history of various wars
fought in the numerous theatres in the past, it has become evident that Infrastructure is
the first and last line of Defence in a state of war. Also, it becomes the first target of an
enemy’s first wave of assaults, due to being the basic framework of any nations
existence. Post 9/11, it has witnessed major terrorist attacks causing unprecedented
damage to property and life. Until sometime back telecom and Internet based
infrastructure had been a non threatened aspect. However, even this has fallen prey to
multiple threats emanating from non-state and state sponsored actors.
THE INVASIONS
This loosely bound confederation of states was subjected to invasions from the
Karakoram Pass other than internal conflicts. As the demographic character of the
population and its rulers changed, better road networks were established. Not only for
movement of troops, but also reachability.
In the Southern India, certain Kingdoms like the Cholas and Chalukyas had a powerful
navy. In order to support the functioning of the military arm, sea ways also facilitated
internal as well as external trade, in contradiction to the land routes, which otherwise
brought much carnage to the existing urban systems. In the latter half of the 9th century,
the European traders, pioneered by the Portuguese, had preferred the sea route to
reach the Indian subcontinent. Although, in the later days, it proved crucial step in their
colonization of India, it also opened up new channels of interaction and commercial ties
in a rapidly changing global scenario.
The British rule did bring in railways and communication systems to a vast expanse of
the Indian people. The port cities of Bombay and Calcutta had assumed greater
significance as commercial and political capitals of British India. Roadways in the
Himalayan region improved significantly. The foundation that the British laid continues to
service the Indian masses till date.
Post Independence India saw a growth in all major industrial sectors including
infrastructure. However, on a global perspective, the Indian Infrastructure scenario
leaves a lot to be desired. India had a glorious past in terms of know-how in the fields of
urban planning and architecture, as mentioned here. However, with constant invasions
and long period of Imperial and colonial occupation, the motivation to conceive and build
had got lost down the way.
THE VOID
India ,as a nation of more than a billion, is in a dire need of infrastructure framework that
can not only complement but also sustain the 6.5 - 7.0 % Annual Growth Rate for a
developing economy in a recovering global market. The greatest hurdle that almost all
industries as well as the government encounter is India’s current state of Infrastructure
as well as its management. Huge spending on energy as well as its subsequent
wastage takes a toll on the overall national income going waste. With the global
warming issue fast catching the attention of the whole world, the cleaner, leaner and
greener alternatives must be explored.
A few years ago, infrastructure referred to solid structures that were very much visible
and almost stationary in nature pertaining to their size and magnitude. Whether it was
the roadways or the railway lines, buildings or ports, infrastructure was being implied to
as something that a civil engineer does, i.e. built structures of steel, brick and concrete.
However, today in the age of knowledge, Information and Communication Technology or
ICT has taken a lead and thus forms a significant component of overall infrastructure
systems. Be it the Optical fiber networks or the satellites above the earth’s atmosphere,
infrastructure evolves into a more dynamic picture of it selves. Thus, infrastructure
assumes a much broader scope than what it used to in the era prior to ICT age.
Earlier, the systems being primarily static in nature, there was never a significant
application of technology and management except the construction and maintenance
part. However, with newer threats emerging from terrorism as well as natural disasters,
technologies like smart sensors as well as intelligent devices make operations of key
components of infrastructure much more streamlined and safer. This in turn, helps in
robust administration and management of infrastructure systems better than ever.
Eventual translation into superior end user servicing thus becomes the goal of
technology integrated management.
Identification of threats as well a pre-emption may have been military terms until the
industry realized the significance of competition mapping as well as threat management.
Threats emanate not merely from market or competition, but also the likely scenarios of
political, social and economic future near and far. Mere usage of mathematical
forecasting tools based on quantitative inputs may prove futile, if not backed by serious
and in depth insight into all possible scenarios from best case to worst case. Competitive
Intelligence is a comprehensive system that fills this gap.
Objectives
Within the Infrastructure sector, there are certain key processes and procedures that
have proven their effectiveness over a period of time. These methods need to be taken
note of and thus documented, so that they can be studied upon and their application
may be done in other areas where other modes of action have not succeeded.
Being in the ICT scenario of today, it is important to make the full use of available
resources that facilitate inflow of credible information to assist decision making and
prompt action in real time. How the available technology can help create and more
importantly manage infrastructure systems making them more intelligent and responsive
to the ever changing requirements of the end user is to be covered.
While Competitive Intelligence is heavily being made use of in the global markets in
order to achieve the minimal wafer thin margins, in India, most organizations are
unaware of this very phrase. Certain organizations, such as Royal Dutch have brought
their model from the parent markets, applied it and reaped the benefits of the same. Its
ability to propel the growth of the infrastructure sector in India is yet to be fully utilized. CI
has been used as a tool of state policy in powerful nation states of PRC, USA and
France extensively.
Other than furthering a nation’s industrial and economic prowess, infrastructure is also
the first line of defense. An absence of proper road network and accessibility to the Indo-
Tibetan border regions had been responsible for the debacle of 1962. Other than that,
the possibility of looking into natural gas supply lines from Central Asia need to be
examined so as to minimize one’s dependence on sources of other fossil fuels which
indirectly fund the elements that threaten the national security.
Theoretical Framework
Early Warning System :
• With the help of competitive early warning, decision makers can take timely and
relevant strategic action.
• Competitive early warning system can provide a base from which the
environment can be better predicted ; A systematic process of gathering and
analyzing data , based on several indicators defined by the organisation and
prepared after reviewing the different key factors in a specific environment .
a) Proactive implies a two step approach .First seek and make choices about issues
that are relevant for the organisation’s future, and then introduce those issues
into the system of continuous monitoring.
b) Reactive approach takes a radar view of monitoring the environment, looking for
unexpected changes that could result in losing out on the competitive advantage.
The changes identified by Competitive Early warning systems in the environment can
be perceived to identify the risk or the source of potential conflict with the organisation
objectives or it can be considered a business opportunities. A threat can become an
opportunity if known well in advance and dealt with properly.
Scenario Planning :
• The knowledge of scenario planning is based upon the Human imagination and
knowledge.
• The human mind excels in extrapolating and generalising from the experience
and making creative leaps.
Competitive Benchmarking:
War-gaming:
• It is used for general management training and team building or a tool to explore
and test competitive strategies for a specific firm to discover any weaknesses in a
plan and to identify possible consequences of adopting such a plan.
• The idea of war gaming is to gain a perspective of the marketplace from outside
their own firm.
• The basic aim of a war game is to turn information into actionable intelligence by
increasing the quality of decision making.
• In the Information age CTI has even touched the lives of organisations that use
little or no technology as well.
• For organisations that are build upon knowledge and technology, CTI is a cutting
edge system that helps them gain insight inwards as well as obtain competitive
advantage upfront in the market.
Sources of data
• DATA GATHERING
It is highly likely that maximum data sources will be secondary in nature. Due to a
high degree of Information Security being exercised by organizations, most
organizations would not part with their key processes and procedures that give
them short term or long term competitive advantage. However, all the data that is
available in the open source will be acquired as and when available.
Some of the key texts for CI have already been mentioned in the Bibliography.
There is ample literature available on Competitive Intelligence, all by non-Indian
authors. The same cannot be said for infrastructure since the texts are either
centered on civil engineering or IT Infrastructure. However, pertaining to the
current scenario, some data will be collected on Infrastructure from Primary
sources themselves.
– INTERNET
Internet by far may not be the most reliable source of data, however some idea
may be sought for further precision. Certain publications or new items will prove
useful on web based newspaper tabloids and discussion forums.
Certain projects that are unique in nature would demand a site visit. If permitted,
overseas projects would also be studied on site.
One to one meetings with executives who have been managing infrastructure in
their respective industries would be sought. Also, interactions with the academics
that have been on the forefront of research in infrastructure would be tremendous
utility.
• SURVEY
The parent organization i.e. Emaar MGF has been on the forefront of building key
residential and retail projects. With access to tenders and other business
proposals, an idea of the shape of things would be obtained. At UPES, access to
University faculty as well as the library would be optimally utilized.
Key collaborators and contractors who work for competitors as well as public
sector documentation available in the public domain will be made use of.
Interaction with students and former colleagues would facilitate greater insight.
Sampling
- Most of the data collection would be secondary in nature. However, wherever the
specific need arises, primary collection would be sought.
PRIMARY DATA COLLECTION
OBSERVATION METHOD
QUESTIONNAIRE
o Preparation of questionnaire
o Testing of questionnaire
o Editing required
SAMPLING METHODS
- (A) In case where Random Sampling is used, Simple Random Sampling through
lottery method will be carried out.
- (B) In case of Non-Random Sampling, Judgment Sampling will be carried out.
Statistical tools
• A judicious use of all the data representation devices will be made use of, as and
when required.
• The tools that may be used for visual representation would find usage in a
comparative analysis.
Start
o Study of various aspects of
Competitive Intelligence
o Study of existing
Infrastructure Sector
o Infrastructure Management
- In the global context, amongst the few case studies done, there have been
certain organisations which are engaged in Infrastructure related businesses or
functions.
- Not only organisations, but also countries have been using Competitive
Intelligence as a tool of state policy.
- In countries like PRC or People’s Republic of China, there has been an unethical
usage of CI thus making it Industrial and Technical Espionage.
- The Indian government so far has refrained from using this model of ethical and
legal mode of accessing Competitor Information, however the Ministry of External
affairs continues to assist the Indian Industries investing abroad.
- The Competitive rivalry between Boeing and Airbus has targeted the Indian
market in the recent times.
- Currently, the biggest defence deal in the world today that involves the sale of
127 Medium Multi-role Combat Aircrafts(MMRCA) to the Indian Air Force has
been a major exercise in Competitive Intelligence where the players have pitched
their respective products to the Indian Ministry of Defence, namely being
IBM
Key Points:
• CEO’s Aspects
• Response
• IBM was to analyse and treat the information so that it can be used to make right
strategic decision at the right time before the competition or as an offensive tactic
to a competitive positioning.
o Research components
• Areas catered to
o Financial Comparisons
o Investment analysis
o Executive Hiring
Key Result : Better Business Integration
Xerox Corp
Best Practices
The other organisations that have successfully applied the CI model are as follows:
(E) Lexis-Nexis
References
2. Synopsis
3. Current Issues
4. Competitive Intelligence
6. Infrastructure Sector
8. Gap identification
11. Bibliography
12. Appendix
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1) The Arthashastra by Kautilya
Bensoussan
Miller
14) Scenario Planning: The Link Between Future And Strategy by Mats
Lindgren, Bruce Pilbeam & Hans Bandhold
15) The Art of the Long View by Peter Schwartz
Callon