goldenberg dan -building a company-wide intelligence network best practice guidebook tue 11am think...

THINK TANK FIVE: COMPETITIVE INTELLIGENCE AND MARKET RESEARCHGIL 2012: SILICON VALLEY

Building a Sustainable Companywide Intelligence Network

FEATURINGCintas

DAN GOLDENBERGGlobal Vice President, Growth Partnership StrategyFrost & Sullivan

[email protected]

2

Agenda

TIME CONTENT

9:45 Business Intelligence Project Prioritization SystemA case-based best practice presentation on how the EITS Division of L-3 developed a system to prioritize its BI (market research and competitive intelligence) project portfolio, allocate resources, and reduce redundant requests.

FACILITATOR: Dan Goldenberg, Global Vice President, Growth Partnership Strategy, Frost & Sullivan

10:45 Building a Sustainable Companywide Intelligence NetworkA case-based best practice presentation on how Cintas created a self-sustaining competitive intelligence (CI) network that involves the entire workforce.

FACILITATOR: Dan Goldenberg, Global Vice President, Growth Partnership Strategy, Frost & Sullivan

CO-FACILITATOR: Troy Pfeffer, Competitive Intelligence Director, Cintas

The contents of these pages are copyright © 2012 Frost & Sullivan. All rights reserved. Growth Team Membership™ research.

3


GTM is a subscription program that supports executives within the functions that report to the CEO

CEO’s Growth Team™

GTM provides best practices, events, and services that enable executives to address challenges within their companies

GTM: Creating Client Value

GTM’s case-based best practices help executives:

Speed the design and implementation of initiatives by not reinventing the wheel

Save money and reduce risk by avoiding mistakes made by other companies

Accelerate problem-solving with a cross-industry perspective

Improve their functions’ and companies’ performance and productivity

CCorporateStrategy

Coorrppoorrate DDevelopment

Marketing

CompetitiivveeIInntteelllliigence

MMarketResearch

SalesLeadershipp

R&D/IInnnnoovvation

IInnvvestors/Finance

CEO

MarketResearch

CompetitiveIntelligence

The Growth Team Membership™ (GTM)

4

Firm: Cintas

Industry: Business Services

Headquarters: Cincinnati, Ohio, United States

Geographic Footprint: Global

Ownership: Public

Revenue (2011): $3.8 billion USD


Profiled Best Practice Company

5


Growth Challenge

Problem:

Cintas must optimize limited resources and harness employees’ competitive intelligence insights to help the company win new business and defend existing accounts.

6


CI Network Development Process

Cintas builds a companywide competitive intelligence (CI) network to complement its one-person department

Establish a CI Program

Framework

Develop a CI Infrastructure

Encourage Network

Participation

Generate Intelligence

Shape an Intelligence

Portfolio

Drive Portal Adoption

Key Activities•Interview high-

performing sales/service representatives

•Assess sales force CI needs

Key Activities•Develop

a tiered intelligence network

•Establish an intelligence process

•Create a centralized intelligence portal

Key Activities•Conduct a CI

“Roadshow”•Communicate

an “Early Win” to the C-Suite

Key Activities•Focus frontline

staff on gathering competitive information

•Task managers withfilteringinformation

•Submit key information to the intelligence portal

Key Activities•Collect formal

and informal stakeholder feedback

•Develop a suite of CI deliverables

Key Activities•Limit access

to 1,600 intelligence leaders

•Revoke portal privileges for insufficientuse

•Provide customized features

Objective

Determine the current state and future direction of CI

Objective

Create an integrated,flexibleintelligence infrastructure

Objective

Generate awareness of and engagement with the CI program

Objective

Maximize CI network productivity

Objective

Create a portfolio of CI deliverables that balances program resources with stakeholder needs

Objective

Promote intelligence portal usage

7


Assessing the Current State and Future Direction of CI

Scope program needs by learning how front-line employees use competitive intelligence

Identifying High-Performing Reps

The CI Director works with sales/service managers to identify high-performing reps.

Conducting One-On-One Interviews

The CI Director interviews high-performing reps.

Operational Focus•Concentrate on operational

competitive insights

Sales Force as CI Producer and Consumer•Focus on meeting the needs of the

primary producers and consumers of competitive intelligence

Segment the Producers•Divide Cintas employees into

groups

Kick-Start the CI Program •Designate CI Champions

from the sales force

Determine CI Structure and Focus Capture Existing CI Insights Establish the CI Program’s Framework

CI Program Mission

The program must support revenue generation and serve the sales force as its primary client.

8


The Intelligence Process in Action

CI Infrastructure Attributes

Intelligence Network Participants

Create an integrated intelligence infrastructure that capitalizes on stakeholder capabilities but allows for flexibility in their roles

All-Encompassing Intelligence Network

Flexible Intelligence Process

Centralized Platform

30,000 Cintas Employees

25 CI Champions

Collect Analyze Decide Act

CI Director

CI Vendor

C-Level Executives

1,600 Intelligence Leaders (manager-level and above)

9


CI Network: Driving Awareness and Engagement

Encourage intelligence network participation with a marketing campaign tailored to specific stakeholders

30,000 Employees

Intelligence Leaders

C-Level Executives

Early Win with C-Suite Objective: Demonstrate top-line value of CI

CI Roadshow Objective: Inform stakeholders about the benefitsofCI

CI Champions

Objective: Create role models for network participation

E-Mail Campaign

Objective: Capture employees’ attention about the new CI program

Promotional TacticsPrimary Target Audience Desired Outcomes

Branding Objective: Differentiate the CI program from other Cintas initiatives

Awareness

Engagement

Buy-In

10


Aligning CI Role to Position

Optimize network productivity by focusing on intelligence activities connected to members’ day-to-day responsibilities

The Lock Box

Cintas provides locked bins at 275 locations. Employees submit information, and managers review contents monthly.

Intelligence Portal Submission Criteria•Does the

information address a key competitor or CI topic?

•Is the information potentially actionable?

•How credible is the information?

Employees’ Focus: Intelligence-Gathering

Cintas’ frontline employees: 1. Identify relevant

competitive information2. Collect a high volume of

competitive information3. Submit competitor

information to their managers or the Lock Box

Managers’ Focus: Value-Added Analysis

Sales, service, and general managers:1. Prioritize submitted

competitor information2. Add context and/or

analysis3. Seek out Subject Matter

Experts (SMEs)

Intelligence PortalCI Vendor’s Focus: Synthesizing Public Information

Cintas works with a CI vendor, responsible for collecting,filtering,anddisseminating public information.

11


CI Program Capacity CI Portfolio Development

Create intelligence deliverables that balance CI program resources with stakeholder needs

Dedicated Resources Part-Time Resources

As a one-person function, the CI Director recognizes that he must maximize internal and external resources in creating an intelligence deliverables portfolio.

The CI Director synthesizes portal information and incorporatesstakeholderfeedbacktodevelopandrefineintelligence deliverables.

CI Director

Capability:•Ability to

synthesize key internal and external competitive insights

Capability: •Ability to

monitor and synthesize daily public marketplace and competitor developments

CI Vendor

Capability: •Hands-on

understanding of competitor and marketplace trends

Intelligence Leaders/SMEs

Stakeholder Needs

Deliverable Frequency Required

Required Resources Deliverables

Marketplace pulse

Daily CI vendor •Daily Intelligence Report

Competitor understanding

Monthly

CI Director, vendor, intelligence leaders/SMEs

•Intelligence Monthly Report

Trend monitoring

Quarterly/Semi-Annually

CI Director, vendor, intelligence leaders/SMEs

•Quarterly Business Trends Intelligence Report

•Semi-Annual Competitive Intelligence Trend Report

Customized research

As needed CI Director

•Competitor Deep Dives

•Customized Reports

12


Challenges in Driving Portal Usage Motivating Portal Usage

Drive intelligence portal adoption by limiting access and promoting accountability

Ownership•Employees generate much of the

portal’s information

Exclusivity•Intelligence portal access is limited to

the 1,600 intelligence leaders

Accountability•Leaders are responsible for sharing

relevant intelligence•Usage can be monitored by leaders’

peers •Leaders’ access will be revoked if they

do not add content to the portal at least every three months

Customization•Portal users receive customized e-mail notifications

•Users’ portal dashboards can be tailored to their interests

CI Director Vendor

Prior to launching the portal, the CI Director solicits input from external CI peers; this input helps him avoid common challenges, such as:

Protection of sensitive competitive insights

Low-utility information and limited personal stake in portal information

No consequences for low usage

Limited customization for different users

13


Business Results

Cintas’ intelligence network has provided important competitive developments to our executive team, better preparing them for analyst discussions.

— President, Document Management, Cintas

Intelligence Network Portal Contributions(2008–2010)

Year

0%

34%

67%

2008 2009 20100%

50%

100%

Percentage of Members

SalesEfficiency(Illustrative)(2008–2010)

0

1

2

Efficiency

0.5 x

50%x

2008 2010Year

Competitive Activity Response Rate(2008–2010)

0

1

2

3

0

1

2

32.5

1

2008 2010

Months

Year

14


3

The contents of these pages are copyright © 2012 Frost & Sullivan. All rights reserved.

best practice guidebookgrowth team m e m b e r s h i p™

Source: Cintas; Growth Team Membership™ research.

Identifying High-Performing Reps

The CI Director works with sales/service managers to identify high-performing reps who demonstrate consistent success in selling or defending their product/serviceagainstaspecificcompetitor.

Conducting One-On-One Interviews

The CI Director interviews high-performing reps to gain insight into their use of CI. Questions include:

•What kind of competitive information is most valuable to you?

•What are Cintas’ unique competitive advantages against Competitor A, B, and C?

•How do you win/defend business?

•How do you prefer to access competitive intelligence?

•How often do you search for competitive information?

Operational Focus•Concentrate on operational competitive insights,

as opposed to strategic ones, as sales/service reps need that information to help defend or pursue accounts on a daily basis

Sales Force as CI Producer and Consumer• Focus on meeting the needs of the primary

producers and consumers of competitive intelligence

Segment the Producers•Divide Cintas employees into groups with

different CI roles based on capacity and capabilities

Kick-Start the CI Program •Designate CI Champions from the

sales force to galvanize the CI program

key takeaway: Scope program needs by learning how front-line employees use competitive intelligenceThe CI Director evaluates existing CI efforts and program needs by conducting cross-company interviews of leading sales and service representatives

implications of a one-person ci functionA one-person CI function necessitates the creation of an employee CI network. By limiting the size of CI to a “Director” role, intelligence consumers must share information in order to receive information (i.e., become producers). By involving every employee in the intelligence process, Cintas can capture explicit and tacit intelligence and foster an intelligence-focused culture that will define the entire organization.

Determine CI Structure and Focus Capture Existing CI Insights Establish the CI Program’s Framework

CI Program MissionThe program must support revenue generation and serve the sales force as its primary client.

Resources • A single CI

Director to develop and oversee Cintas’ CI processes

•One vendor to focus on publicly available competitive information

Objective • Engage the entire

Cintas workforce to help generate the intelligence

• Tap the competitive insights of successful sales and service reps

Assessing the Current State and Future Direction of CI

2


best practice guidebookgrowth team m e m b e r s h i p™

Source: Cintas; Growth Team Membership™ research.

Cintas builds a companywide competitive intelligence (CI) network to complement its one-person department

CI Network Development Process

Establish a CI Program Framework

Develop a CI Network

Encourage Network Participation

Generate Intelligence

Shape an Intelligence Portfolio

Drive Portal Adoption

Key Activities• Interview high-

performing sales/service representatives who are using CI effectively

• Assess sales force CI needs

Key Activities•Create a multi-

level intelligence network to produce and consume competitive insights

Key Activities•Conduct a CI

“Roadshow”

•Communicate an “Early Win” to the C-Suite

Key Activities• Focus frontline

employees on gathering relevant competitive information

• Task managers with filteringinformationand adding competitive insights

• Submit key information to the intelligence portal

Key Activities•Collect formal

and informal stakeholder feedback

•Develop a suite of CI deliverables

Key Activities• Limit portal

access to 1,600 intelligence leaders

• Feature employee-generated content

• Revoke portal privileges for insufficientactivity

• Provide customized features

ObjectiveDetermine the current state and future direction of CI

ObjectiveCapitalize on varying stakeholder capabilities and needs

ObjectiveGenerate awareness of and engagement with the CI program

ObjectiveMaximize CI network productivity

ObjectiveCreate a portfolio of CI deliverables that balances program resources with stakeholder needs

ObjectivePromote intelligence portal usage

Output• Establishment of the

CI structure and focus

Output• A companywide

intelligence network

Output• Active companywide

CI participation—at least 20% of intelligence leaders regularly contributing content to an intelligence portal

Output• Relevant and

actionable competitive information

Output• An array of

deliverables that address key intelligence gaps

Output• Improved response

times to competitor activities

• Increased sales forceefficiency

Note: Definition of Competitive Intelligence—The continuous monitoring of a company’s competitive environment to identify, analyze, and disseminate intelligence on opportunities and threats.

GTM Members can access the full 11-page Best Practice Guidebook

1


growth team m e m b e r s h i p™

Building a Sustainable Companywide Intelligence Network

Best Practice Guidebook

guidebook summary

Firm: CintasIndustry: Business ServicesHeadquarters: Cincinnati, Ohio, United StatesGeographic Footprint: GlobalOwnership: PublicRevenue (2011): $3.8 billion USD

Problem: Cintas must optimize limited resources and harness employees’ competitive intelligence insights to help the company win new business and defend existing accounts.

Solution: Cintas builds a self-sustaining competitive intelligence (CI) network that involves the entire workforce. This program includes:•Acquiring a bottom-up perspective on existing CI usage to establish

the program’s framework•Developing a companywide CI network that capitalizes on

stakeholder capabilities and captures explicit and tacit knowledge•Maximizing network productivity by aligning CI roles to day-to-day

responsibilities •Driving awareness and participation among Cintas’ 30,000 employees

with a tailored marketing campaign•Creating intelligence deliverables that balance CI program resources

with stakeholder needs•Driving network usage of a customized intelligence portal

Business Results:• Improved response rates to competitive activity • Increasedsalesefficiency• Enhanced internal best practice-sharing and communication

Resources Required: • Full-time CI Director•CI vendor•Customized intelligence portal

Applicability of Best Practice to Executive Functions: Function Applicability

Competitive Intelligence

Sales Leadership

Download the complete Best Practice Guidebook at your Growth Team Membership™ client portal. The Guidebook includes:•Full content and guidance•Key Lessons Learned •Tools and Resources

Section

goldenberg dan -building a company-wide intelligence network best practice guidebook tue 11am think...

Documents