Intelligence in Action: Strategically Managing Knowledge Assets

240 Pages·2012·1.178 MB·English

by  G. Scott Erickson, Helen N. Rothberg (auth.)

Intelligence in Action
Also by G. Scott Erickson and Helen N. Rothberg
FROM KNOWLEDGE TO INTELLIGENCE: Creating Competitive Advantage in
the Next Economy
Intelligence in Action
Strategically Managing Knowledge Assets
G. Scott Erickson
Ithaca College, Ithaca, USA
and
Helen N. Rothberg
Marist College, Poughkeepsie, USA
© G. Scott Erickson and Helen N. Rothberg 2012
Foreword © John E. Prescott 2012
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2012 978-0-230-34823-3
All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication
may be made without written permission.
No portion of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted
save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence
permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency,
Saffron House, 6–10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS.
Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication
may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
The authors have asserted their rights to be identified as the authors of
this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
First published 2012 by
PALGRAVE MACMILLAN
Palgrave Macmillan in the UK is an imprint of Macmillan Publishers Limited,
registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills, Basingstoke,
Hampshire RG21 6XS.
Palgrave Macmillan in the US is a division of St Martin’s Press LLC,
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies
and has companies and representatives throughout the world.
Palgrave® and Macmillan® are registered trademarks in the United States,
the United Kingdom, Europe and other countries.
ISBN 978-1-349-34545-8 ISBN 978-1-137-03532-5 (eBook)
DOI 10.1057/9781137035325
This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully
managed and sustained forest sources. Logging, pulping and m anufacturing
processes are expected to conform to the environmental regulations of the
country of origin.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12
Contents
List of Tables vi
List of Figures viii
Foreword by John E. Prescott ix
Acknowledgments xii
1 Setting the Stage 1
2 SPF Review: Our Journey 8
3 Preparing for Launch 21
4 SPF 45: From the Top 40
5 SPF 45: From the Inside 66
6 SPF 30: From the Top 84
7 SPF 30: From the Inside 111
8 SPF 15: From the Top 127
9 SPF 15: From the Inside 153
10 SPF 5: From the Top 168
11 SPF 5: From the Inside 192
12 Conclusions: More is Not Always Better, Better is
Knowing What is More 206
References 210
Index 217
v
List of Tables
3.1 Fuld & Company benchmarking study by SPF (A) 29
3.2 Fuld & Company benchmarking study by SPF (B) 30
4.1 Reader’s guide to SPF 45 42
4.2 SPF 45 industries 44
4.3 SPF 45 NE 47
4.4 SPF 45 SE 51
4.5 SPF 45 NW 56
4.6 SPF 45 SW 60
5.1 SPF 45 industries 69
5.2 Fuld & Company database results, SPF 45 NE (n = 96) 70
6.1 Reader’s guide to SPF 30 86
6.2 SPF 30 industries 89
6.3 SPF 30 NE 90
6.4 SPF 30 SE 95
6.5 SPF 30 NW 99
6.6 SPF 30 SW 104
7.1 SPF 30 industries 114
7.2 Fuld & Company database results, SPF 30 NW (n = 43) 115
8.1 Reader’s guide to SPF 15 129
8.2 SPF 15 industries 131
8.3 SPF 15 NE 132
8.4 SPF 15 SE 137
8.5 SPF 15 NW 142
8.6 SPF 15 SW 146
9.1 SPF 15 industries 156
9.2 Fuld & Company database results, SPF 15 (n = 22) 157
10.1 Reader’s guide to SPF 5 171
10.2 SPF 5 industries 172
vi
List of Tables vii
10.3 SPF 5 NE 173
10.4 SPF 5 SE 178
10.5 SPF 5 NW 182
10.6 SPF 5 SW 186
11.1 SPF 5 industries 195
11.2 Fuld & Company database results, SPF 5 (n = 11) 196
List of Figures
2.1 Knowledge and competitive risk trade-off 10
2.2 SPF framework 11
3.1 Sveiby’s taxonomy 23
4.1 SPF 45 quadrant 46
4.2 SPF 45 NE 47
4.3 SPF 45 SE 52
4.4 SPF 45 NW 56
4.5 SPF 45 SW 60
6.1 SPF 30 quadrant 90
6.2 SPF 30 NE 91
6.3 SPF 30 SE 96
6.4 SPF 30 NW 100
6.5 SPF 30 SW 105
8.1 SPF 15 quadrant 132
8.2 SPF 15 NE 133
8.3 SPF 15 SE 138
8.4 SPF 15 NW 143
8.5 SPF 15 SW 147
10.1 SPF 5 quadrant 173
10.2 SPF 5 NE 174
10.3 SPF 5 SE 178
10.4 SPF 5 NW 182
10.5 SPF 5 SW 187
viii
Foreword

John E. Prescott
Thomas O’Brien Chair of Strategy & Professor of Business Administration
Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business & College of Business Administration
University of Pittsburgh, USA
The relationship between knowledge management and competitive
intelligence has been misunderstood, confusing, and at times conten-
tious. As one of my colleagues put it, knowledge management is about
looking down the hall while competitive intellgience is about looking
out the window. My perspective is that the two fields complement
each other and each would benefit from paying closer attetnion to the
theoriess, tools, techniques, and perspectives of the other. In this regard,
over the past several years Scott Erickson and Helen Rothberg have
been thought leaders in demonstrating the inherent interrelationships
between knowledge management and competitive intelligence.
The beauty of their approach is that they do not set up conflicts
between the two fields but rather focus on their conceptual and empiri-
cal interface. Firms need both knowledge management and competitive
intelligence but at varying levels. Trying to determine where to direct
scarce resource across the two activities is a central issue for managers.
On one hand, managers need to identify, catalog, and internally share
their knoweldge assets. On the other hand, mangers need to be aware
of their competitive environment and how it impacts their knowledge
management practices. Scott and Helen’s approach is among the first to
recognize this dialectic. Equally important, their theorizing and empiri-
cal results provide important managerial insight into how industries
vary across their knowledge management and competitive intellgience
risks.
Both industrial organization economics and strategic management
researchers have demonstrated that industries differ in their structure,
profitability, and competitive strategies. While we know that indus-
tries differ, it has been unclear how those differences translate into the
management of knowledge and competitive intelligence practices. The
central contribution of Scott and Helen’s research presented in this
book is the development and operationalization of an approach that
classifies industries into the four quadrants of their Strategic Protection
Factor (SPF) framework. In their words, the goal of the SPF framework is
ix