A Room of Leaders Who Do The WorkI recently attended a massive industry event in a huge venue with over 1,000 people, over 50 vendors, and enough buzzwords flying around to short-circuit a thesaurus. By the end of Day 1, I left with swag but not much substance. Turns out, what I wanted was a closed-door, no-fluff, real-talk room. A space where…
How We Flipped the Script on a Quiet Competitive ThreatThey say breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Just thinking about it makes me want bacon, eggs, hashbrowns, and wheat toast! For one company I know, it also turned out to be the most competitive. Let me take you back several years to one of my favorite competitive intelligence missions. Imagine this…
- Why Every CI Pro Needs a Can of Bear Spray
Over the years, my travels have taken me to some incredible places — I’ve sweated through rooftop meetings in Singapore’s humid heat and stood in awe inside the towering pyramids of Egypt. But despite all my international mileage, there are still some iconic U.S. destinations I haven’t explored. That’s about to change. My wife Jennifer…
- Flip the Script: Rebuttals to AI Replacing CI Analysts
In my last article, I shared this: You’re not competing with AI. You’re competing with leadership’s perception of what AI can do. And it hit home. The comments, messages, and sidebar conversations confirmed it—this perception shift is real. But here’s the bigger issue: What are you going to do about it? If you’re in Competitive…
Strategy Isn’t Broken – Your Inputs Are!Let’s be honest: Strategy often gets blamed for bad outcomes it had nothing to do with. It’s not the strategy’s fault you missed the competitor’s surprise product drop, or that you priced for last year’s market dynamics, or that you completely whiffed on that new entrant scaling quietly in the background. The strategy didn’t fail.…
The ROCI® Revolution: How to Prove Competitive Intelligence Drives ResultsCompetitive Intelligence (CI) professionals often find themselves in a paradox: the more seamlessly we integrate insights into decision-making, the less visible our value can seem. It’s the CI equivalent of being the stagehand who moves props perfectly—no one notices unless something goes wrong. But in our current world, “invisible value” just won’t cut it. Decision-makers…
Think Partner, Not VendorAre You Partnering or Just Ordering Off the Menu? You’re hungry for insights. The competitive landscape’s heating up, and you need answers yesterday. So, what do you do? Call up your go-to solution provider and say, “I need X, Y, and Z—stat.” But pause for a second. Did you just treat them like the drive-thru…
Work Hard, Rest Harder!Let’s face it—Competitive Intelligence professionals work hard to deliver the unique insights and perspectives that keep businesses ahead of the game. But even the sharpest folks need a breather now and then as the relentless pace under which we operate can take a toll. The holiday season offers a unique opportunity to hit the reset…
To The “Invisible Heroes” – THANK YOU!Thanksgiving isn’t just a season—it’s a mindset. As I reflected on the idea of gratitude, I realized something powerful: the connections that make our lives meaningful and successful are often invisible yet irreplaceable. Think about it. The teacher who taught you to think critically. The co-worker who stayed late to help you finish a presentation.…
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