06 Dec Product returns – Analytics could help reduce a ‘returning’ problem
Courier deliveries are a common occurrence at our offices; some of them returning with packages. Yes, you guessed right... Read More.
04 Dec Lessons from Monitor
The bankruptcy of Monitor Group, the consulting firm, has come as a shock to the followers of the strategy gurus who set up the firm - Michael Porter and Mark Fuller. No management education is complete without a cogitation of... Read More.
08 Aug Why a CI framework is not dispensable
In most companies in India, competitive intelligence is not primarily done by CI professionals. Many functions are interested in competitive intelligence. Sales, marketing, strategy, product development, are the common ones. But finance, HR , procurement and others also need it.... Read More.
01 Aug Lest you topple…
Topple rate is a measure that a McKinsey consultant devised in 2007. It measures the rate at which companies lose their leadership position or switch ranks. The ranking in this context is done on the basis of return on assets... Read More.
01 Aug ValueNotes helps USD 15 billion global technology leader fine-tune their CI framework for India
Client wanted to use competitive intelligence effectively, to improve business performance Our client, a global technology leader, operates in a highly competitive business environment in India. They rely on the competitive intelligence gathered by their sales team to improve their business... Read More.
24 Jul Tools for effective strategy formulation
Most companies undertake annual strategy planning exercises (STRAP) to lay down the plan for the coming year. They undertake market/business research and competitive intelligence to support their planning. Some of this research is backward looking – How much did the market... Read More.
12 Jul Ethics of mystery shopping
Any businessman will tell you that knowing how your competitors sell their wares and at what prices is simply good business practice. But how do you get this information? Is it Ok to do mystery shopping? As in all other aspects... Read More.
11 Jul ValueNotes helps a leading international farm equipment manufacturer enhance market penetration
The client wanted to develop a competitive market strategy to improve its market reach The Indian farm equipment market worth over Rs.299.1bn (2010) is growing steadily. Increased use of farm mechanization and the numerous government measures undertaken to increase food production... Read More.
21 Jun Ethics of using social media for CI
I am baffled by the title of a recent press release from Assocham - “Corporate espionage via social media rampant in India Inc.: Survey”. It is misleading. Assocham conducted a survey in 5 cities in India, covering 1500 senior people in... Read More.
18 Jun Social conventions, doing business and a nation's progress
Niranjan Rajadhyaksha wrote in his weekly column The Impartial Spectator describing how culture influences growth of nations, “Parking behaviour is a reflection of social norms prevalent in a country”. And social norms affect (directly and indirectly) the way we conduct... Read More.
