THINK TANK FIVE: COMPETITIVE INTELLIGENCE AND MARKET RESEARCH

GIL 2012: SILICON VALLEY

Building a Sustainable Companywide

Intelligence Network
FEATURING
Cintas

DAN GOLDENBERG

Global Vice President, Growth Partnership Strategy

Frost & Sullivan
Dan.Goldenberg@frost.com
www.gtm.frost.com

Agenda

TIME

9:45

CONTENT

Business Intelligence Project Prioritization System

A 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 Network

A 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

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Growth Team Membership research.

The Growth Team Membership (GTM)

GTM is a subscription program that
supportsexecutives within the functionsthat
report tothe CEO
CEOs Growth Team

GTM provides best practices, events, and

services that enable executives to address
challenges within their companies
GTM: Creating Client Value
GTMs case-based best practices help executives:

R&D/
Innovation
Sales
Leadershipp

Corporate
Strategy

CEO

Marketing

Coorporate
Development

Market
Research

Market
Research

Investors/
Finance

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 crossindustry
perspective

Competitiive

Competitive
Intelligence
Intelligence
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Improve their functions and companies

performance and productivity
Growth Team Membership research.

Profiled Best Practice Company

Firm: Cintas
Industry: Business Services
Headquarters: Cincinnati, Ohio, United States
Geographic Footprint: Global
Ownership: Public
Revenue (2011): $3.8 billion USD

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Growth Team Membership research.

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.

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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
Infrastructure

Encourage
Network
Participation

Generate
Intelligence

Shape an
Intelligence
Portfolio

Drive Portal
Adoption

Objective

Objective

Objective

Objective

Objective

Objective

Determine the
current state and
future direction
ofCI

Create an
integrated, flexible
intelligence
infrastructure

Generate
awareness of and
engagement with
the CI program

Maximize
CI network
productivity

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

Promote
intelligence portal
usage

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
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
insufficient use
Provide
customized
features

Key Activities
Interview highperforming
sales/service
representatives
Assess sales
force CI needs

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Key Activities
Focus frontline
staff on
gathering
competitive
information
Task managers
with filtering
information
Submit key
information to
the intelligence
portal

Growth Team Membership research.

Scope program needs by learning how front-line employees use

competitiveintelligence
Assessing the Current State and Future Direction of CI
Determine CI Structure and Focus

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

Capture Existing CI Insights

Identifying HighPerforming Reps

The CI Director works with sales/
service managers to identify highperforming reps.

Conducting One-On-One
Interviews
The CI Director interviews highperforming reps.

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Establish the CI Programs Framework

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

Growth Team Membership research.

Create an integrated intelligence infrastructure that capitalizes on stakeholder

capabilities but allows for flexibility in their roles
CI Infrastructure
Attributes
All-Encompassing
Intelligence Network
Flexible Intelligence
Process

Intelligence Network Participants

CI Director

30,000 Cintas
Employees

1,600 Intelligence
Leaders (managerlevel and above)

CI Vendor

Centralized Platform
C-Level Executives
25 CI Champions
The Intelligence Process in Action
Collect

Analyze

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Decide

Act

Growth Team Membership research.

Encourage intelligence network participation with a marketing campaign tailored

to specific stakeholders
CI Network: Driving Awareness and Engagement
Primary Target Audience

Desired Outcomes
Buy-In

Promotional Tactics
Early Win
with C-Suite

Objective: Demonstrate top-line value of CI

C-Level
Executives
CI
Objective: Create role models for network
Champions participation
Intelligence
Leaders

30,000
Employees

Engagement
CI Roadshow

Branding

Objective: Differentiate the CI program from

other Cintas initiatives

Awareness
E-Mail
Campaign

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Objective: Inform stakeholders about the

benefits of CI

Objective: Capture employees attention

about the new CIprogram
Growth Team Membership research.

Optimize network productivity by focusing on intelligence activities connected

tomembers day-to-day responsibilities
Aligning CI Role to Position
Employees Focus: IntelligenceGathering
Cintas frontline employees:
1. Identify relevant
competitive information
2. Collect a high volume of
competitive information
3. Submit competitor
information to their
managers or the Lock
Box

The Lock Box

Cintas provides locked bins at

275 locations. Employees submit
information, and managers
review contents monthly.

Intelligence Portal
CI Vendors Focus: Synthesizing
Public Information
Cintas works with a CI
vendor, responsible for
collecting, filtering, and
disseminating public
information.

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10

Managers Focus: Value-Added

Analysis
Sales, service, and general
managers:
1. Prioritize submitted
competitor information
2. Add context and/or
analysis
3. Seek out Subject Matter
Experts (SMEs)

Intelligence Portal
Submission Criteria
Does the
information address
a key competitor or
CI topic?
Is the information
potentially
actionable?
How credible is the
information?
Growth Team Membership research.

Create intelligence deliverables that balance CI program resources with

stakeholder needs
CI Program Capacity

CI Portfolio Development

As a one-person function, the CI Director recognizes that he

must maximize internal and external resources in creating an
intelligence deliverables portfolio.

Dedicated Resources
CI
Director

Capability:
Ability to
synthesize
key internal
and external
competitive
insights

CI
Vendor

Capability:
Ability to
monitor and
synthesize
daily public
marketplace
and competitor
developments

Part-Time
Resources
Intelligence
Leaders/SMEs

Capability:
Hands-on
understanding
of competitor
and
marketplace
trends

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11

The CI Director synthesizes portal information and

incorporates stakeholder feedback to develop and refine
intelligence deliverables.

Stakeholder
Needs

Deliverable
Frequency
Required

Marketplace
pulse

Daily

Competitor
Monthly
understanding

Required
Resources

Deliverables

CI vendor

Daily Intelligence
Report

CI Director,
vendor,
intelligence
leaders/SMEs

Intelligence
Monthly Report

Trend
monitoring

Quarterly/
SemiAnnually

CI Director,
vendor,
intelligence
leaders/SMEs

Customized
research

As needed

CI Director

Quarterly Business
Trends Intelligence
Report
Semi-Annual
Competitive
Intelligence Trend
Report
Competitor Deep
Dives
Customized
Reports

Growth Team Membership research.

Drive intelligence portal adoption by limiting access and promoting accountability

Challenges in Driving Portal Usage

Motivating Portal Usage

Prior to launching the portal, the CI Director

solicits input from external CI peers; this input
helps him avoid common challenges, such as:

Exclusivity
Intelligence portal access is limited to
the 1,600 intelligence leaders
Ownership
Employees generate much of the
portals information

Protection of sensitive
competitive insights

Low-utility information and

limited personal stake in
portal information
CI
Director
No consequences for low
usage

Limited customization for

different users
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12

Vendor

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
Growth Team Membership research.

Business Results
Intelligence Network Portal Contributions

Competitive Activity Response Rate

(20082010)

(20082010)
3

100%
67%
Months

Percentage 50%
of Members

0%

34%

2
1

0%

2008

2.5

2009

2010

Year

2008

Year

2010

Sales Efficiency (Illustrative)

(20082010)
2
0.5 x
Efficiency

50%

Cintas intelligence network has provided

important competitive developments to our
executive team, better preparing them for
analyst discussions.
President, Document Management, Cintas

2008

Year

2010

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13

Growth Team Membership research.

GTM Members can access the full 11-page Best Practice Guidebook
growth team m e m b e r s h i p
growth team m e m b e r s h i p

best practice guidebook

growth
team m e m b e r s h i p
Best Practice
Guidebook

best practice guidebook

Cintas builds a companywide competitive intelligence (CI)

Building
a Sustainable
Companywide
Network
network
to
complement
itsIntelligence
one-person
department
key takeaway:
Scope program
needs
by learning
how front-line
employees
use competitive intelligence
CI Network
Development
The CI Director evaluates existing CI efforts and program
needs by
conducting Process
cross-company interviews of leading sales and service representatives

guidebook
summary Develop a
Download the complete
implications
of a one-person
Establish a CI
Encourage Network
Generate ci function Shape an
Drive Portal
Program
Framework
CI Network
Intelligence
Adoption
A one-person CI function necessitates
the creation of anParticipation
employee CI network. By limiting
the size of CI to Intelligence
a Director Portfolio
role, intelligence consumers
must share
Best Practice Guidebook
Firm: Cintas
information in order to receive information (i.e., become producers). By involving every employee in the intelligence process, Cintas can capture explicit and tacit
Industry:
Business Services
Objective
Objective
Objective
Objective
Objective
Objective
intelligence
and
foster
an
intelligence-focused
culture
that
will
define
the
entire
organization.
at your Growth Team
Headquarters:
Cincinnati,
United on
States
Promote intelligence
Determine the
current Ohio,Capitalize
varying
Generate awareness of
Maximize CI network
Create a portfolio of
portal usage
state and Footprint:
future
and engagement with
productivity
CI deliverables that
Membership client
portal.
Geographic
Global stakeholder capabilities
direction of CI
and needs
the
CI
program
balances
program
Assessing the Current State and Future Direction of CI
Ownership: Public
resources with
The Guidebook includes:
stakeholder needs
Revenue (2011): $3.8 billion USD
Full content and guidance
Determine CI Structure
and Focus
CI Insights
Establish the CI Programs
Framework
Key Activities
Key Activities
Key Activities Capture Existing
Key Activities
Key Activities
Key Activities
Problem:
Business Results:
Interview high Create a multi Conduct a CI
Focus frontline
Collect formal
Limit portal
Cintas must
optimize limited resources
and harness employees
Improved
response rates to competitive
activity
Key Lessons Learned
performing
level intelligence
Roadshow
employees on
and informal
access to 1,600
competitive
intelligence insights to help
the to
company win new business
Increased sales efficiency
sales/service
network
gathering relevant
stakeholder
intelligence leaders
CommunicateIdentifying
an
Operational Focus
CIexisting
Program
Mission
High-Performing
Reps
and
defend
accounts.
Tools and Resources representatives
produce and
competitive
feedback and communication
Enhanced
internal best practice-sharing
Early Win to the
Feature
employee-insights,
Concentrate on operational
competitive
Theare
program
must support revenue
generation and
who
using CI
consume
information
C-Suite
Develop a suite of
content
Solution:effectively
The CI Director works with sales/service managers
Section
as opposed to strategic generated
ones, as sales/service
serve the sales force as its primary
client.insights
competitive
Resources
Required:
Task managers with
CI deliverables

to identify
Cintas builds a self-sustaining competitive intelligence (CI) network
that high-performing reps who demonstrate
Revoke
portal
reps need that information
to help
defend or
Full-time
CI Director
Assess sales force
filtering information
consistent success in
selling
or defending
their
privileges
pursue accounts on a daily
basis for
involves CI
theneeds
entire workforce. This program includes:
and adding
Resources
Objective
CI vendor
product/service against a specific competitor.
insufficient activity
Acquiring a bottom-up perspective on existing CI usage to establish
competitive insights
Sales Force as CI Producer and Consumer
A single CI
Engage the entire
Customized intelligence portal
Provide customized
the programs framework
Submit key
Director to
Cintas workforce
Focus on meeting the needs
of the primary
features
Developing
a
companywide
CI
network
that
capitalizes
on
information
the
Applicability
of BesttoPractice
to Executiveproducers
Functions:and consumers of competitive
develop and
to help generate
Conducting
One-On-One
Interviews
intelligence
portal
stakeholder
capabilities
and tacit knowledge
oversee
Cintas and captures
the explicit
intelligence
intelligence
Function
Applicability
CI network
processesproductivity by
Maximizing
CI roles to day-to-day
Tapaligning
the
The CI Director interviews
high-performing
Competitive
Intelligence reps to Output
Segment
the Producers
Output
Output
Output
Output
Output
responsibilities
One vendor
competitive
gain insight into their use of CI. Questions include:
Divide
into groups
with
to focusofonand
insights
of Cintas 30,000
Improved
response
An array
of Cintas employees
Relevant and
Establishment
the participation
A companywide
Active
companywide Sales Leadership
Driving
awareness
among
employees
What kind of competitiveactionable
information is most
different CI roles basedtimes
on capacity
and
publiclymarketing
available campaign
successful
sales
to competitor
deliverables
and
intelligence
network
CI participation
withCIa structure
tailored
capabilities
and service reps
activities
that address
key
competitive
focus competitive
at leastvaluable
20% to you?
Creating intelligence
information deliverables that balance CI program resources
intelligence gaps
of intelligence
What are Cintas unique information
competitive advantages
Increased sales
Kick-Start the CI Program
with stakeholder needs
leadersagainst
regularly
Competitor A, B, and C?
force efficiency
content

Designate
CI
Champions
from the
Driving network usage of a customized intelligence portal contributing
How do you win/defend business?
to an intelligence
sales force to galvanize the CI program
How do you prefer to access competitive
portal
intelligence?
Note: Definition of Competitive IntelligenceThe continuous monitoring of a companys competitive
The contents of these pages are copyright 2012 Frost & Sullivan. All rights reserved.
environment
to identify, analyze, and disseminate intelligence on opportunities and threats.
How often do you search
for competitive
Source: Cintas; Growth Team Membership research.
The contents of these pages are copyright 2012 Frost & Sullivan. All rights reserved.
information?
The contents of these pages are copyright 2012 Frost & Sullivan. All rights reserved.

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

14

Source: Cintas; Growth Team Membership research.

Growth Team Membership research.