Focusing specifically on the competitive information needs of service-oriented firms, this book illuminates the many forms of competition in service businesses, identifies the most effective information resources for competitive intelligence, and provides a practical framework for identifying and studying competitors in order to gain competitive advantage. Explained are unique challenges and techniques for tackling traditional competitors, uncovering hidden and left-field competition, discovering and tracking competitor strategies, looking for financial intelligence, and looking for intelligence about people.
Deborah C. Sawyer is the president of the Information Plus companies, a group of firms providing research and consulting services to Fortune 500 corporations. She is the author of Getting It Right: Avoiding the High Cost of Wrong Decisions. She lives in New York City.