A technological surveillance and competitive intelligence system allows companies to better understand their environment and helps them make the best decisions because they have relevant information and know how to use it. Technological surveillance is an organized, selective and permanent process of capturing information from outside and from the organization itself on science and technology, selecting it, analyzing it, disseminating it and communicating it, to convert it into knowledge to to anticipate changes.
This whole process is of vital importance for large companies, but it can also be very useful for SMEs : a small business needs to know the environment in which it is established. Establishing itself in a young neighbourhood is not the same as establishing one in one with an older population. An SME that knows its environment and its competitors can seek alliances with new partners, focus its efforts on the most profitable production processes, and be successful in innovation processes.
The term technological surveillance seems to denmark email address apply only to NASA or Philips, but it is essential for any business. You have to keep up to date with the latest developments in the sector, the competition, society… With so much information, how can you stay up to date with what really interests you?
Companies are often aware of the evolution of their environment in a way that is neither conscious nor organized. They are kept up to date with changes through specialized magazines, professional associations, through their own clients or suppliers. Something improvised and not systematized. That is not enough. Much of the data that companies require is outside of these sources. Searching for surveillance sources such as patents, publications in official bodies, online press and social networks, or the websites of their competitors requires the help of experts .
Because in addition to seeking the information we need, we must not forget its interpretation to define trends and sources of authority, and categorization to discard the useless or superfluous. The information must be integrated into a context, so that it can be easily interpreted. This is the most important thing: the analysis and delivery of a simple report, with levels of information depth , so that people with decision-making capacity have data to make an informed choice. Some call this market intelligence .
