Wall Street Journal Europe declares Fuld-Gilad-Herring as a Leader in War Gaming

In a May 3, 2002 Wall Street Journal Europe article declared that war gaming has become a nearly required strategic tool within European companies.

Citing the Fuld-Gilad-Herring Academy of Competitive Intelligence a leader in the war gaming initiative, the article quotes Ben Gilad:

“’I'm running one war game a month and it used to be two or three a year,’ says Ben Gilad, president of the Fuld Gilad Herring Academy of Competitive Intelligence, a Cambridge, Massachusetts, consulting firm that organizes games in both Europe and North America. It's been on an exponential growth curve.”

The article continues: “Although they are called games, these simulations provide a tough reality check for company strategy, participants say. That is partly because executives cast in the role of competitors, customers or regulators often play their parts with zeal, challenging the host-company team at every turn. While make-believe, such rough-and-tumble role-playing helps companies prepare for unexpected events in the real world. “

For more details, just click here to receive a complete course description on War Gaming: Theory & Practice .

First European CI Certification Program a Success in London

The May 20-24, 2002 ACI core courses presented at Factiva’s offices in London represent the first time a competitive intelligence certification program has been offered in Western Europe. The 20 students from a broad cross section of industries and countries attended the program.

For more information on future ACI courses in Europe, contact Lynne Smith, Registrar at (US) 1-888-732-6812 or (International) 1+630.983.5530.

First-ever Competitive Intelligence Scholarship Awarded

The Fuld-Gilad-Herring Academy of Competitive Intelligence is pleased to award Ruth Castleberry its first tuition scholarship.

Ms. Castleberry competed with applicants from around the world for the ACI scholarship, the first scholarship ever offered in the field of competitive intelligence (CI). Responding to the economic downturn, the ACI scholarship is designed to help those currently unemployed CI professionals looking to advance their careers in the field of competitive intelligence by enabling them to complete the full nine-course ACI certification program.

In her winning essay, Ms. Castleberry recalled a number of instances where her employers had reaped the benefits of a strong competitive intelligence initiative and concluded by stating, "Decisions can't be made in the CEO's office without respecting what people are doing and thinking outside the company that will have impact on future outcomes."

The Fuld-Gilad-Herring Academy of Competitive Intelligence is an educational institution dedicated to training managers and companies in managing risk through the use of competitive intelligence. Founded by Leonard Fuld, Ben Gilad, and Jan Herring, three pioneers in the CI field, ACI has trained over 80% of the professionals in the CI field today.

The deadline for the Spring 2005 semester scholarship is February 1, 2005 and for the Fall 2005 semester it is July 31, 2005. For more information, please visit our website at www.academyci.com or contact Lynne Smith at 888-732-6812 (US) or 630.983.5530 (International), or via e-mail at lsmith@academyci.com.

ACI Early Warning Survey Discovers Intelligence Gap

Corporations are unprepared for early warning, reports ACI in a survey of over 150 strategic planning and competitive intelligence professional from around the globe.

Among the findings are:

1. Over 77% of managers believe their companies will face an increased level of business risk in the next 2-3 years.
2. Nearly half of these respondents foresee major competitive threats either from competitors introducing a proprietary or alternative breakthrough product/service, or a new competitor entering their sector with new skills, or an alternative technology replacing the need for their company offering.
3. Only 5.4% consider their management proactive in responding to industry shifts with over half finding their management teams either slow to react or generally gripped with “analysis paralysis.”

To learn more about early warning, the following ACI courses are recommended: Analysis & Competitive Benchmarking, Competitive Blindspots, War Gaming, Scenario Analysis. To participate in the early warning survey, just click here.