All ACI programs teach students how to overcome the most challenging competitive intelligence issues. The following are sample lessons taught in:

Problem Sets

WAR (Way Around Risk) Gaming

Anticipating Competitor Actions in a Constantly Changing Market
Creating War Games for Your Executivese.
How to Devise an Entry Strategy Against a Giant

1. Anticipating Competitor Actions in a Constantly Changing Market
Your company is developing a new line of products, an investment of $36 million. The new line is based on your company's existing competence in processing technology, and should have a synergy, marketing wise, with your other very strong, market-leading brands.

The market has a big competitor, K, with 34% of the share, and three others (W, H, and Z) with around 10% each. Thirty- six percent is divided among regional players. Your marketing plan calls for a national rollout within a year, and 7 % market share within 18 months.

Questions
1. Based on the competitor analysis framework, which competitor would you target? Which one of the four-corners is the most relevant for this decision (strategy, drivers, capabilities or management assumptions)?
2. Which competitor would you avoid and why? How do you avoid a competitor? Would a strategic map help?
3. Running a war game with the above players, how do you quantify the risks associated with each potential strategy?

2. Creating War Games for Your Executives
Your company's executives are going on an annual strategy retreat. They asked you what could CI contribute to this meeting. You suggested a CI-based war game to chart the industry's future. In support of your claim, you have to summarize the benefits of a war game to strategic planning, assess how much work is involved, and present the expected outcomes of the game.

Questions
1. Is a war game appropriate for a senior strategy forum? How is it superior to senior executives' own experience in the industry?
2. How does one draw scenarios, and what type of scenarios are drawn using a war game? Why is a war game superior to a typical scenario building exercise using computer simulation and an outside consulting firm?
3. What early warning system can spring up from a good war game? Why is it superior to interviews as a method of intelligence needs assessment?
4. How does one perform strategic risk identification and assessment within in a war game framework?

3. How to Devise an Entry Strategy Against a Giant
The problem of Fuji is that it was running against a huge and entrenched competitor, Kodak. Its quest to enter the U.S. market was at best somewhat suicidal. Kodak held between 75 to 90 percent of the market share in different segments, and tied major distribution channels as an entry barrier. What entry strategies held a chance in hell against such a formidable competitor?

Questions
1. Can you win against a much larger competitor, on its territory, with enormous entry barriers? What entry strategies work under these conditions? What philosophy is required to make the entry successful?
2. What CI data will help you in pushing the competitor to commit significant resources to the wrong cause?
3. What can you do, as the larger competitor, to block entry into your own markets by a smaller, foreign competitor?
4. Can you draw a scenario of what the outcomes of the battle are going to be based on a CI analytical framework? (Hint: If you are talented, yes!)