Ethical Competitive Intelligence Activities

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· “When we talk about compensation, we are talking about numbers and sales performance…. For me, the search for information is not a reason for being compensated; because this is when competitive intelligence can become a big problem. I mean, you cannot stim- ulate your salespeople to seek for market information at all costs, it has done be done honestly. This process is very subtle, and there are limits to information gathering about your competitors. You have to be faultless, and I always make sure they understand that we won’t use any stolen information. When a salesperson leaves your company he can also report on your unlawful actions, and then you are in trouble. This should be very clear, and top execu- tives should show how ethical competitive intelligence should be for the company. Something else: I never ask my salespeople about their information sources. This should happen in the privacy of their relationships, and nobody should feel embarrassed. By the

 

 

 

way, quite often I already have information I receive from my peo- ple. I also have my network, and nobody knows who they are. These are important rules!”

 

—VP of Sales, large consumer goods company

 

As mentioned in Chapter 1 (see Figure 1.3), the greater the importance of information and the lower its availability, the closer information gath- ering comes to espionage. Yet competitive intelligence is not about obtain- ing confidential information without the consent of the information source or by unlawful means.

 

Ethics refer to perceptions of the rightfulness of an action, touching closely on salespeople’s competitive intelligence activities, and the ambig- uous concerns and conflicting expectations they raise. Competitive intelli- gence is ambiguous, because it involves acquiring important information from customers about competitors, without the consent of the latter. It creates conflicting expectations, because the more confidential the infor- mation, the greater its importance and the lower its accessibility. Thus, there is always some gray area around competitive intelligence and the right, or ethical, way to collect it. In such a situation, salespeople need clear rules to understand their obligations and what is right or wrong when com- petitive intelligence gathering and usage are at stake.

 

To help organizations appreciate the ethical aspect of competitive intel- ligence, Leonard Fuld offers “Commandments of Legal and Ethical Intel- ligence Gathering”:4

 

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· . Thou shalt not lie when representing thyself.

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· . Thou shalt not bribe.

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· . Thou shalt not plant eavesdropping devices.

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· . Thou shalt not deliberately mislead anyone in an interview.

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· . Thou shalt not steal a trade secret (or steal employees away in hopes

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· of learning a trade secret).

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· . Thou shalt not knowingly press someone for information if it may

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· jeopardize that person’s job or reputation.

· Salespeople’s training and coaching related to competitive intelligence

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· activities should include such lessons on appropriate information acquisition behavior. The ethical competitive intelligence rules and obliga- tions must be straightforward and come directly from the company’s top management. Competitive information obtained through unlawful means may not be used, which sends an ethical signal to the sales force. Top executives must make it perfectly clear that any such violation of the company’s rules and values is as unacceptable and damaging as a violation of the law.

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· These concerns also indicate why no organization should motivate its sales force with monetary compensation for competitive intelligence activ- ities. First, it encourages salespeople to steal information. Second, it may prompt salespeople to share more information about the company to get customers to share, which could leak to the competition. Third, it shows that top executives are the ones who initiated intelligence collection beha- viors at all costs.

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· Because a wealth of competitive information already exists in the field, and because salespeople’s job involves intelligent conversations with cus- tomers, such activities along with their ethical ramifications need to be part of any organization’s competitive intelligence approach and strategy. Indeed,

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· If you don’t know your customers, you don’t know your competitors! If you don’t know your competitors, you don’t know your weaknesses! If you don’t know your weaknesses, your salespeople should know! Knowledge is in the market, and the market is outside!

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