War Games, Data Gathering, Application and Learning

We have three articles (Gilad, Correia and Baul) that cover the concepts, the preparation and some of the end results. These articles won't make you an expert in the field, but you will learn how this process can be of value to your organization.

With intelligent guidance, data can and should progress from a raw, unprocessed collection, to usable information, to knowledge, and ultimately to actionable intelligence. The "game" is one way to bring this process to bear on strategic corporate issues. This process can provide new insight and perspective for the enterprise, as well as uncovering the proverbial strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.

The authors are all from the competitive intelligence world and they certainly bring a different view of the use of data. Locational data in this world relates to where the enterprise is in terms of products, marketing and of course, it's position relative to the competition.

Many of us have imagined how amazing a war room would be; even more so would be the war room where we could see our own activities unfold and witness how our decisions and actions might play out in the real world, just like in the Pentagon's giant screen situation rooms. In these "games" we can see not only how our activities (or the lack thereof) interact with the real world, but also how effective our assets are, both internally and externally.