1. MIFB Bulletin No 1/2011, Feb/March 2011
Market Intelligence Forum Belgium Newsletter
Contents:
1. Thoughts of the Month from MIFB Steering
2. Sign up to MIFB Event on February 16!
3. Latest Developments in MIFB
4. Upcoming International MI Events and Training
5. Recent MI and Information Industry News
Thoughts of the Month from MIFB Steering – Joost Drieman, Cisco Systems
The DIKW Hierarchy
In the last couple of months I have attended a
number of Market and Competitive Intelligence
conferences and I have exchanged ideas and
thoughts of the development of Intelligence
organizations with many of my peers.
The current global economic climate is still fragile.
One the one hand we see that Europe is still
dealing with the credit crisis, emerging counties
like China may grow too rapid and the USA is
challenged by unemployment and quantitative
easing, on the other hand we see an upswing in Especially the upper part of the hierarchy, the
the business. knowledge and the consultancy role (wisdom) are
getting more important. This leads to a more
That’s why in Davos the World balanced role for intelligence at the 4 different
Economic Forum has paid so abstraction levels, Vision, Strategy, Tactics and
much attention to the economic Execution. There is still a lot of work that market
growth and financial systems. and competitive intelligence do in the area of
(Besides topics like sustainability, health and tactical and actions (execution) like competitive
social development). insight and customer intelligence, but the
visionary and strategic part gain momentum.
A fragile economy means that business leaders
are facing tougher decisions. Where to invest, We see this reflected in more Megatrend analysis
what should the priorities be, how to optimize the and a more important consultancy role. More and
sales, how long will this last, what is the more we are faced with questions like: “Great
competition doing, what do customers want, and Insight, but what would you recommend to do?”
so on. All these questions require the support of This is the playing field an all round intelligence
market and competitive insight. professional should work and I am happy to see
that is happening more and more.
There is a clear increase in intelligence activities
trying to turn data into information to build In the coming conference, on February 16, 2011,
knowledge which hopefully lead to some wisdom. will discuss this and other topics, in more detail.It
Wisdom in the form of “Know-why” and “why-do.” would be good to get your opinion and vision on
This is what we call the DIKW-Hierarchy. The the evolution of Market and Competitive
horizontal line represents the level of Intelligence during these economic interesting
understanding and the vertical axis is the level of times.
concatenation.
I look forward to seeing you there.
Data and information are about the past, while Joost Drieman, Director Market and Business
knowledge should be actual. Wisdom however is Intelligence Cisco System
future oriented.

2. MIFB Event on February 16 – Sign Up Now!
Time: Wednesday, February 16 at 15:30-18:00, followed by some refreshments
Location: Sirris, Extensa building, 153 Rue Colonel Bourgstraat, 1140 Bxl
Don’t miss the MIFB event on February 16th!
The event agenda for February 16th has been planned based on the feedback and requests from MIFB
members, covering many current Market and Competitive Intelligence topics. In addition, our expert
speakers will share the highlights of recent international industry events.
Welcoming words and MIFB overview – Ivo Maassen, Sappi
• Know and better understand the added value MIFB can
bring to you(r organization)
• Have clear and tangible ideas and insights on how to be
better equipped (e.g. communication,
trends) for supporting and enabling business leaders to make the
right decisions
Presentation on Megatrends – Frederic De Meyer, Cisco Systems
Key takeaways:
• What are Megatrends?
• How and when your company can benefit from a Megatrend.
• How to publish and communicate
Applying Software Engineering Methods to Market Intelligence – Vladimir Blagojevic, Software Engineer and
technology innovation adviser, Sirris
• Sirris software experts reveal their novel market intelligence approach combining a workshop-based
technique with software engineering methodologies. This approach is a key success factor in
continuous innovation of a portfolio of services in a complex, dynamic and highly competitive
market. In this interactive workshop we’ll run you through a simulation of a part of this approach,
and brainstorm about the opportunities and difficulties in applying it.
Highlights of SCIP Barcelona and GIA Conference in New York – Joost Drieman, Cisco Systems and Bob
Kruijer, Global Intelligence Alliance
Key takeaways:
• What are the new trends in Market and competitive intelligence?
• How to take Market Intelligence to the next level?
• What would Market Intelligence be in 2013?
For registrations, please email info@mifb.be.
Welcome!

3. Latest Developments in MIFB
Interested in MIFB membership?
To sign up, please contact info@mifb.be. Feel also free to tell about the forum to a colleague and pass this
bulletin on!
MIFB Steering Committee:
Luc Rooms, Belgacom; Ivo Maassen, Sappi; Joost Drieman, Cisco; Deborah Tappi, Global Intelligence
Alliance; Alain Tondreau, Sirris
Coordination:
Deborah Tappi, info@mifb.be
MIFB also has a LinkedIn group. To join this online group, please click on the following link.
Upcoming international Market Intelligence events and training
GIA Conference Europe in Amsterdam -
Creating Business Impact through Strategic Market
Intelligence
Date: 23-25 May 2011
Venue: The Marriott Renaissance Hotel, Koepelkerk Conference Center,
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Conference program includes a presentation by MIFB Steering group
member Joost Drieman, Cisco.
MIFB members get a 20% discount of the conference fees!
For more information and pricing details, please refer to GIA Conference website.
Two day International Master Class Strategic Competitive Intelligence
March 8 – 9 2011,
Hotel de Biltsche Hoek in De Bilt – Utrecht, The Netherlands.
For more information see www.rodenberg.nl
SCIP 2011 International Annual Conference &
Exhibition
Organizer: SCIP
May 9-12, 2011, Orlando, United States
For more information and pricing details, please follow the link
http://www.scip.org

4. Recent MI and Information Industry News
Information Industry Outlook 2011: Looking for Revenue in All the Right Places
Authors: Anthea Stratigos, Co-founder & CEO; Leigh Watson Healy, Chief Analyst; Marc Strohlein, Chief
Agility Officer
- Industry drivers and forecast data through 2013;
An annual tradition, - Outsell's assessment of content software
the Outlook report technologies that matter;
- Ten key trends that are shaping the information
provides Outsell's industry in 2011, and our 15 predictions;
view of what's ahead - Outsell's "30 to Watch" – our annual list of
for the information innovators, disruptors, and companies that
industry. The theme for 2011 is "Looking exemplify our theme of the year;
for Revenue in All the Right Places," a - Outsell's recommended actions for publishers
and information providers.
twist on Waylon Jennings' song "Lookin’
for Love." Outsell's fact-based analysis is based on tracking
over 7,000 firms in 12 information industry
Successful companies took calculated risks and segments, and tracking spending by the three
exited 2009 with stronger market share, then main industry funding sources: advertisers,
transformed their businesses to create digital enterprise users, and libraries. This offers an
experiences to deliver and delight in 2010. Now, unparalleled perspective that crosses segments
in 2011, they will be driving revenue (from and helps publishers and information providers
whatever professional user groups, marketers, grow in a global, fast-paced digital environment.
libraries, geographic regions, and consumers they
serve today) while seeking new faces, new
The report can be downloaded at
sources of revenue in market adjacencies, new http://www.outsellinc.com/store/products/973
geographies, innovative mobile applications that
extend the brand, and the continued socialization Source: Outsell
of content.
This report contains:
LinkedIn, with 85 million members, continues to grow as economy strengthens
LinkedIn is adding one million members and was growing faster than ever
member per second as as the economy recovers and people get back to
cultivating connections that could land them better
people look to keep their jobs.
professional and working
lives separate from other Weiner said during a talk at the Web 2.0 Summit
social networking sites like in San Francisco that half of LinkedIn members
Facebook. are outside the U.S., with China and Brazil among
the countries where the site is seeing its fastest
The career networking website's chief executive growth.
Jeff Weiner said this week that LinkedIn had 85
Source: redorbit.com