Early Warning from Other Sub-environments like the technological, social and nature-related environmental spheres should be continuously evaluated. New findings and developments can become opportunities and risks for the company’s own success.
From the wide range of information available in print or electronically it is important to filter out reports and news that could lead to a change in strategic direction or even to an adjustment of the company’s purpose.
In order to limit the amount of data that potentially could be generated, a topic structure should be created to facilitate structured retrieval of the information collected. The search areas should be structured according to the analysis areas of the respective company.
It is advisable to regularly consult the resulting knowledge base in order to relate the findings to the company’s own strengths. This can lead to successful new applications or products.
Example: Auto emission of CO2 and other pollutants argue in favor of purely electrically powered vehicles. However, their range is still too small for a market breakthrough and it takes too long for the batteries of these vehicles to be fully charged again. New devices are needed that can force the current into the batteries quicker, as well as connecting cables that can transmit the high voltage without short-circuiting. Various companies have developed new products for this purpose and have thus opened up new areas of business.
The complete network for structuring the knowledge base
Starting from the “basic engine”, the network for the development of the company-specific early warning system was created in the previous posts. The terms of the areas to be monitored are on the outside of the network. The task is to adapt these terms to the specific needs of the company and to fill them with analytical data. In a later post we will discuss how early warning indicators for the search areas are developed.
