BUS602: Marketing Management

New Insights can also be identified through listening posts or an international scouting network of external or internal people to the organization. Tasks include scanning the research scene, in both academia and start-ups, for new knowledge, technologies, or competitive threats and opportunities. 

The main benefit of the scouting method is the reduced time lag between the discovery and identification of an emerging Insight. This time lag can be up to 18 to 24 months in publication and patent analysis compared to a robust scouting process. 

Scouts are expected to provide a title, short description, references, an image (if available), a judgment on potential and potential applications, and possible risks. Out of a long list of scouted Insights an editor together with an expert panel selects a short list according to potential impacts based on: 

• Entirely new highly impactful Insights. 
• Important direct development changes to existing Insights. 
• Important indirect development changes to existing Insights. 
• Important rises in take up, or awareness, of an impactful Insight. 

The expert group rates on three dimensions: urgency, impact, and likelihood of success to produce a prioritized listing of all impactful Insights. Changes to existing policies and strategies are then implemented as appropriate. 

There can be a comparatively high cost for the establishment, management, and maintenance of an extensive scouting network. 

Another disadvantage is the lack of scalability when using the scouting method. Each scout has a limited identification and processing capacity and therefore a desired output increase can only be achieved by a continuous increase in the number of scouts. This increases overhead management.