Introduction: What Is Corporate Intelligence?
Corporate intelligence is defined broadly as the process of acquiring business knowledge from internal and external sources in order to improve the productivity, sales, marketing, and profits of the corporation. It involves the collection and analysis of data from various sources to instill organization, protect business reputation, and build value. The goal of corporate intelligence is to combine technology and business goals to enable corporations to best utilize their resources and create management optimization. In an interconnected world filled with cross-border transactions and significant online marketing, it is critical that individuals understand the importance of selecting the best corporate intelligence firms in order to make informed decisions.
Corporate intelligence is considered a critical component of a corporation’s development and necessary for its successful operation. However, many corporate transactions pose significant risks to the corporation, especially those involving foreign parties, conflict of law issues, and complex or high-value transactions. Failure to properly manage and balance these factors can damage the corporation’s profit margin, reputation, and relationship with business partners. Therefore, many businesses today are finding it beneficial to have corporate intelligence reviews, audits, and internal compliance investigations. Areas that need to be protected most include the corporation’s assets, intellectual property, data, intelligence, brand, business ideas, and freedom, as the corporate intelligence attorneys at Oberheiden, P.C. underscore. In this article, we explain seven keys to help you select the best corporate intelligence firms.
Seven Keys to Help You Select Your Corporate Intelligence Firm
Navigating the constantly evolving legal, regulatory, and compliance issues of today’s interconnected world can be challenging. Corporations always need to be informed of risk management analysis, their competitor and market profile, the impact of technological advances, commercial relationships, and other business risks. Hiring a corporate intelligence firm to guide your business from initial start-up or mild growth to robust development can help your business achieve superior financial and technological optimization. There are many tools used to investigate such factors, manage risk, and optimize for the future. Below are seven keys to guide you in selecting the best corporate intelligence firm. Be sure that that the corporate intelligence firm you select to manage and optimize your business can perform the following tasks:
1. Due Diligence Procedures
Due diligence is a critical component of a business’ operations. It involves the thorough investigation of both routine and high-risk transactions prior to completing the transaction in order to avoid risk exposure, profit loss, or fraud. A corporation should perform due diligence procedures before, during, and after significant business transactions, including deals that involve foreign parties or high-value assets. Consistent due diligence will minimize risk exposure and enhance the business confidence of the corporation.
2. Complete Competitor Profile Analysis
Healthy competition is essential to the proper functioning of the economy and market. In order for businesses to stay on top, many undergo a competitor profile analysis. A competitor profile analysis allows businesses to learn about the main competitors in their industry by observing them, reviewing their public reports, and evaluating their market success. This helps you determine what business strategies and tools are working for them so you can adapt and optimize for your business. Gathering intelligence on your competitors empowers corporations to develop strategies to excel beyond the competition.
3. Internal and External Risk Exposure Evaluation
Evaluating risk exposure includes managing both the internal and external environment. The objective is to examine the environment through which your corporation operates. By completing a risk exposure evaluation, you can identify weaknesses within your corporation as well as disclosure, reporting, or other external weaknesses that may alert federal authorities to suspicious behavior.
4. Complex Litigation Services
Federal authorities often initiate investigations and sometimes litigation against corporations for various violations of federal law. Most investigated are financial crimes such as embezzlement, money laundering, or fraud as well as violations under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) for bribery and corruption. Your corporate intelligence firm should be competent in complex litigation services—both civil and criminal.
5. Comprehensive Compliance Policy Reviews
Compliance is the key to avoid internal fraud, deceit, or instances of personnel misconduct and the key to demonstrating to federal authorities that your corporation is making a good faith effort to follow the law. Compliance policy reviews are vital corporate intelligence services because they aim to instill a culture of ethics and open communications in the workplace and foster an attitude of full compliance with the law. Examples of deficiencies that may be discovered include weak internal controls, poor security, inadequate disclosure and reporting policies, etc. The goal is to isolate the identified deficiencies and develop strategies to decrease risk exposure and enhance the security of the corporation’s operations.
6. Third-Party Checks and High-Risk Transaction Checks
Third-party checks—including both domestic and foreign parties—and high-risk transaction checks are critical intelligence services to incorporate into business operations due to their potential for fraud and corruption. Transactions likely to entail more risk include mergers and acquisitions, takeovers, and all transactions involving foreign parties. The intelligence tools and methods used by the corporation to evaluate such parties and transactions should be hand-tailored to the size, location, industry, nature, and degree of risk. The analysis should also utilize a competition risk profile—including background checks—as well as a social media analysis to better understand the individuals with which you are doing business and the transactions at the heart of your business deals.
7. Technological Optimization and Automation Advice
In today’s modernized inter-connected world, businesses are frequently turning to social media platforms for marketing and advertising services. However, the popularity of social media and the necessity of maintaining an online presence have resulted in an exponential increase in online scams, threats, viruses, and other cybercrimes. The imperative of seeking intelligence services to maintain the security of your business’ technology and plans for automation has never been more critical. Ensuring the security of these systems will allow your business to focus on how to expand and automate for the future. Automation will increase your output with less costs, thus increasing your business’ optimization.
“Corporate intelligence services are essential to understanding your internal and external regulatory environment as well as assessing the effects of prospective market conditions, competition, and technology on your business strategy. Responding to such factors can help your business enhance its operations (both financially and technologically), track its progress, and optimize for the future.” – Dr. Nick Oberheiden, Founding Attorney of Oberheiden P.C.
Conclusion
Corporations every day are forming with the hopes of transforming into a successful modern business enterprise within the globalized world. Corporate intelligence gathering services assists corporations in improving productivity and overall management. It is increasingly regarded as a necessary component of successful business operations. This is due to the growing trend of utilizing online platforms and other technological advances for marketing and advertising purposes as well as the simultaneous rise in cyber-related frauds and crimes. Corporations need to be prepared for such risk exposure and respond promptly and proactively. The application of corporate intelligence services enhances the ability of the corporation to respond to threats and risk exposure; optimize its products, services, and profit margin; and maintain a healthy competitive advantage.
