Information Gathering
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
Effective information gathering is the most basic
perspective-widening tool an effective leader requires.
Good quality information
marks out the context in which the leader operates, creates the information
patterns from which ideas emerge, and provides the criteria by which ideas are
screened and assessed.
Effective leaders gather two main types of information:
Background Data.
Task-Related Data.
Leaders gather background data to build their view of the
world in which they operate.
This information is made up of the countless facts, trends and opinions that
they encounter and the observations they make on a daily basis. The higher the
quality of background data they gather and the more effectively they prioritize
it, the more accurate their view of the world will be, and the better their
judgment and "common sense".
By contrast with the steady, slow gathering of background data, task-related
information is gathered for a specific purpose.
Perhaps you're preparing a
five-year business plan and you want a reliable growth forecast from your
country's central bank. Or maybe you want specific information about the number
and disposable incomes of a certain group of consumers. Or perhaps you need to
know projected labor market trends for people with a key skill on which you
depend.
Gathering Background Information
What is certain, however, is that task-related information
on its own is not enough: While arguments created with it can be persuasive,
they are "brittle" and can often be knocked down with previously unknown facts
that just don't fit. This is where ideas need to be tested with the common sense
that comes with diligently acquired background information.
There are a number of things you can do to build background information:
Read a newspaper or news website respected for the quality
and accuracy of its journalism (for example, "The Economist").
Where possible, talk to your customers and get a deep understanding of what they
want and don't want from you, and what they're getting or not getting from you
and your competitors.
Read industry magazines and newsletters for both your own and your customers'
industries, keeping an eye on customers, competitors, suppliers, industry
associations, activist groups, new technologies and so on.
Talk to experts in the fields in which you operate and knowledgeable people
within your organization, and understand their perspectives on the key trends
and features of interest.
Read brochures and talk to product teams to make sure you understand your
organization's products and services, their strengths and weaknesses, and what
your customers like or dislike about them.
Have a good understanding of company or business unit strategy – i.e. what your
company says it wants to do, who it wants its customers to be, and how it plans
to serve them.
Take the time to "tune in" to what's going on in your organization: Through both
the formal and informal "grapevines".
What is necessary here is to take the time to gather this information: It's all
too easy for these activities to be lost under the pressures of a hectic
schedule.
Gathering Task-Related Information
It's much easier to justify the time spent gathering task-related information:
Information-gathering actions are clearly identified steps in the projects you
undertake.
There are three key factors here:
Understanding how much research you should do.
Making sure you ask the right questions.
Gathering the information you need.
The amount of research you take depends on the scale of the decision, the time
available, and the consequences of getting it wrong. If it's a small decision,
or the consequences of getting it wrong are small, then don't waste too much
time on it. On the other hand, if the consequences are severe, take time to make
a good decision, and make sure you make an appropriate risk management plan in
case things don't work out.
Making sure you ask the right questions is of key importance. Start by
brainstorming these questions, ideally with your boss or client or with experts
in the field or within your organization. Then make sure you draw on any
predefined frameworks you can find, where people have tried to make a system or
process for solving this type of problem. For example, if you're gathering
information as part of researching a business plan, then buy a good book on
business planning from Amazon.com and adapt the framework it proposes for your
own use.
Finally, make a plan for gathering the key information needed, and think about
how much you're prepared to spend to get it.
A lot of information is relatively freely available, within your organization or
in good business, academic or institutional libraries. Some information is
packaged and for sale (for example, detailed competitor financial reports).
Other information you may need to gather yourself, for example in interviewing
clients or conducting market research surveys. And in other cases (for example,
in taking legal advice) it makes sense to pay a qualified expert to answer your
questions.
And at the end of all this research, make sure you take a step back and look at
the answers you've gained through the filter of common sense. Ask yourself if
any information seems to be missing, or if anything you've uncovered jars with
your instincts and experience.
Finally, while information gathering is an essential skill for an effective
leader, bear in mind that the information is not an end in itself. It is useful
because it serves as an input towards generating ideas and building vision.
Later on in this section, we'll look at how to process information to build this
vision.
Tags:
Learning Skills, Skills
perspective-widening tool an effective leader requires.
Good quality information
marks out the context in which the leader operates, creates the information
patterns from which ideas emerge, and provides the criteria by which ideas are
screened and assessed.
Effective leaders gather two main types of information:
Background Data.
Task-Related Data.
Leaders gather background data to build their view of the
world in which they operate.
This information is made up of the countless facts, trends and opinions that
they encounter and the observations they make on a daily basis. The higher the
quality of background data they gather and the more effectively they prioritize
it, the more accurate their view of the world will be, and the better their
judgment and "common sense".
By contrast with the steady, slow gathering of background data, task-related
information is gathered for a specific purpose.
Perhaps you're preparing a
five-year business plan and you want a reliable growth forecast from your
country's central bank. Or maybe you want specific information about the number
and disposable incomes of a certain group of consumers. Or perhaps you need to
know projected labor market trends for people with a key skill on which you
depend.
Gathering Background Information
What is certain, however, is that task-related information
on its own is not enough: While arguments created with it can be persuasive,
they are "brittle" and can often be knocked down with previously unknown facts
that just don't fit. This is where ideas need to be tested with the common sense
that comes with diligently acquired background information.
There are a number of things you can do to build background information:
Read a newspaper or news website respected for the quality
and accuracy of its journalism (for example, "The Economist").
Where possible, talk to your customers and get a deep understanding of what they
want and don't want from you, and what they're getting or not getting from you
and your competitors.
Read industry magazines and newsletters for both your own and your customers'
industries, keeping an eye on customers, competitors, suppliers, industry
associations, activist groups, new technologies and so on.
Talk to experts in the fields in which you operate and knowledgeable people
within your organization, and understand their perspectives on the key trends
and features of interest.
Read brochures and talk to product teams to make sure you understand your
organization's products and services, their strengths and weaknesses, and what
your customers like or dislike about them.
Have a good understanding of company or business unit strategy – i.e. what your
company says it wants to do, who it wants its customers to be, and how it plans
to serve them.
Take the time to "tune in" to what's going on in your organization: Through both
the formal and informal "grapevines".
What is necessary here is to take the time to gather this information: It's all
too easy for these activities to be lost under the pressures of a hectic
schedule.
Gathering Task-Related Information
It's much easier to justify the time spent gathering task-related information:
Information-gathering actions are clearly identified steps in the projects you
undertake.
There are three key factors here:
Understanding how much research you should do.
Making sure you ask the right questions.
Gathering the information you need.
The amount of research you take depends on the scale of the decision, the time
available, and the consequences of getting it wrong. If it's a small decision,
or the consequences of getting it wrong are small, then don't waste too much
time on it. On the other hand, if the consequences are severe, take time to make
a good decision, and make sure you make an appropriate risk management plan in
case things don't work out.
Making sure you ask the right questions is of key importance. Start by
brainstorming these questions, ideally with your boss or client or with experts
in the field or within your organization. Then make sure you draw on any
predefined frameworks you can find, where people have tried to make a system or
process for solving this type of problem. For example, if you're gathering
information as part of researching a business plan, then buy a good book on
business planning from Amazon.com and adapt the framework it proposes for your
own use.
Finally, make a plan for gathering the key information needed, and think about
how much you're prepared to spend to get it.
A lot of information is relatively freely available, within your organization or
in good business, academic or institutional libraries. Some information is
packaged and for sale (for example, detailed competitor financial reports).
Other information you may need to gather yourself, for example in interviewing
clients or conducting market research surveys. And in other cases (for example,
in taking legal advice) it makes sense to pay a qualified expert to answer your
questions.
And at the end of all this research, make sure you take a step back and look at
the answers you've gained through the filter of common sense. Ask yourself if
any information seems to be missing, or if anything you've uncovered jars with
your instincts and experience.
Finally, while information gathering is an essential skill for an effective
leader, bear in mind that the information is not an end in itself. It is useful
because it serves as an input towards generating ideas and building vision.
Later on in this section, we'll look at how to process information to build this
vision.
