Real-World Intelligence [Hardcover]

Herbert E. Meyer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1991

Business Intelligence is emerging as the world's hottest new management tool. Companies now are setting up Intelligence Systems that operate like corporate radars: they monitor the external environment to alert management to whatever may be happening up ahead before it would otherwise be visible. Business Intelligence Systems help companies monitor competitors, customers, suppliers, markets, and those key trends and development in science, technology, economics and politics directly relevant to the company's unique strategic objectives. This book, authored by a top-level Reagan Administration Intelligence official - the man widely credited with being the first senior US official to project the Soviet Union's collapse -- shows how businesses can use the ideas and methods of intelligence to set up "corporate radars" that will give them a competitive edge in today's global, ferocious, information-rich business environment.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Meyer (The War Against Progress) was formerly vice-chairman of the National Intelligence Council, which among other things advises White House security advisers. Now a Washington-based consultant, he here describes the uses and methods of intelligence-gathering for managers of "a government or multimillion-dollar business." The process is highly selective: rioting in East Germany, for example, can affect the French government, an American exporter or a Wall Street brokerage house in entirely different ways. Meyer's analyses suggest that intelligence reports, by appraising the impact of events, come close to defining policy ("the intelligence outfit determines just what information the decision-maker will need")a chilling notion. He warns that apart from the secret-spy aspect (which remains secret here), intelligence, though necessary and important, is not a particularly interesting subjectbut in this he is too modest.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

A book on intelligence that is genuinely intelligent...Meyer believes that the formation by companies of intelligence-gathering units is the key to survival in a rapidly changing, globally sensitive, information-rich environment. -- The Washington Times

A seminal book...Ignore it at your peril. -- The International Economy

Extremely valuable...a sensible, amusing, and interesting introduction to a new management tool for competing - and winning - in today's business world. -- The Wall Street Journal

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 102 pages
• Publisher: Storm King Pr; Rep Sub edition (December 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 093516605X
• ISBN-13: 978-0935166057
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,699,258 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Herbert E. Meyer is a leading authority on the use of information.

During the Reagan Administration, Mr. Meyer served as Special Assistant to the Director of Central Intelligence and Vice Chairman of the CIA's National Intelligence Council. In these positions, he managed production of the U.S. National Intelligence Estimates and other top-secret projections for the President and his national security advisers. Mr. Meyer is widely credited with being the first U.S. Government official to forecast the Soviet Union's collapse -- a forecast for which he later was awarded the U.S. National Intelligence Distinguished Service Medal, which is the Intelligence Community's highest honor.

Formerly an associate editor of FORTUNE, he has authored several books including The War Against Progress, Real-World Intelligence, and Hard Thinking. Mr. Meyer and his wife, Jill, are co-authors of How to Write, which is among the world's most widely used writing handbooks.

Mr. Meyer's essays on Intelligence and Politics have been published in The Wall Street Journal, National Review Online, Policy Review and The American Thinker.

Mr. Meyer is host and producer of The Siege of Western Civilization, a DVD that outlines the threats to America's security, economy, and culture.

These days, Mr. Meyer is a popular speaker on the lecture circuit. He delivers his overview of global trends and developments, entitled What in the World is Going On?, to corporations, business associations, student organizations and public affairs groups throughout the world.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Do You REALLY Know?, June 9, 2000

By 

Robert Morris (Dallas, Texas) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Real-World Intelligence (Hardcover)

Meyer's distinguished career includes serving as associate editor of Fortune magazine (primarily responsible for coverage of the U.S.S.R.) and then as special assistant to the director of the C.I.A. and vice chairman of the C.I.A.'s National Intelligence Council (primarily responsible for estimates and projections concerning the U.S.S.R.). Meyer is widely recognized as the first senior government official to predict the collapse of the U.S.S.R. Upon retirement from public service, Meyer founded Real*World Intelligence, Inc. of which he continues to serve as chairman and CEO. He is widely recognized as a leading authority on competitive intelligence. He and his associates developed the world's first customized turn-key intelligence system for organizations and they now work with clients throughout the world.

There are many misconceptions about the C.I.A. For example, contrary to what many people think, only a small percentage of time and effort (about 5%) is devoted to espionage (or "spying"). Most of the work consists of obtaining and then evaluating "open-book" information. That is, information readily available to virtually anyone. There may also be misconceptions about the subject of Meyer's book, competitive intelligence. For example, that efforts to obtain the information on which it depends must necessarily be illegal, unethical, immoral, etc. Not so. As Meyer carefully explains, there is an abundance of information in the public domain which is easily (and legally) accessible. In Real*World Intelligence, Meyer organizes his material within six chapters:

The Most Powerful Management Tool of All

The New Intelligence

How Intelligence Works

What Intelligence Outfits Look Like

Intelligence and Policymaking

The Future of Intelligence

What he offers in this book is a cohesive, comprehensive, and cost-effective system by which to determine (a) which information is of greatest importance to an organization, (b) how to obtain that information and then manage it, (c) how to convert (or upgrade) that information to intelligence, and finally (d) how to derive greatest benefit from it.

In the so-called Age of Information, it is imperative for any organization (regardless of size or nature) to establish and then develop such a system. Think of intelligence as "radar" which will enable an organization to survey and then navigate its way through totally unfamiliar "territory." Think of intelligence as a means by which to recognize critically important early-warning signs and then respond effectively to them. Also think of intelligence as a means by which to know what an organization needs to know about its competitors but, much more importantly, what it needs to know about its customers and their customers as well as what it needs to know about the rapidly-changing world it shares with them.

Anyone who questions the importance of such intelligence should ask this question: "The next time I am behind the wheel of a vehicle, what if I were wearing a blindfold as I pull out into traffic?" Obviously that makes no sense and yet many organizations are now wear a blindfold as they proceed into an uncertain future. Hence the great value to them of Meyer's book. END

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Gem of continuing value--"must read" for busy managers, April 8, 2000

By 

Robert D. Steele (Oakton, VA United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Real-World Intelligence (Hardcover)

Herb, one of the distinguished speakers at OSS '92, has been Vice Chairman of the National Intelligence Council, and is in my mind one of the top five pioneers of business intelligence in the United States. He started in late 1970's, and his little paperback book is both a gospel and a guide of continuing value. This book was distributed at OSS '92, and continues to be worthy of reading by senior executives who don't do a lot of reading.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read for Managers, December 21, 2006

By 

Cable Hills - See all my reviews

This review is from: Real-World Intelligence (Hardcover)

This book is on my MUST READ book for managers and decision makers.

The idea that the person responsible for "intelligence" is ALWAYS in conflict with the decision maker was a real eye opener.

Conflict 1: Gathering information is a continuous process with no end result in sight. Demands for information by decision makers are usually one-time no-warning events.

Conflict 2: If the decision maker hears what he already "knows" or believes to be true, the information is of no value. To provide value, the intel person has to buck the belief of the boss. Not a prescription for career advancement.