More than 6 years ago, I embarked on a journey that I never imagined would be this tough…that of creating transparency in complex, fast-changing markets which I considered to be opaque, leading to inefficient and ineffective “buyer/supplier” relationships.
Having worked on numerous market intelligence projects for over 15 years as a consultant where I advised many clients on how to find the best companies and solutions, I had lived the problem many times over. I had been through the pain of trying to find information on the latest developments, the new startups, the changing business models. Even if you spent the time (often months) and absorbed the large costs, the result was still a point-in-time snapshot. Within days, the market could change and you’re stuck with an outdated report.
Gateway Computers – For example, finding information on the hard disk market as part of the work I did for Gateway computers (do you remember them???). As a consultant, I ended up scouring many sources for data and reports. It took months and two consultants.
Ultimately, we put together what I believe was a good report and solutions but I realized something important that was common in most of the work I did.
Traditional market research and scouting methods, where you conduct research, gather data, and put together a report, struggle to keep up with today’s dynamic and fast-changing business environment. They are:
- Time-consuming and slow: Research often take many weeks or months. Given the speed, or lack thereof, is one of the biggest issues for programs, slow research only slows down potential solutions.
- One and done: Reports, no matter how insightful, are one and done. They don’t allow for continuous monitoring of markets, companies or solutions.
- Expensive: While larger organizations can maybe afford the kind of research you typically need, it is out of the reach of most small organizations or companies.
The Solution: Creating “Ruthless” Market Transparency to Change the World
I honestly didn’t know what the solution was but I knew it had to be FASTER, DYNAMIC, and CHEAPER.
I thought of it as “ruthless market transparency” where anyone, a small innovation or economic development team, a contracting officer, a small entrepreneur or investor, could have the ability to quickly understand any market and its ins an outs, uncover amazing solutions created by passionate entrepreneurs.
The answer was not going to be some whiz-bang tech product or platform
I knew, as I embarked on a journey to solve the problem, that the solution wouldn’t be some snazzy platform where you could push a button and all your problems would be solved.
Instead, having had the benefit of researching hundreds of markets as a consultant, I knew it as some combination of “old-fashioned analysis”, access to good data, and leverage of the latest technology.
Market Intelligence Sprints are born, powered by “old-fashioned analysis and AI-MI™”
The solution, after years of iteration through real use cases, is quite simple to explain. Market intelligence sprints are a rapid way to dive into and derive insights on any market or technology. Managed by an Analyst and powered AI and comprehensive data, in as short as a day or week, you get a custom analysis and report, validated data, and live online access where the information is refreshed on a regular basis.
Six years of work and patient capital – the Data, AI and Analysis to make sprints work
I knew the data and the process to make sprints work wouldn’t be something done in a year. In fact, I didn’t know how long it would take. So I sought investors who would “get it”. I also invested millions personally to demonstrate my belief and commitment.
What did we invest in that would produce value for customers and help realize the vision of “ruthless market transparency?
- Comprehensive data on supply, demand, and ecosystems – Comprehensive visibility into markets or ecosystems wouldn’t be done by bringing together a few data sources. So we embarked on a continuous journey, still ongoing, to compile public, private, and our own data generated through analysis.
- “Language of the Market” – To understand markets, you need to understand the language of markets. That’s the context, the terminology, the use cases, the solutions. This was perhaps one of the most complex parts and one that overwhelmed me from day one. But I also knew this was one of the most important things we could invest in.
- Artificial Intelligence – We leveraged AI to help process and enrich data, understand the “language of markets”, and develop insights leveraging our own, validated data. We use it now to help deliver insightful answers directly to our customers.
- Subject Matter Expertise and “Old-Fashionied Analysis” – We also created a model to bring in any SME or Analyst so we could quickly dive into any market, get the benefit of expertise, and inject it into any report or client solution. Our model allows us to contract for Analysts, reducing our fixed costs and maintaining a lean structure that enables the affordability of our solutions.
All these together is what we call “AI-MI™”. AI for Market Intelligence. But as you can see, it is a lot more than AI. It’s a combination of data, AI and “old-fashioned analysis”.
Sprints work – the proof is in the use cases!
Over the past few years, as the process of sprints came together, we have had the ability to refine it by applying it across over 100 use cases, from polymers to microelectronics, from counter drones to batteries. In the process, we have garnered invaluable insights and feedback, further allowing us to refine what a sprint looks like.
How Do Market Intelligence Sprints Work?
The process of executing a sprint can be described in three simple steps, even though there are dozens of steps underneath. It can take a day or a couple of weeks, depending on the type of sprint chosen.
- Define the Scope of the Market/Technology/Problem – First, we quickly (in as short as an hour) define the targeted market, technology or problem. It’s important to note that sometimes a “problem” is better to start with so we don’t assume any preconceived solution.
- AI + “Old-Fashioned” Research: Run AI-based matches against PSF’s comprehensive datasets while simultaneously conducting additional research.
- Analyze and Provide Results/Interface: After running automated and traditional analysis, outputs include tailored reports, interactive dashboards, and actionable datasets—all ready to inform critical decisions.
What are the benefits of Sprints?
Going back to the problem we started out with of slow, costly, and “one and done” reports, Sprints are designed to provide speed, affordability, validated data/insights, and “living deliverables”:
- Speed – Market Intelligence Sprints deliver results in as little as a day. That is critical to ensuring we are operating at speed, engaging potential partners, and most importantly, delivering solutions to those who need it the most. Every sprint is tailored to be unique, tailored to a client’s specific use case, from identifying niche suppliers to mapping out entire innovation ecosystems. Whether it’s finding companies specializing in polymers or mapping out a regional ecosystem, sprints focus on what matters most to you.
- Validated Data/Insights – Unlike generic datasets, Market Intelligence Sprints leverage both AI-powered tools and human validation. They also leverage expertise to ensure insights are context and use-case-specific.
- Living Deliverables – No “one and done” report. Instead, sprint outputs include:
- Custom reports summarizing findings and recommendations
- Interactive dashboards for exploring insights and data
- Chat solution to ask specific questions and go deeper
- Refreshed data that continues to be updated during any subscription
- Affordability – By building this at scale, our goal is to also ensure we “arm” every single innovator, market facilitator, researcher, investor, and entrepreneur out there with actionable market information they can use to drive critical decisions and impact, at speed!
A real-world example: Battery technology companies and their supply chain.
A federal government innovation team needed to address surge requirements for battery components by identifying and validating U.S.-based manufacturers across the entire batteries value chain. Traditional approaches were too slow and could not provide the depth of supplier validation required.
In less than a week, a Market Intelligence Sprint:
- Identified and validated 890+ battery technology companies, from raw material providers to equipment manufacturers.
- Delivered a tailored report with detailed insights into each company’s capabilities, experience, and contact information.
- Provided interactive tools, dashboard and a chat interface to to dive deeper, create lists and conduct outreach.
We realized what we estimate to be 90% increase in SPEED, definitely more than 90% reduction in cost, and most than 250% in visibility (average based on other use cases).
Let’s make “ruthless market transparency” a reality so we can solve the world’s biggest problems together!
I really believe market transparency is one way we can build a better world. By providing innovators, market facilaitors, investors, economic development teams, entrepreneurs the market information they need to make decisions faster, find and deploy solutions, we can solve some of the world’s biggest problems faster and at scale! Join us!
Ready to make faster, more transparent markets a reality? Learn more about how Market Intelligence Sprints can help by visiting Public Spend Forum or reaching out at support@publicspendforum.net.