Authors

Competitive Intelligence as a Tool for Achieving Economic Security of an Organization

The relevance of the study lies in the ever-increasing level of competition in the global economy, which implies a global revision by the management of organizations of general approaches to the analysis of interaction with the external environment. At present, despite the general decline in the main macroeconomic indicators of the world economy, most organizations note that they feel an increasing level of competitive pressure, which, along with increased turbulence in the global economy, can lead the organization to severe financial consequences up to bankruptcy. In order to minimize such a negative impact, organizations should constantly take into account the influence of a constantly changing external environment in the process of strategic planning of their activities, for which it is advisable to conduct competitive intelligence as a tool to ensure the stability of the organization’s functioning. The purpose of the study is to determine the main economic prerequisites for conducting competitive intelligence in an organization and to analyze the dependence of the organization’s performance indicators on the introduction of competitive intelligence practices. The main objective is to develop recommendations for the implementation of competitive intelligence in the organization. The article pays special attention to the analysis of the global economic situation in recent years, characterizes a systematic approach to management as an element that allows you to fully build the organization’s activities depending on the influence of the external environment, draws up conclusions about the main problems of introducing the practice of competitive intelligence at the present stage. In the course of the study, general scientific methods were used, such as analysis, synthesis, deduction and induction. As a result of the study, the contribution of competitive intelligence, as a separate function, to the overall performance of the organization is demonstrated, recommendations are given for improving the implementation of competitive intelligence to increase efficiency. Read more...

Economics of Virtual Education: Assessment of the Level of Competition and Market Entry Strategy

Digitalization processes, external challenges and growing demands for the formation of new competencies have led to the fact that currently such a traditional sphere as education is undergoing a serious transformation both in terms of the teaching methods used and competitive strategies implemented by the subjects of the educational process. One of the most dynamically developing sectors is virtual education, It has grown over the past fifteen years from simple information sites to full-fledged virtual educational systems capable of offering customized educational products to a wide range of users. Despite the relative youth of the virtual education sector and the controversial identification of its borders, sufficient statistical and factual material has already been accumulated, which allows us to assess the level of competition and barriers to entry into this market. Identification of typical competitive entry strategies will allow both to trace the main trends in the development of this market and to assess their prospects in terms of the possibility of application by new players. The purpose of the work is to assess the level of competition in the virtual education market and identify characteristic strategies for entering this market. Based on the data of the EdTech rating and the “List of transactions in the field of virtual education for 2014–2016”, to assess competition and identify the main descriptive strategies. The level of competition was assessed based on the calculation of the Herfindahl – Hirschman Index and the calculation of the degree of market concentration. To assess the barrier of entry and the survival of startups, an analysis of the investment volumes for the projects that have survived at the moment was carried out. When grouping and describing entry strategies, monographic and historiographical methods were used, as well as an analysis of the volume of investments and the sectoral affiliation of companies. According to the results of the study, a conclusion was made about the high level of competition in this market and the average level of its concentration. A number of characteristic strategies for entering the market are identified, quantitative estimates of the volume of investments in their implementation are given. Read more...