This talk explores why Competitive Intelligence (CI) and environmental scanning remain peripheral in most Western organisations—even in the face of growing uncertainty, strategic missteps, and increasing geopolitical complexity.

The core argument is that modern organisations are shaped by dominant academic paradigms, particularly those from Business Administration and Economics. These fields still rarely incorporate intelligence thinking, resulting in decision-making frameworks that ignore structured information gathering, systemic foresight, and adversarial awareness.

In contrast, countries like China and others in East Asia take intelligence far more seriously—both within corporations and state structures. This presentation investigates the roots of this divergence and its consequences for global competitiveness.
We also examine what organisations in the West can do to break out of this paradigm trap and truly integrate intelligence as a strategic function—not just as an isolated role or project.