The specificities of the practice of strategic intelligence in Cameroonian companies

Abstract

At the dawn of globalization and the advent of ICTs, which are constantly causing sudden changes in the environment, strategic intelligence has become an essential tool for managers to support their decision-making by providing information on the company's external environment. Although it has proved its worth in developed countries, strategic intelligence is still slow to take off in Africa, and more specifically in sub-Saharan Africa, where it is still practiced on an informal basis, the characteristics of which need to be understood. The aim of this article is to highlight the specific features of strategic intelligence in Cameroonian companies through an empirical study of 60 companies, which enabled us to identify the sources of information, the areas and the approach to strategic intelligence. This shows that most Cameroonian companies still practice informal monitoring, where the sources of information, although direct, are also informal, and monitoring is focused mainly on the commercial and competitive environment.

JEL Classification: M15.

 Paper type: Empirical research