intelligence-collection-disciplines

# Intelligence Collection Disciplines ## Purpose Stop doing competitive research like a term paper. The intelligence community solved this problem decades ago: they don't collect "data," they run **collection disciplines** — independent channels, each with its own sources, tradecraft, and blind spots — and then they *fuse* them. This skill gives product managers that playbook: eight disciplines, each telling you (1) what to collect, (2) where to collect it, (3) which signal → inference chains to run, and (4) which PM artifact it feeds (TAM/SAM/SOM, ICPs, personas, battle cards, roadmap bets, win/loss, positioning, pricing). One signal is an anecdote; three correlated signals from independent disciplines is intelligence. ## Input **Works best with** the six instantiation variables below — fill them once and every discipline becomes engagement-specific. Leave them blank and this stays a teaching artifact. ~~~ [TARGET] = The competitor, partner, or acquirer you're researching [MARKET] = The category and its NAICS/SIC/NACE codes (or nearest equivalent) [GEOGRAPHY] = Regions in scope, at COUNTRY level, not continent level [BUYER] = Who signs the check (drives review sites, job titles, conferences) [CAPABILITY] = The strategic move you suspect (platform play, market entry, pricing shift, compliance land-grab, etc.) [DECISION] = What this research will change (roadmap bet, positioning, pricing, market entry, deal defense, IC...