For some folks, business intelligence may seem like an oxymoron. Of course, those folks may have been working at the wrong company for too long. More than just a simple buzz-phrase, the term business intelligence defines the process of first data-gathering, then analysis, and ultimately recommendation.

When folks refer to business intelligence, they often include competitive intelligence in the mix. Competitive intelligence is merely a part of the whole. Want to know what your competitors are up to? That’s competitive intelligence. Want to know what the overall business climate is (including the political, internal, and external issues)? That’s business intelligence … the big picture.

The noble goal is to quickly gather, process, and analyze the information, so that your company gains a competitive advantage. Business intelligence operations often utilize decision support systems to provide functions including data mining, reporting, and visualization.

Companies with the proper resources, handle many of their business intelligence chores in-house. Those with the staff and budget to gather and analyze the information within their walls may, however, choose to use an outside service assist with the analysis. Companies without the proper in-house resources, on the other hand, often ship the lions share of their business intelligence work to an outside firm.

We are all overwhelmed with data. Thankfully, there are loads of business intelligence resources, services, and products available on the Internet to help you track, understand, and manage the burden.