{"id":11790,"date":"2020-03-24T19:29:42","date_gmt":"2020-03-24T23:29:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digital.hbs.edu\/platform-digit\/submission\/alphasights-purveyors-of-knowledge-2\/"},"modified":"2020-03-24T19:29:42","modified_gmt":"2020-03-24T23:29:42","slug":"alphasights-purveyors-of-knowledge-2","status":"publish","type":"hck-submission","link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-digit\/submission\/alphasights-purveyors-of-knowledge-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Alphasights: Purveyors of Knowledge"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u201cNo [person\u2019s] knowledge here can go beyond his experience\u201d<\/em> \u2013 John Locke<\/p>\n

The maxim that knowledge is power is heard so often that its fundamental truth may be obscured with repetition. Nonetheless, knowledge is the indispensable currency that makes the highly competitive world of business go round, enabling investors and executives to beat their competitors on the battlefield of commerce.<\/p>\n

The Problem<\/strong><\/p>\n

Business practitioners evaluating transactions, exploring growth markets, testing new products and conducting the full range of activities to make the wheels of commerce turn have needs for high-quality, timely, and actionable intelligence.\u00a0 They seek to understand consolidation drivers in an industry, the factors that make an enterprise switch its software provider, a customer\u2019s tolerance for price increases and countless other micro and macro questions.<\/p>\n

However, their ability to access fresh knowledge that does not already exist in their organizations is limited.\u00a0 Personal networks are narrow, strategy consulting teams are expensive and removed from frontline business, and LinkedIn is dauntingly big and time-consuming to navigate. \u00a0Moreover, they are rarely operating in their business-as-usual setting when in need of such knowledge – they are often pressed for time to submit a takeover bid, launch a product before their competitor or meet a high volume of executives on a short trip in a new geography.<\/p>\n

Alphasights Overview<\/strong><\/p>\n

Alphasights is a knowledge network that connects Clients seeking specific insights with topic expert Advisors for direct, confidential interactions. \u00a0The firm is a professional service outfit that brokers the exchange of knowledge in a high-touch, tailored, customer-centric manner that has won it the business of several firms. \u00a0It serves senior professionals private equity, hedge fund, consulting, and corporate clients around the world out of its 9 global offices. Alphasights connects its corporate clients with on-the-ground professionals with contemporary expertise on the specific business topic.<\/p>\n

How it Works<\/strong><\/p>\n

Alphasights assigns a specific account manager and\/or multi-person Client Service Team for their corporate clients.\u00a0 These Client Service professionals learn their clients mission, ways of working, \u00a0etc. and they build personal relationships with the key people who will be using the service.<\/p>\n

When the client has a specific business objective \u2013 e.g., evaluating a key player in the insurance technology software market \u2013 she will reach out to her Alphasights CS and outline her need in a template.\u00a0 She will outline her broad areas of questions, attach screener questions, outline the attributes of the expert she wishes to engage, and make further specific requests (e.g., I want the Chief Procurement Officer, current of former, at companies A, B, or C).\u00a0 The CS takes these criteria and searches for the Advisor that meets the specific criteria, and sends a preliminary shortlist to the Client. \u00a0The Client will indicate her preferences and her availability on an in-built calendar.\u00a0 The CS subsequently arranges all the logistics of arranging the meeting, held virtually or in-person.\u00a0 Clients fill out short satisfaction survey on the Advisors she connected with and the CS frequently checks in to ensure that the Client is making progress on her objectives.<\/p>\n

What Makes Alphasights Different<\/strong><\/p>\n

As a user of the service in my roles as a management consultant and private equity investment professional, I had average experiences with similar service providers in the past.\u00a0 Typically, I was connected with self-selected experts from stagnant databases whose knowledge was either limited or out-of-date.\u00a0 Several were retirees were removed from their respective industries as time increased, they were being placed on projects for competing clients, and everyone had access to the same general information that ultimately minimized the opportunity for competitive advantage.<\/p>\n

However, a few unique elements made Alphasights my preferred expert network provider:<\/p>\n