Businessman, retired generals open business intelligence firm
JAKARTA (JP): Noted businessman Iman Taufik, along with four retired military and police generals, officially opened a business intelligence firm on Thursday with an aim to boost Indonesian companies' competitiveness abroad.
"Business is identical to war," Taufik, who is president commissioner of the new company called PT Dinamika Indera Nusa Perdana (DINA), said at the launching.
"Since you cannot win a war without the assistance of intelligence services, you cannot do business without the same," he said in his introductory remarks.
Taufik, founder and president of PT Tri Patra Engineering and PT Guna Nusa Fabricators, is vice chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and chairman of the Australia Indonesia Development Area representing the private sector.
The four generals joining all have impeccable records in military intelligence, strategy and operations.
Sutjipno is a retired police major general who served as a police chief in South Sumatra and West Java and was governor of the Police Staff College (PTIK). Yusuf Effendi was a Navy rear admiral who headed the Western Armada and was once responsible for strategic planning at the Ministry of Defense and Security. Bekkar S is a retired major general who spent most of his Army years in strategic planning at the Ministry of Defense and Security. Emon Rivai Arganata, a retired police major general, designed the National Police's intelligence system.
Sutjipno, Yusuf and Bekkar sit on the board of commissioners and Emon, who wrote the book Intelijen Bisnis (Business Intelligence), is the president director of DINA.
Taufik said the idea of the company came from Emon's book.
Citing the yearbook of International Management of Switzerland, Taufik said Indonesia ranked the second lowest after Russia in competitiveness among 47 countries' major contributors on the international market.
With the advent of global competition, Indonesian companies would not be able to survive in their own country if they maintained current management and business approaches, he said.
Some companies made business decisions without considering market demands and competitors, and as a consequence, lost on their investment and were unable to pay loans, he said, citing the property sector as an example.
DINA would provide actual and accurate information to help companies make strategic and operational decisions, Sutjipno said.
Business intelligence was not identical to industrial espionage, which often involved illegal and immoral practices, including stealing classified corporate information, he said.
DINA's operation would be governed by business ethics and use publicly available information, he said.
Emon said DINA was ready to provide assistance and training services for firms wishing to develop their own intelligence units.
Given the military background of some of the founders, the company would also have access to information about the political and security situation in the country, and this would be available to foreign investors, Emon said. (02)