It’s time to clear out some thoughts on an eclectic mix of articles I've been reading, so please pardon the potential mental whiplash. What does your company do to keep an eye on competitors? Perhaps it’s an informal process handled by the sales department, or perhaps there’s a database of some sort. If you’re GM, you of course create a committee. Seriously.

“GM forms committees to keep an eye on Tesla,” reports CNNMoney. “General Motors dwarfs Tesla Motors in virtually every way—number of cars made, sales, and profits. But that doesn’t mean GM isn't worried about the upstart electric car maker. GM has confirmed that CEO Dan Akerson has formed a task force within the company to look at the impact from alternative automakers. The only alternative car company it named: Tesla.”

Mark Graban reminded me that this is exactly what the “old GM” used to do—to the amusement of its nemesis, Ross Perot. As Perot put it back in 1988:

“At GM, if you see a snake, the first thing you do is go hire a consultant on snakes. Then you get a committee on snakes, and then you discuss it for a couple of years. The most likely course of action is—nothing.”

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