IA Student wins 2016 Jim Mathews Award

Joshua Bailey, a junior Intelligence Analysis (IA) major at James Madison University (JMU), has been chosen as one of two winners of the 2016 Jim Mathews Award for Intelligence Excellence. This award underwrites all expenses for Josh to present his paper at the Reconverge:G2 Symposium for Competitive Intelligence from April 19-21 in Madison, Wisconsin. Aurora WDC, an advising firm in analytics and competitive intelligence, sponsors both the award and the symposium.

The award was founded in honor of James Mathews, a major contributor to the field of business and competitive intelligence, according to the symposium’s website. “Winning the 2016 Jim Mathews Award is the most important achievement of my college career thus far,” stated Bailey in the announcement by Rconverge. Bailey looks forward to the networking opportunities at the symposium: “Winning the Jim Mathews Award and Fellowship allows me to grow my network of professional contacts and open up areas of professional growth which I otherwise never would have been exposed to.”

Bailey first gained an interest in intelligence after debate experiences in high school, according to the March 10 announcement. Among other pursuits, he is currently working with fellow student, Liam Barrett to establish a JMU chapter of Strategic and Competitive Intelligence Professionals (SCIP). Bailey reflects positively on his intelligence experiences, “After joining the James Madison University Intelligence Analysis program, the opportunity to explore interests outside of the National Security field opened my eyes up to the limitless potential applications for structured analytical thought for a variety of social, technological, and most prominently, business issues.”

The symposium will also feature a presentation given by Dr. Tom Tao, JMU Assistant Professor in the Intelligence Analysis Program, and Gu Fang, General Manager of the CI Division of China National Chemical Information Center, on adjusting competitive intelligence practices in China in response to the economic troubles of the recent year. These findings will provide valuable input for curriculum innovation within the IA Program.