Vision
We are committed to providing the highest standards of assurance in an information landscape congested with uncertainty.
We see a future in which policy and practice are consistently intelligence-led and evidence-based, and the skills and sensibilities to discern fact from fiction are widely entrenched.
We see a narrow path to this, through clear-sighted commitment to qualified expertise. On the other side of it, we see mature appreciation of the value of discerning judgment, prompting a return to learning and to rational and balanced discourse.
Mission
We will help clients navigate complex information challenges and turn them into strategic advantages.
We will apply rigorous design principles to enable effective research operations, and prioritize pre-discovery protocols in our information retrieval, processing, and exploitation activities.
We will promote evidence-based judgment, foreground rigorous validation and quality management standards, and equip clients with intelligence defined, optimised for service, and focused on real-world outcomes.
Strategy
A boutique approach, predicated on direct, personal engagement by highly qualified senior principals.
Our delivery methodology combines embedded advisory relationships and targeted analytical products, ensuring continuous knowledge transfer while building internal client capabilities and competitive advantage.
We prioritize long-term relationships over transactional engagements, investing in deep sector understanding and institutional memory that compounds value across project cycles and enables anticipatory strategic guidance.
History
Our backgrounds: political science, policy analysis, intelligence, journalism, and law.
We built our professional profiles in public service and private practice, gathering evidence and producing knowledge in research-intensive fields for some of the most demanding consumers of intelligence in the world.
We’ve done it from behind desks and in the field, while living and operating in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Europe, working on front-page geopolitical, rule of law, and technology and emerging market challenges.
Philosophy
Effective policy and practice is intelligence-led, evidence-based, and results-oriented.
Sound intelligence and evidence distinguish well-supported and logical arguments from baseless claims and unqualified opinions. They enable clear separation of fact from fiction, astute judgment from wishful thinking.
Above all, they are mindful of consequence. They establish the connection between evidence and outcome. In a world of extremes, of contested facts and consensual hallucinations, this is the essence of things.
Principles
Our work is underwritten by a commitment to a ten-point discipline of thought and inquiry.
The ten points are the principles that animate us. Informed by our skills and experience as historians, social scientists, intelligence officers, journalists, policy advisors and lawyers, they guide how we operationalise every assignment.
We embrace experimentation but privilege proven strategies and tactics, methods and techniques, tools and technologies. This is where our research provides deliberate and enduring value, worthy of the trust clients place in us.
Testimonials
Our Principles
Ethical, reasoned pursuit of evidence and insight, adhering to principles of integrity, balance and diligence, is the path to research of enduring value.
Research involves many things. Ultimately it is about purposeful investigation, systematic observation and the spirit of discovery.
Be mindful of historical uniqueness, the sensitivity of initial conditions, and the narcissism of minor differences. They point the way, but not always correctly.
Knowledge for its own sake is a positive good, but it should serve a purpose, without succumbing to the whims of fashion, fortune or politics.
Evidence can be found in many shapes and forms. Knowing what they mean is essential to understanding the substance that can be extracted from them.
Thorough review and understanding of what is already known is fundamental to original research, and arguably more important than methodological innovation.
Knowledge is a cumulative effort with its eye to the horizon. It should not be determined by what has come before, or its limits set by what is currently known.
Method is vital to systematic inquiry. It is a tool, and should support the investigative process, not replace it or become a substitute for critical thinking.
Effective management of information, with close attention to precedent and chain of custody, is fundamental to sound investigation and analytical precision.
Meticulous sourcing and attention to detail are cornerstones of reliable research and enlightened decision-making. Without them there is only abstraction.
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DATE OF PUBLICATION: AUGUST 4th 2025.
FEEDBACK ON OUR PRINCIPLES CAN BE EMAILED TO OFFICE@CRAIGHEADKELLAS.COM