Commissioned research
One question, answered to the same standard as everything else we publish, for a single client or institution.
Commissioned research exists because the published record cannot anticipate every question, and because the questions that matter most to a specific organisation are frequently the ones no vendor can answer without a conflict.
It is not advisory work in a research wrapper. The deliverable is a piece of research: a stated question, a documented method, evidence graded the same way we grade our own, and a finding that stands whether or not it is convenient.
How it differs from consulting
A consultancy is paid to produce a recommendation and is usually positioned to implement it. We are paid to produce a finding and are not positioned to implement anything, which changes what we are willing to conclude.
We scope the question in writing, agree in advance what would count as an answer, do the research against the published method, and deliver it with every source attached. Revisions are on presentation and clarity, never on findings.
It is published under a distinct mark and labelled as commissioned wherever it appears. It never draws on the open research corpus in a way that compromises it.
Scoping call
Forty-five minutes. We establish the question, what a useful answer looks like, and whether we are the right people to answer it. If we are not, we say so.
Written scope
The question, the method, the sources we expect to use, what we will not be able to establish, the deliverable and the timeline. Nothing starts until this is signed.
Research
Typically four to eight weeks. One mid-point review where we show what we are finding, including anything that contradicts the premise.
Delivery
The report, the underlying evidence, and a session with the analyst who did the work. Revisions are on presentation and clarity, never on findings.
Questions we are well placed to answer
Who commissions this
| Who | What they usually need |
|---|---|
| Boards and investment committees | An independent read on a decision already in motion, and the questions nobody internal is positioned to ask |
| Industry bodies and chambers | Sector-level evidence about their own members that does not otherwise exist |
| Government and public institutions | Capability assessment, adoption measurement and policy readiness, with a published method |
| Professional bodies | Function-level research for their membership, from a source with no product to sell them |
What it costs and how long it takes
Scoped per engagement against the research effort, not against the size of the client. Typical engagements run six to twelve weeks from signed scope to delivery, with one mid-point review.
The scoping call is free and frequently ends with us telling you the answer is already in the published record, or that a briefing would settle it in forty-five minutes. That is not a sales tactic. A commissioned engagement that did not need to happen is a bad engagement.
What you receive
- The report itself, designed and cited to the standard of everything else we publish.
- The underlying evidence register, with each observation graded and sourced.
- The method note, stating what we could not establish and why.
- Charts as standalone graphics, with attribution, for use in your own materials.
- A session with the analyst who did the work, for your team or your board.
Commissioned research answers a question. It does not confirm an answer. If the finding is unhelpful to the commissioner, the finding is what gets delivered.