Practice · Research & Evidence Est. 2019 ·

A market is read in numbers.
A society is read in meaning.
We supply both — to the standard
any decision requires.

We conduct market and social research for governments, corporations and institutions whose decisions must rest on evidence rather than assertion. Quantitative or qualitative, primary or secondary, regional or global — delivered with the methodological discipline of a senior-led practice.

Begin a research mandate See the research disciplines
7
Research disciplines
under one roof
40+
Markets with in-country
field-research capacity
14
Languages natively
staffed for fieldwork
96%
Of mandates renewed
year on year

An operating principle

Strategy without research is opinion dressed in confidence. We put the evidence in place first.

Quantitative research tells you what is happening, how often and at what scale. Qualitative research tells you why it happens, what it means to the people living it, and where it might go next. Each is incomplete without the other — and the gap between them is where most public and commercial judgments go wrong.

We design studies that close this gap. Our quantitative work is methodologically rigorous. Our qualitative work is culturally literate. Each is led by senior researchers and delivered to a standard that withstands challenge from boards, regulators and the public record.

— Evidence first. Opinion last.

Market research · five disciplines

Macroeconomic, investment, industrial, ecological, competitive. Engaged independently, or as one integrated intelligence mandate.

  1. 01

    Macroeconomic Analysis

    A continuous, evidence-led read of the economic environment in which you operate. We track growth, inflation, monetary and fiscal policy, balance-of-payments dynamics, currency movements and capital flows — translating the data into the operating conditions you actually face.

    What we monitor

    • GDP growth, output composition and structural shifts
    • Inflation, interest-rate policy and central-bank guidance
    • Fiscal balance, sovereign debt and credit-rating trajectory
    • Trade flows, current-account balance and currency dynamics
    • Labour markets, productivity and demographic pressure

    What you receive

    • Quarterly macro outlook with three-scenario projections
    • Country-risk and operating-environment briefings
    • Custom dashboards aligned to your exposure footprint
    • Senior economist briefings for board or committee use
    Typical engagement

    6 – 12 month retainer · always-on intelligence layer

  2. 02

    Investment Attractiveness Assessment

    A composite, evidence-based score of how attractive a country, sector or counterparty is to capital. We model macro fundamentals, institutional quality, the regulatory environment and political risk — and surface the real, not advertised, return profile of an investment.

    Dimensions scored

    • Macroeconomic stability and medium-term growth trajectory
    • Institutional strength, rule of law and contract enforcement
    • Regulatory predictability and ease of doing business
    • Tax regime, capital controls and repatriation freedom
    • Political stability, security environment and policy continuity

    What you receive

    • Quantitative attractiveness index with weighting transparency
    • Comparative benchmarking against peer jurisdictions
    • Sector-specific overlays for prioritised industries
    • Investment-committee grade report with senior sign-off
    Typical engagement

    8 – 14 weeks · board & IC-ready output

  3. 03

    Industrial Analysis

    A forensic read of a sector — its structure, value chain, competitive dynamics, supply–demand balance and pricing economics. We map the players, the margins and the choke points, so strategy, M&A and capital-allocation decisions are made on the industry's actual mechanics, not its surface narrative.

    What we map

    • Value-chain decomposition from input to end-market
    • Competitive structure: concentration, entry barriers, incumbents
    • Supply–demand balance, capacity utilisation and price formation
    • Cost-structure economics and margin pools by segment
    • Technology, regulation and demand drivers of structural change

    What you receive

    • Sector deep-dive with quantitative and qualitative evidence
    • Competitor benchmarking matrix and positioning map
    • M&A target identification with shortlist rationale
    • Quarterly sector tracker with senior analyst commentary
    Typical engagement

    10 – 16 weeks · primary + secondary research

  4. 04

    Ecological & ESG Analysis

    A rigorous assessment of environmental, social and governance exposure — physical climate risk, transition risk, regulatory exposure and stakeholder pressure. We turn the ESG conversation from disclosure theatre into a usable map of where value is created, preserved or quietly lost.

    What we assess

    • Physical climate risk by asset, geography and time horizon
    • Transition risk from carbon pricing and regulatory tightening
    • Environmental liabilities, remediation costs and stranded assets
    • Social license to operate and stakeholder pressure mapping
    • Governance quality, board structure and disclosure integrity

    What you receive

    • Material ESG-risk heatmap by business unit and geography
    • Scenario-tested transition-risk financial modelling
    • Independent ratings reconciliation and gap analysis
    • Annual ESG materiality refresh with board-grade reporting
    Typical engagement

    12 – 18 weeks · aligned with TCFD & CSRD standards

  5. 05

    Competitive & Market Intelligence

    Continuous intelligence on the competitive environment — competitor strategy, pricing moves, M&A signals, regulatory shifts, customer switching behaviour and emerging entrants. Findings are translated into management actions within hours, not weeks.

    What we track

    • Competitor strategy, pricing, product and channel moves
    • M&A signals, partnership activity and capital raises
    • Regulatory and policy shifts affecting market structure
    • Customer sentiment, switching behaviour and NPS movement
    • Technology, IP and patent activity of named competitors

    What you receive

    • Daily executive intelligence brief with trend anomalies
    • Quarterly competitor deep-dives with senior commentary
    • Custom war-gaming exercises and scenario rehearsals
    • Ad-hoc rapid-response research on emerging threats
    Typical engagement

    Rolling 12-month mandate · always-on intelligence layer

Social research · two traditions, one evidence base

Quantitative tells you how many, how often, at what scale. Qualitative tells you why, what it means, and where it might go.

Tradition I

Quantitative Research

Structured, statistically defensible research designed to measure — at scale, with known precision, and across the populations that matter. We design instruments, draw samples, manage fieldwork and analyse results to the standard required by regulators, investment committees and the public record.

Survey & fieldwork methods

  • National probability surveys — face-to-face, telephone (CATI), in-home (CAPI)
  • Online surveys (CAWI) with probability-based and panel-recruited samples
  • Mobile and SMS-based fieldwork in low-connectivity markets
  • Mixed-mode designs to maximise coverage and minimise non-response bias
  • Longitudinal cohort tracking and time-series panel research
  • Door-to-door enumeration with strict quality-control protocols

Data & analytics methods

  • Consumer and B2B panel research with behavioural data integration
  • Social-media listening, sentiment analysis and digital-behavioural analytics
  • Transactional, loyalty-card and CRM-data analytics
  • Conjoint, MaxDiff, TURF and discrete-choice experimental designs
  • Segmentation, cluster analysis and persona modelling
  • Brand, advertising and campaign tracking with proprietary norms
  • Forecasting, nowcasting and predictive modelling with confidence intervals
  • A/B and multivariate testing with rigorous statistical design
Tradition II

Qualitative Research

Depth-led research designed to understand — meaning, motivation, cultural context and the language in which people actually describe their own experience. We recruit carefully, moderate with discipline and interpret with the cultural literacy that local meaning requires.

Direct-contact methods

  • In-depth interviews (IDI) — face-to-face, remote and asynchronous
  • Focus groups (FGD) — traditional, mini-groups and online bulletin-boards
  • Ethnographic studies and participant observation in natural settings
  • Expert and elite interviews with sector or policy authorities
  • Diary studies and longitudinal journals for behaviour-in-context
  • Paired and triad interviews for sensitive or relational subjects

Observation & cultural methods

  • Netnography — ethnographic study of online communities and platforms
  • Mystery shopping, service-quality and compliance audits
  • Customer-journey immersion and touchpoint ethnography
  • Semiotic and cultural analysis of visual, verbal and material codes
  • Content, media and discourse analysis of public conversation
  • Case-study and biographical research for grounded theory
  • Co-creation workshops and participatory design sessions

Most mandates are mixed-methods by design — a quantitative spine (a national survey, a panel or a behavioural dataset) with a qualitative layer (in-depth interviews, ethnography or expert input), sequenced so each method informs the next. The output is an evidence base that withstands challenge from any audience you face.

How we work

Five stages, applied to every study — whether it lasts a fortnight or a decade.

  1. Frame

    Research questions, hypotheses, decision frame and the methodological choices that will govern the study end to end.

  2. Design

    Sampling frame, instruments, protocol, ethics clearance and the operational infrastructure to deliver fieldwork at quality.

  3. Field

    Primary data collection by senior-led, in-country teams — quantitative or qualitative, executed to the agreed protocol.

  4. Analyse

    Statistical modelling, qualitative interpretation and triangulation — with every claim traced to the evidence beneath it.

  5. Deliver

    Board-grade reporting, executive briefings and an evidence base that survives scrutiny from any audience you face.

Why this practice

Senior judgment, applied directly. Junior hands, never on the fieldwork.

i.

Partner-led, end to end

Every study is led by a senior researcher with operational experience inside government, corporate strategy or live campaigns — accountable personally for the output.

ii.

In-country fieldwork, not white-labelled

Native field teams across Europe, MENA, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Gulf — coordinated centrally, executed locally, never outsourced to a third party.

iii.

Methodologically independent

No ratings-agenda, no league-table positioning, no conflict with a media-buying sister — our findings belong to you and are delivered to that standard.

iv.

Mixed methods as default

Quantitative and qualitative sequenced in a single design — so the numbers carry meaning, and the meaning carries weight with the people it must convince.

Begin

Tell us what decision you are facing.
The first conversation is confidential and carries no obligation.

Request a research consultation

Direct+44 20 0000 0000

Secureresearch@practice.example

London · Riyadh · BrusselsBy appointment only

Made on
Tilda