Senior Associate - Investigative Research

Overview 

A specialist strategic and market intelligence firm is currently seeking a Senior Associate – Investigative Researcher to join its London office.

The role is particularly well suited to journalists who enjoy the investigative side of reporting: finding information that is difficult to access, developing and interviewing sources, interrogating public records and data, substantiating allegations and turning complex evidence into clear, accurate written findings.

The firm is particularly interested in hearing from journalists and former journalists. Candidates with experience in investigative journalism, business or financial journalism, data journalism or other research-intensive reporting roles are strongly encouraged to apply.

Key Responsibilities

• Investigative due diligence on companies, management teams and counterparties
• Investigations into allegations of fraud, misconduct, corruption, governance failures and other potential concerns
• Strategic and market intelligence for investors, including investment thesis testing and competitive intelligence
• Detailed assessments of senior executives and management teams
• Public-record and data-led investigations across multiple jurisdictions
• Extensive interviews with former employees, competitors, customers, industry participants and other knowledgeable sources

You will take significant responsibility for assignments, from developing an investigative approach and identifying and developing sources through to conducting interviews, analysing findings and producing detailed written reports.

This is not a conventional desk-research role. The firm is looking for someone who is naturally investigative: able to take a difficult question, work out how to answer it, identify the right sources and evidence, follow up on interesting leads and obtain information that the client could not readily have obtained themselves.

Skills, Knowledge & Experience

• Excellent investigative and research skills
• Strong interviewing experience and the confidence to develop, question and follow up with sources
• The ability to find information that is difficult to locate through conventional research
• Experience substantiating and corroborating findings across multiple sources
• Excellent judgement when assessing the reliability, credibility and significance of information
• Exceptional written English and the ability to explain complex findings clearly and precisely
• Strong attention to detail and a rigorous approach to factual accuracy
• The ability to work independently and manage several fast-moving investigations simultaneously
• A curious, sceptical and persistent approach to research
• Experience using corporate records, financial filings, litigation records, regulatory databases, public datasets or other investigative research tools would be particularly useful.

Professional journalism experience is strongly preferred, particularly within investigative, business, financial or data journalism. The firm will also consider exceptional candidates from corporate intelligence or other investigative research backgrounds who can demonstrate similarly strong investigative, interviewing and writing skills.