Outsourcing Rapid Response Research

Your global board has asked you for information on a new legislation or competitor move, and they need the answer in just three days. Before you hit the panic button, how do you decide whether to conduct the research in-house or to outsource it to a reliable partner? What are some best practices and pitfalls?

We ask GIA’s Director of Product Management, Aleksi Grym, for his views and observations, from his experience as an analyst and strategy consultant over the last 10 years. Aleksi is an economist and Fulbright scholar.


What are some best practices in ensuring success in Rapid Response Research projects?
“In practice, the goal of Rapid Response Research is to find specific information. It won’t be feasible if the task at hand is to validate broad views or requires a consultative approach to help with strategic decisions.

Clients should choose to work with a partner who understands their ‘pain points’, so to speak. We provide Rapid Response Research to existing clients, as our previous knowledge of their industries, businesses and strategic needs is critical to a successful turn-around.

In our partnership model, our clients have access to a dedicated GIA analyst whom they can contact any time. That analyst is chosen based on previous industry expertise and over time, develops a deep understanding of each client’s business.

Ensure your partner has a specific and highly reactive process in place, one that enables them to execute certain types of tasks very swiftly, and that they are able to mobilize a large team where necessary. At GIA, this means that we often have multiple analysts around the globe working in parallel on a Rapid Response Research project, so we are practically working round the clock!

We also utilize the same portfolio of information sources as our Strategic Analysis projects, that is, access to a network of local experts and research partners in 100 countries and to all major databases and publications. In this way, we are able to maximize the chances of finding an answer to our client’s question in the shortest possible time.”


Most companies have their own information sources, why look to an external partner on such mission-critical work?
“It is of course, important to compare information sources.

GIA’s source portfolio is extremely extensive. For primary information, the GIA Network includes over 1,000 validated contacts to local and industry experts around the world, especially in the emerging markets of Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. That network is invaluable as information is generally unavailable from secondary sources. This is something our clients value highly.

For secondary information, we can access virtually every business database or publication available, including among other things, tens of thousands of news sources. A team that is trained in information retrieval systematically manages our information source portfolio. It is one of our prime assets, so we maintain and develop it accordingly.”


Should I expect the partner to present the results at my board, management or product team meeting?
“Ensure that your partner has a consultative approach in their work and works with you to identify how you would like the findings presented.

We are always happy to present and discuss the findings with our clients’ management.”


What should I expect if I have more time for Rapid Research Response?
“Ask for insights and recommendations as well.

The more time is spent, the more it is possible to address complex questions that involve a strategic consultative element. The first step in a project is about finding information, but once most information sources have been tapped, it becomes more about building insight and formulating recommendations.”


How can I contact GIA for more information?
“For more information, there is our website or our local consultants. But for existing partners who already know about and need Rapid Response Research, they can contact their GIA lead analyst directly or use their GIA Intelligence Desk, if it has been set up for that purpose.”

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