International affairs professionals conduct open source intelligence (OSINT) in two distinct ways. Neither matches the methodology of a traditional OSINT investigator.
This post compares the methodologies to help individuals and organizations determine what OSINT tools and training meet their needs.
Two different types of international affairs OSINT
In the International Affairs Professional Development Course, IAThinker describes the two types of research professionals conduct on the job. The first type is intended to answer leaderships’ questions—what a new professional assumes is the way they become a valued member on the team. The goal of this type of research is to “give the leader what they want,” because the professional will try to answer their question verbatim and on the leader’s timeline.
The second type of research is intended to make the first type easier and more enjoyable. International affairs professionals must stay up-to-speed on their country/topic and continually deepen their expertise to add even more value on their boss’s quick-turn timeline. In the professional development course, IAThinker teaches strategies to avoid getting caught up in the feigned emergency of everyone’s questions, which leads professionals to superficially answer and eventually feel burnt out.
That’s why the goal of the second type of research is to “give them what they need.” While leadership typically won’t ask practitioners to devote time to research deeper questions—because this would acknowledge the leader’s own tunnel vision, deeper research is what they need you to do to help them avoid surprise, identify opportunities, and lead strategically.
Fundamental similarities and differences
International affairs professionals have a shared mindset with traditional full-time OSINT investigators, but the similarities stop there. The ways to demonstrate the mindset in each industry are different not only because the types of OSINT are different, but also because the respective professionals have different roles.
For international affairs professionals, they:
1. Specialize in a country/topic with no limitations in the information sources they can or should leverage on a daily basis.
2. Conduct OSINT for their employer. They aren’t external contractors who can negotiate timelines.
3. Need to conduct OSINT as one part of their job, with other parts unrelated to research.
Why call the two types of international affairs research “OSINT?”
In the international affairs knowledge industry (IAKI), practitioners use the words “research” and “OSINT” interchangeably. With renewed attention on OSINT, it’s good for international affairs practitioners to remember (or learn) that what they do to be valued and fulfilled on the job includes conducting OSINT.
International affairs professionals are experts on their country/region/topic and know where to find the best sources of information across mainstream and social media, public databases, satellite imagery, forums, code repositories, academic papers, and the open, deep, or dark web.
They turn this information into OSINT after they clean, organize, and combine it together for timely, relevant, convincing, and actionable insights.
Side-by-side comparison of methodologies
Comparing each step in a traditional OSINT investigator’s and international affairs professional’s respective OSINT processes will help the ladder group seek out tailored OSINT training.
One of the most detailed descriptions of an OSINT investigator’s process is from the well-known Dutch OSINT tradecraft practitioner and teacher, Nico Dekens. Nico teaches a repeatable fourteen-step process for full-time OSINT investigators to use in each investigation.
In the chart below, IAThinker has enumerated Nico’s Investigative Crumb Map, and the two types of OSINT taught in the International Affairs Professional Development Course. Notice the differences in the clarity of the initial question and the length of time/number of steps to complete.
Also notice that both industries rely on “tools “and “keywords,” but different ones. International affairs professionals should use the three free “tools” called the Crossthink Process, Authoritative Source Checklist, or Technical Expertise Builder to get thorough, defensible, and cross-disciplinary insights, respectively. These methods leverage information from multiple different open sources, versus a tool tailored for one type of information or database.
Keywords are integral to each method, including steps to refine and update them. IAThinker teaches how even non-native speakers can identify the foreign language keywords based on how native speakers describe the topic, cross-cultural preferences, and best practices in de-biasing.
Nico refers to keywords as “pivot points,” saying that “The research question distills into keywords, then they are fed into tools.” Given that Nico is Dutch and not a native English speaker, the tool he recommended counts as a foreign language keyword tool but it only works with English.
| Nico’s Investigative Crumb Map | IAThinker’s Give Them What They Want | IAThinker’s Give Them What They Need | ||
| 1. Specific answerable question | 1. Usually vague question on quick-turn timeline | 1. The topic your boss should ask but hasn’t, or a question you wish you’d answered better, or your weekly 2-hour deep research (only general direction, no specific question yet) | ||
| 2. Do HW on topic | 2. Narrow question based on boss’s and counterpart’s calendar and interests | 2. Intentionally look for counterpart successes or failures in 8 Basics (the opposite of the dominant narrative in your country/company) | ||
| 3. Main question needs sub-questions | 3. Select a tool: Crossthink Process; Authoritative Source Checklist; Technical Expertise Builder; (or another from online course) | 3. Gather foreign language keywords, identify keyword patterns, explore why | ||
| 4. Determine client and other information sources | 4. Gather foreign language keywords, identify keyword patterns (if time, explore why) | 4. Only now determine a deeper question you might be able to answer based on the information you found across multiple sources and information types | ||
| 5. Gather keywords | 5. Write key judgments | 5. Quick search and collect | ||
| 6. Choose tools | 6. Try to get feedback (situation dependent: supervisor/ editor/ colleague) | 6. Refine foreign language keywords, identify patterns, explore why | ||
| 7. Quick scan (30-60 mins) | 7. Practice saying key judgments out loud multiple times. Edit. | 7. Second quick search with new keywords and collect | ||
| 8. Review quick scan (do steps 1-5 again?) | 8. Send report or deliver brief (be prepared for rescheduling, cancelling, uncomfortable environment) | 8. Review collection in native and foreign language; identify poor machine translations, refine | ||
| 9. Gather information. Exhaust every resource. Get extra confirmation | 9. Based on information, change, update, broaden, refine deeper question (it’s not about what you want to find, it’s about what the information says) | |||
| 10. Refine (clean, tag, organize) and analyze (connect dots, determine unknowns) | 10. Organize the information by theme or sub-question | |||
| 11. Review steps 1-8 | 11. Start describing the information organized by theme, limit analytic judgement | |||
| 12. Take time to write (Include most dull and unpopular piece. Include what you didn’t find and competing hypothesis) | 12. Now that all your data is clearly described and objectively represented, let it rest. Next day, reread and further refine the deeper question you can answer | |||
| 13. Write and let report rest before sending. Re-read, get feedback. | 13. Decide on the article title | |||
| 14. Send report. (When client has follow-up questions, repeat steps1-14. | 14. Add linking sentences and additional paragraphs with analysis to the descriptions. Include missing information, competing hypothesis, why this information matters to your boss (not current hot news) | |||
| 15. Let report rest. Re-read out loud. Edit. | ||||
| 16. Send for review, or use in substantive email, or use as talking points in formal or informal meetings (be prepared for rescheduling, cancelling, uncomfortable environment, zero thank yous [but they’ll come]) |
Shutdown
As an international affairs professional, IAThinker provides many free OSINT tools tailored for the job. Why? Because we have a deep understanding of how important it is for an international affairs professional to be objective, creative, and timely.
Understanding what kind of OSINT a full-time international affairs professional conducts—and why it differs from traditional methods—is essential before investing in new tools or training. IAThinker uses the methods we teach. See positive reviews on the International Affairs Thinker LLC website.
