Underlying everything we do is a set of guiding principles that have emerged from our work for a range of clients and in a variety of areas:
Our approach is:
effective: we design our methodology not just to achieve a specific result but also to open up channels of communication, build community round the work, and create the conditions for change
efficient: we’re good at getting the most out of any given intervention. For example, we regularly use workshops simultaneously to collect evidence, to build relationships between participants and to begin to change mindsets
straightforward: we keep projects as simple as possible both in terms of the approach we recommend and in terms of how we talk about it
rigorous: we use a range of tried and tested tools and techniques (a number of which we’ve developed ourselves) to capture ‘hard’ data and also an impressionistic picture of what’s gone on and how people feel about it
intelligent: we are thoughtful in the way we combine the tools and techniques, ensuring that our chosen mix makes good sense intellectually and also is appropriate to the client and the situation
subtle: we recognise from experience that there are times when we need to be visible, to be seen to be driving a project. And there are times when we need to operate in the background, letting our clients take the limelight
generous: we do our best to convey and document our methods in such a way that they can pass over to the client for people to start doing it for themselves