Why these principles exist
Most organisations publish policies to signal credibility.
We publish them to define and communicate how we operate.
The problem with most advisory work
Execution fails for predictable reasons:
Incentives are misaligned
Trade-offs are hidden
Systems are ignored
Advice is shaped by commercial pressure
None of this is solved by frameworks alone (sometimes not at all).
Our position
We do not separate:
What we believe
What we publish
How we work with clients
If we were to do this, trust would collapse. Our goal is utmost trust and transparency with our clients.
What these principles are
These principles define the following:
How we produce content, both for this website and elsewhere
How we handle bias and incentives
How we respond to being wrong
How we engage with clients and readers
Our principles are operational, not aspirational.
How to read these principles
Each principles exists for a reason.
If you are:
Evaluating us as an advisor
Interpreting our content
Deciding whether to engage
How we engage with clients and readers
Then these principles tell you what you can expect in your interactions with us.
What you will not find here
You will not find:
Generic statements about excellence
Boilerplate policies
Commitments without underpinning mechanisms
If something cannot be observed in practice it is simply not included.
The system behind these principles
Behaviour follows design!
These principles are, therefore, intentional in their design.
They exist to ensure:
Advice is not shaped by hidden incentives
Content reflects real operating experience
Engagements focus on outcomes, not activity
Where this shows up
You will see these principles in:
How we challenge client assumptions
What we chose to publish… and what we chose not to publish
How we handle disagreement
When we will walk away from an engagement, or decline to engage to begin with.
Explore our principles
Click on any of the following links to explore these principles further:
These principles are only useful insofar as they are visible in how we show up and how we operate.
If do not see that, then these principles will have failed.