Blog
Here’s What’s Cooking at Proficiency1
I realize things might seem quiet on the Proficiency1 front because we haven’t been putting out a lot of blog posts or launching new courses lately, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. We’re hard at work with our instructors and partners developing and...
Analysts Should Be Strong Briefers
The ability to provide well-crafted, effectively delivered oral presentations is often a close second to being a strong analytic writer in the rank order of skills required to become a successful analyst. Unfortunately, being a great writer does not guarantee you’ll...
Meet Your Instructor: Michael Hale
Michael Hale is the instructor of Understanding China's Worldview. Michael spent 25 years as an East Asia political and security analyst at the CIA, during which he built close professional relationships with key policy officials, Intelligence Community officers, and...
Meet Your Instructor: Gina Bennett
Gina Bennett is the instructor of Ethics Fitness Training. Gina Bennett is an adjunct professor at Georgetown University, where she teaches Ethics in Intelligence and National Security Decision-Making at the School of Foreign Service. She has taught hundreds of...
Analysts Must Be Team Players
Analysts almost always function as part of a team, which makes the ability to work well with others critical to any analyst’s success. “Others” here includes everyone from teammates and counterparts to editors, managers, or graphics specialists. If you’re an analyst...
Meet Your Instructor: Chris Kolenda
Chris Kolenda is the instructor of Leading Well: Six Habits That Inspire People to Contribute Their Best. Founder of the Strategic Leaders Academy, Chris helps leaders who want to lead as their best selves and build a winning team. He operates at the intersection of...
Analysts Must Be Objective
If there was a prime directive for analysts when I was at the Central Intelligence Agency, it was that we and our work had to be objective. Properly serving policymakers and the country required a personal detachment from the issues we followed. Any analyst in the...
Analysts Must Know Their Customers
Understanding your customers and their needs is critical to success as an analyst. What they care about and expect from you should always influence when and what you write and how you package it. I floundered at the start of my analytic career because I didn’t know my...
The Customer Conundrum: Analysts Must Adjust to Client Turnover
The incoming Biden administration will require analysts across the Federal Government to adjust their products for a new audience. With the change of administrations comes a change in upper-level officials who demand a steady stream of information and analysis....
Analysts Must Speak at Their Customer’s Level of Expertise
In my last blog post I urged analysts to become three-dimensional experts, and now I’m adding another critical piece of expertise-related advice: your customer’s level of expertise should be just as important as yours in driving how you present your analysis. You must...