Alaco

Special situations

We serve our clients in many different ways and often answer questions that do not fit neatly into any category. Our network, our ability to gather relevant intelligence and over a decade of experience help us deliver meaningful results, whatever the brief. From complex, multi-jurisdictional investigations to the most sensitive private matter, we assemble a team and determine a strategy appropriate to the task.

Case Study

We were recently asked to design from scratch a training programme for a sensitive government department in an African country. The department wished to understand how private sector organisations would go about conducting investigations into suspicions of graft before there was any law enforcement involvement. Alaco agreed to develop a training programme that pulled together best current investigative practice in a way that a government organisation could adapt to its own needs.

We designed a two week course for a group of students with wide ranging experience and delivered it in country. The highlights of the programme were:

• case studies on investigative techniques used to good effect in other jurisdictions;
• modules on securing open source materials that government departments sometimes overlook;
• contributions from subject matter experts on how best to work with international agencies;
• lectures on how to collect information that can be converted readily into evidence;
• an exercise with role-players on handling and debriefing live sources.

The role-player wash ups saluted effective student performances and presented suggestions for improving elicitation techniques. Revision tests throughout the programme reinforced learning and flagged up areas where extra instruction was needed. Post course feedback from management suggested that the participants’ expectations had been exceeded.