Finance Transformation Intelligence › Research Formats

Research Formats

Research Formats

Not every piece of research should look the same. We publish in ten formats, each with a defined job, reader and evidence bar — so you know in two seconds what kind of thinking you are about to get, and we are committed in public to the standard each one must meet.

IndependentEvidence-backedReviewed Jul 2026Methodology
FormatWhat it doesWordsThe bar it must clear
Perspective
CFO
Take an argued position on a genuinely contested question.1,200–2,000The argument must survive the strongest counter-case — which is stated in the piece, in good faith.
Framework
CFO · transformation lead
Give a reusable way to think about a recurring class of decision.1,800–3,000The model is applied to at least two concrete situations, and states when it does not apply.
Playbook
Transformation lead
Show how to actually run a specific change, in sequence.2,500–4,500Prerequisites, sequence and failure modes are all explicit — not just the happy path.
Research Brief
Analyst · CFO
Report original analysis of a dataset or evidence base.1,500–2,500Method, sample and limitations published. No claim beyond what the data supports.
Executive Guide
CFO
Bring a CFO from zero to a defensible decision on one topic.3,000–5,000Full two-layer structure; every recommendation traced to cited evidence.
Field Guide
Controller · FP&A lead
Give a practitioner what they need to implement.2,500–4,000Concrete to the level of steps, roles and checkpoints.
Case Analysis
CFO · transformation lead
Extract the transferable lesson from a documented transformation.1,500–2,500Publicly documented cases only — never an invented, composite or anonymised client.
Benchmark Insight
CFO
Explain what a benchmark distribution means, and what to do about it.900–1,500Peer set, method and as-of date always shown.
Forecast
CFO
Make a dated, falsifiable claim about where the function is going.1,200–2,000States a resolution date and what would prove it wrong — and is scored publicly on that date.
Market Signal
CFO
Read an external development for its consequence to the finance function.700–1,200Reported fact and our inference are labelled separately, always.
We publish this standard openly because it is the clearest statement of what we will and will not do. Two commitments are worth naming: a Perspective must argue the strongest case against its own conclusion, and a Forecast must state what would prove it wrong — and is scored publicly on its resolution date. Our editorial standards →

What we do not publish

No generic AI content

"AI will transform finance" is not a claim. Every piece is specific to a finance process, a decision or a control.

No listicles

"Seven trends" is a container, not an argument. If the items have no through-line, there is no article.

No invented cases

No composite or anonymised clients presented as real. Case analysis uses publicly documented transformations only.

No vendor as subject

Vendors appear as examples of an implementation option, never as the answer. Assessment of vendors lives in Software Intelligence.

Executive Finance Assessment

Benchmark your finance organisation.

Research explains the market; the Executive Finance Assessment personalises the decision. Before you commit budget to software, consulting or transformation, benchmark your finance organisation and see where the highest-impact opportunities are.

Begins with a free Executive Brief — about five minutes, anonymous, no account. Full assessment €59, one-time. It complements the research; it does not replace it.