Stories and ideas, exploring the challenges and ethics of the intelligence sector, and how we can learn from it.
While writing my novels, I peered through the secret windows of the intelligence profession to understand the experts behind today’s operations. I discovered young professionals, struggling to cope with a dangerously changing world, and searching for hope. There are stories here to help them.
I also found ideas that can be reused in commercial projects, to help handle complexity and unknowns.
Latest short stories
- “Fightback” – manage a technology failure – a case studyA technology failure. This is a case study of a quality assurance manager facing his worst nightmare, and how he reacted. It’s an example of intelligence-based project management.
- “Today will be different” – how to achieve chaos resolutionChaos surrounds Libby’s work. She dreams of order. Then a new manager arrives and claims he has a magic wand. … This is story of a chaos resolution.
- Sweet and Sour Chaos – escape from an intelligence agency to industryAn intelligence analyst tries to find a “purpose” after escaping from the “Agency” to industry. Konstantina must save her colleagues from disaster. … The story illustrates challenges of taking intelligence practices and adding them to project management in industry.
- Drumhead Trial – an example, and 6 ways to fight it“Drumhead Trial”. An intelligence researcher is accused of incompetence when investigative journalists outsmart him. The story shows the danger of being a scapegoat – in almost any job.
Featured themes
Take pride in professionalism,
for any discipline
- Work to high standards
- Commit to continual learning
- Help others to achieve their dreams
Use intelligence-led project management
to control projects with extreme risk
- Build an effective team
- Manage unknown unknowns
- Protect the business
Look at the impact of secret intelligence,
and how to provide a duty of care
- Watch for innocents touched by your activities
- Be wary of the impact of extreme secrecy
- Continually build on public trust
About Adrian Cowderoy
I am entirely independent of the intelligence services, and always have been.
My fiction writing is inspired by the struggle of young professionals to make a better world.
My application of intelligence techniques to project risk management, is to help us cope with extreme challenges.
— Adrian Cowderoy, story-teller, innovator and Chartered IT Professional
Story topics
Bias Cleverness Confidence Despair Failures Fear Hope Individuality Keeping up Leadership Morality Overload Recognition Sanity Self-discovery
