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Ten things you must know when covering the business beat
By Glenn Lewin, investigative business research specialist
The following are the 10 techniques I use to pry “hard-to-get” information from both privately-held and publicly-traded businesses.
1. Work from the outside in; peeling back the “layers of the onion”
— The most solid and reliable information is obtained (and verified) through a variety of sources
— When pursuing information on a specific company, first learn about the company from outside sources (such as industry competitors); make initial calls into the company to customer service and sales personnel.
— Work to put together as many pieces of the puzzle as possible before contacting key company decision makers.
— Remember, when dealing with a company spokesman, just because you ask questions doesn’t mean they have to respond. On the other hand, just because they tell you “no” doesn’t mean you should stop digging or contacting others in the company.
2. Conduct documents and public records searches, looking for:
— Past litigation of the business owner or officers (current and previous jurisdictions)
— Workman’s comp. claim
— Contractor’s liens / lawsuits
— Property records (to determine building ownership)
— Incorporation records: Who are the company’s registered agents? In what state is the corporation registered? When was it incorporated?
— OSHA records
— EPA and state equivalents
— Criminal records (current and previous jurisdictions)
— Business license records (usually located in the county records office)
3. Develop multiple sources within the target company
— Constantly look for fresh sources; it’s a mistake to continually tap the same sources
— If the company is large enough, seek out sources from other locations
— Know who in the organization has information and what information they have (product managers, marketing managers, R&D engineers, test engineers, plant managers / plant supervisors, purchasing managers, and logistics managers).
4. Seek information sources from outside the company:
— Personnel recruiters (headhunters)
— Association directors / managers
— Industry consultants
— Former (or retired) employees of the company you are researching (especially anyone from the sales or marketing departments)
— Trade publication writers/editors
— Chamber of commerce, local business networking groups
5. Become familiar with the company’s physical location and business activity
— Does the physical property match what management says it its primary business? [If, for example, the business claims to be a distributor, but operates out of a small office, is it really just a mail-drop operation posing as a stocking distributor?]
— If the employer is large enough, take notice of the normal ebb and flow of the business. If the employee parking lot appears empty, does this mean layoffs or furloughs? If it’s a manufacturing facility and a substantially large number of finished goods are sitting in the yard, what might this mean?
6. Generate referrals — both from inside and outside the company
— Managers or key decision-makers are often more accessible if approached with a referral. Sources for referrals inside the company are often obtained from customer service supervisors or managers, sales reps or sales managers (these individuals are relatively easy to reach). Sources for referrals from outside the company may include trade association personnel or industry consultants. The key idea here is that key company personnel may be more easily reached with a referral.
7. Employ investigative interviewing techniques
— Build bridges by looking for people and interests you might have in common (remember the theory that we are all connected by no more than six degrees of separation)
— Approach interviews focused on the specific information you are looking to obtain
— To the extent possible, keep interviews conversational and low key; avoid coming off as an interrogator
— Understand that interviews may go in many different directions, and that can be a good thing, so long as your primary objectives are being met
— Use misdirection as an interviewing technique
— Stay alert for information that doesn’t seem to fit or to make sense, based on your knowledge and experience.
— Use open-ended questions whenever possible; in general, avoid questions that call for a “yes / no” response.
8. Leverage information / trade information
— As more information is developed and the puzzle pieces fall into place, it becomes possible to use what you know to obtain still more information.
— Understand that information is not a one-way street. Be willing to share information with your sources; it creates trust, costs nothing and demonstrates that you are thinking of their needs as well as your own
9. Know who with whom your target company does business
— Important information may be obtained from the customers and vendors of your target company
10. Adopt and maintain the proper attitude
— The best investigators are open-minded, diligent, thorough, creative and — above all — persistent.
About Glenn Lewin
With over 20 years experience, Glenn Lewin is an accomplished freelance writer, reporter and investigative journalist. In addition to producing articles and reports for publication in magazines, newspapers and the Web, he has authored two books on the subject of business reporting: The Business Reporter's Handbook (2002) and Covering Business (co-authored with Robert Reed, 2005).
Glenn holds an M.A. in Industrial Counseling & Psychology (1992, with honors) from Northeastern Illinois University, a B.A. in English Literature (1978, also with honors) from Monmouth College (Illinois), and a Certificate in Applied Statistics and Data Analysis from the Bradford-Gibson Institute of Management (2005).
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Jeff South was state editor and database editor at the Austin American-Statesman before heading to academia in 1997 under the mistaken impression he’d have summers off. He is an associate professor in the School of Mass Communications at Virginia Commonwealth University, where he teaches news writing, legislative reporting, communications technology and media ethics. South has served as a trainer for SPJ, IRE, AP and other organizations. He frequently conducts workshops on, and writes about, computer-assisted reporting, online journalism and media convergence. In 2003, South was awarded a fellowship from the American Society of Newspaper Editors to work at The Charlotte Observer. In 2007, he will serve a six-month Knight International Press Fellowship in Ukraine. For more than 20 years, he was a reporter and editor in Texas, Arizona and Virginia for newspapers such as the Dallas Times Herald, the Phoenix Gazette and The Virginian-Pilot. He also served two years with the U.S. Peace Corps in Morocco.
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Peck's professional experience began in 1976 as a correspondent for the Moline Daily Dispatch. After graduating with her bachelor's degree, she edited and then managed the regional Choice Magazine of the Front Range. In the mid-1980s, she edited and wrote for publications in Indiana and Delaware; she has worked for the Fort Collins Coloradoan as an editor, a columnist and writing coach and for the Rocky Mountain News as a copy editor. Peck has also worked at the Tampa Tribune's online product, Tampa Bay Online, and for Microsoft's online publication, Denver Sidewalk. Peck began free-lance work in the late 1970s and continues to do free-lance editing, writing, and public relations work.
Her research focuses on all aspects of media ethics. She received a Fulbright to teach journalism at the University of Dubrovnik in Croatia fduring spring semester 2007.
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