Our Methodology
We apply strategic consulting techniques and the scientific method to our studies. With rigour and excellence as our guiding principles, we conduct data collection, thesis demonstrations and the presentation of results.
In Volo Veritas we know that it is not enough to just be right. The result must also be presented using sound logic, in a simple and accessible way. This will permit those who are not aviation experts and who know little about the case to quickly understand the nature of the conclusions. In this way, the conclusions will not only be understood, but – and much more importantly – they will also be accepted and embraced by the reader.
A clear presentation of facts and reasoning is the best way to achieve positive acceptation of a report. This requires an excellent understanding of who the reader is, and what the final objectives for the document are.
We begin our surveys with this vision, and apply a rigorously sound methodology to its execution:
Our Methodology
We apply strategic consulting techniques and the scientific method to our studies. With rigour and excellence as our guiding principles, we conduct data collection, thesis demonstrations and the presentation of results.
In Volo Veritas we know that it is not enough to just be right. The result must also be presented using sound logic, in a simple and accessible way. This will permit those who are not aviation experts and who know little about the case to quickly understand the nature of the conclusions. In this way, the conclusions will not only be understood, but – and much more importantly – they will also be accepted and embraced by the reader.
A clear presentation of facts and reasoning is the best way to achieve positive acceptation of a report. This requires an excellent understanding of who the reader is, and what the final objectives for the document are.
We begin our surveys with this vision, and apply a rigorously sound methodology to its execution:
STEP 1
Data (Not Opinions)
We build our surveys on verifiable data, and we quote our sources. A solid conclusion must be based on true and incontestable data. Basing a conclusion on an opinion, and then repeating that opinion ad nauseam in order to increase its credibility, is a common malpractice. Such errors are easily countered by using the correct strategy.
“In God we trust.
All others, must bring data.”Dr. W. Edwards Deming
“An opinion should be the result of thought, not a substitute for it.”
Jef Mallett
“Without data you´re just another person with an opinion.”
Dr. W. Edwards Deming
step 1
Data (Not Opinions)
We build our surveys on verifiable data, and we quote our sources. A solid conclusion must be based on true and incontestable data. Basing a conclusion on an opinion, and then repeating that opinion ad nauseam in order to increase its credibility, is a common malpractice. Such errors are easily countered by using the correct strategy.
“In God we trust.
All others, must bring data.”Dr. W. Edwards Deming
“An opinion should be the result of thought, not a substitute for it.”
Jef Mallett
“Without data you´re just another person with an opinion.”
Dr. W. Edwards Deming
STEP 2
Rank and Relevance
The submission of massive amounts of disorderly data, even if each data point in itself is correct and demonstrates some aspect of the truth, can be useless if the receiver is unable to filter, read and understand that same data. The truth will in fact be obscured by the data, rather than revealed by it.
As part of the research process, data must be aggregated to the report in an organized way. The results should be introduced through partial statements that are easy to understand. This is key to building a solid thesis and reaching conclusions.
In the survey or expert report, we organize and rank the data so that its introduction is sequential and it appears in the relevant context. Readers assimilate the information progressively, feeling accompanied from the very first stages, right through to the point where they are encouraged to reach the final conclusions by themselves.
“Knowing what to leave out is just as important as knowing what to focus on.”
Warren Buffett
“99.99% of everything is noise.”
Michael Saylor
“Information is not knowledge.”
Albert Einstein
step 2
Rank and Relevance
The submission of massive amounts of disorderly data, even if each data point in itself is correct and demonstrates some aspect of the truth, can be useless if the receiver is unable to filter, read and understand that same data. The truth will in fact be obscured by the data, rather than revealed by it.
As part of the research process, data must be aggregated to the report in an organized way. The results should be introduced through partial statements that are easy to understand. This is key to building a solid thesis and reaching conclusions.
In the survey or expert report, we organize and rank the data so that its introduction is sequential and it appears in the relevant context. Readers assimilate the information progressively, feeling accompanied from the very first stages, right through to the point where they are encouraged to reach the final conclusions by themselves.
“Knowing what to leave out is just as important as knowing what to focus on.”
Warren Buffett
“99.99% of everything is noise.”
Michael Saylor
“Information is not knowledge.”
Albert Einstein
STEP 3
Research
A detailed review of the data can initially point in several directions, suggesting different lines of reasoning. A well-directed investigation will provide additional evidence, arguments and data, which will either confirm, support or refute these lines of reasoning. Sometimes, additional data will be required, or third-party studies will be considered. It may be necessary to carry out physical tests, experimental demonstrations, or further calculations.
The result of the investigation will be achieved by including additional data and evidence that supports the final conclusion. Alongside the original data, this will enable us to build, defend and demonstrate a sound thesis.
“Investigation may be linked to the long months of pregnancy, and solving a problem to the day of birth. To investigate a problem is, indeed, to solve it.”
Mao Sedong
“Condemnation before investigation is the highest form of ignorance.”
Albert Einstein
“What makes the desert beautiful,’ said the little prince, ‘is that somewhere it hides a well…”
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
“If we have the truth, it cannot be harmed by investigation. If we have not the truth, it ought to be harmed.”
J.Reuben Clark
“When you have eliminated all which is impossible, then whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.”
A.Conan Doyle
“No man can hope to find out the truth without investigation.”
George F.Richards
step 3
Research
A detailed review of the data can initially point in several directions, suggesting different lines of reasoning. A well-directed investigation will provide additional evidence, arguments and data, which will either confirm, support or refute these lines of reasoning. Sometimes, additional data will be required, or third-party studies will be considered. It may be necessary to carry out physical tests, experimental demonstrations, or further calculations.
The result of the investigation will be achieved by including additional data and evidence that supports the final conclusion. Alongside the original data, this will enable us to build, defend and demonstrate a sound thesis.
“Investigation may be linked to the long months of pregnancy, and solving a problem to the day of birth. To investigate a problem is, indeed, to solve it.”
Mao Sedong
“Condemnation before investigation is the highest form of ignorance.”
Albert Einstein
“What makes the desert beautiful,’ said the little prince, ‘is that somewhere it hides a well…”
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
“If we have the truth, it cannot be harmed by investigation. If we have not the truth, it ought to be harmed.”
J.Reuben Clark
“When you have eliminated all which is impossible, then whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.”
A.Conan Doyle
“No man can hope to find out the truth without investigation.”
George F.Richards
STEP 4
Thesis Building
The identification of a thesis requires a high degree of imagination and creativity: thinking out-of-the-box permits the surveyor to see and understand that which nobody else has realized. The best conclusions are identified through the unbiased analysis of gathered evidence and data, and these results are sometimes far from what intuition had initially indicated.
The thesis will begin with the data and investigation results, and will be built upon a sound logic that permits the reader to easily reach the final conclusion. The less demonstration a thesis requires, the stronger it is. The result is then considered “obvious” by the reader, without the need for overwhelming quantities of evidence to prove it.
“Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.”
Albert Einstein
“If everyone is thinking alike, then no one is thinking.”
Benjamin Franklin
“The task is not so much to see what no one has seen, but to think what nobody has yet thought, about that which everybody sees.”
Erwin Schrödinger
“Take time to deliberate, but when the time for action comes, stop thinking and go in.”
Napoleon Bonaparte
Step 4
Thesis Building
The identification of a thesis requires a high degree of imagination and creativity: thinking out-of-the-box permits the surveyor to see and understand that which nobody else has realized. The best conclusions are identified through the unbiased analysis of gathered evidence and data, and these results are sometimes far from what intuition had initially indicated.
The thesis will begin with the data and investigation results, and will be built upon a sound logic that permits the reader to easily reach the final conclusion. The less demonstration a thesis requires, the stronger it is. The result is then considered “obvious” by the reader, without the need for overwhelming quantities of evidence to prove it.
“Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.”
Albert Einstein
“If everyone is thinking alike, then no one is thinking.”
Benjamin Franklin
“The task is not so much to see what no one has seen, but to think what nobody has yet thought, about that which everybody sees.”
Erwin Schrödinger
“Take time to deliberate, but when the time for action comes, stop thinking and go in.”
Napoleon Bonaparte
The presentation and defence of a survey can be delivered in two possible formats:
STEP 5 | Presentation and Defence
The Technical Report
The Technical Report or Survey is the first format. This is a text document which presents the facts, the data, and the thesis along with the final results or conclusions, and will be signed by the author (associated aeronautical engineer and commercial pilot). The wording will avoid unnecessary technicalities. It will be simple, clear, and typically addressed to a reader from outside the aviation sector. When technical concepts or acronyms are required, these will be introduced, explained and defined. When accuracy permits, parallels with more well-known sectors (e.g., the automobile industry) will be used, to help promote understanding and acceptance of messages that might otherwise be illusive.
The main goal of the report will be to encourage readers to reach the final conclusion by themselves, before the writer has articulated it. The conclusion then becomes an intrinsic part of the readers’ knowledge, and is henceforth almost impossible to refute.
“Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it’s worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains.”
Steve Jobs
“A truth, an insight, which you have slowly and laboriously puzzled out by thinking for yourself could easily have been found already written in a book; but it is a hundred times more valuable if you have arrived at it by thinking for yourself.”
Arthur Schopenhauer
“A child of five could understand this. Send someone to fetch a child of five.”
Groucho Marx
“If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.”
Albert Einstein
“Writing is the art of thinking clearly on paper.”
Julian Shapiro
step 5 | Presentation and Defence
The Oral Presentation and Sworn Statement
The second format is a declaration or sworn statement in a court of law. The author of a survey may be summoned to testify in a trial or hearing, when their report is considered relevant by the judge or interested parties. The consultant / author of the survey will reaffirm the content and conclusions of the survey, and will answer any questions from the judge or interested parties. Furthermore, if requested, the report can be adapted into either a self-explanatory slideshow (for use without the presence of the consultant), or a graphic slide show, which will aid the consultant’s oral presentation.
This format can also be useful during preparations for a trial, and during negotiations between parties.
“We all know that light travels faster than sound. That’s why certain people appear bright until you hear them speak.”
Albert Einstein
“The most powerful person in business is the storyteller. The storyteller sets the vision, values, and agenda of an entire generation that is to come.”
Steve Jobs
“Those who know, do.
Those that understand, teach.”Aristotle
The presentation and defence of a survey can be delivered in two possible formats:
Step 5 | Presentation and Defence
The Technical Report
The Technical Report or Survey is the first format. This is a text document which presents the facts, the data, and the thesis along with the final results or conclusions, and will be signed by the author (associated aeronautical engineer and commercial pilot). The wording will avoid unnecessary technicalities. It will be simple, clear, and typically addressed to a reader from outside the aviation sector. When technical concepts or acronyms are required, these will be introduced, explained and defined. When accuracy permits, parallels with more well-known sectors (e.g., the automobile industry) will be used, to help promote understanding and acceptance of messages that might otherwise be illusive.
The main goal of the report will be to encourage readers to reach the final conclusion by themselves, before the writer has articulated it. The conclusion then becomes an intrinsic part of the readers’ knowledge, and is henceforth almost impossible to refute.
“Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it’s worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains.”
Steve Jobs
“A truth, an insight, which you have slowly and laboriously puzzled out by thinking for yourself could easily have been found already written in a book; but it is a hundred times more valuable if you have arrived at it by thinking for yourself.”
Arthur Schopenhauer
“A child of five could understand this. Send someone to fetch a child of five.”
Groucho Marx
“If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.”
Albert Einstein
“Writing is the art of thinking clearly on paper.”
Julian Shapiro
STEP 5 | Presentation and Defence
The Oral Presentation and Sworn Statement
The second format is a declaration or sworn statement in a court of law. The author of a survey may be summoned to testify in a trial or hearing, when their report is considered relevant by the judge or interested parties. The consultant / author of the survey will reaffirm the content and conclusions of the survey, and will answer any questions from the judge or interested parties. Furthermore, if requested, the report can be adapted into either a self-explanatory slideshow (for use without the presence of the consultant), or a graphic slide show, which will aid the consultant’s oral presentation.
This format can also be useful during preparations for a trial, and during negotiations between parties.
“We all know that light travels faster than sound. That’s why certain people appear bright until you hear them speak.”
Albert Einstein
“The most powerful person in business is the storyteller. The storyteller sets the vision, values, and agenda of an entire generation that is to come.”
Steve Jobs
“Those who know, do.
Those that understand, teach.”Aristotle