Neil Whitbread
Intelligence
professional
As a former Scotland Yard Detective, working on elite serious & organised crime teams, Neil brings a wealth of authentic and demonstrable investigative experience, combined with deep knowledge of managing intelligence-led, complex investigations and covert, confidential operations across hostile, challenging and culturally diverse environments and jurisdictions. He excels at developing and managing highly sensitive intelligence and critical risk, from an authoritative and neutral perspective.
Neil has significant firsthand experience, as an expert interviewing practitioner, in conducting effective face-to-face dialogue and engagement interviews, including fact-finding, intelligence debriefs, witness testimony and character references. Complimented by excellent soft skills to build rapport, garner trust, and develop relationships, he knows how to negotiate potential conflicts and to elicit key information, with sensitivity, tact, and discretion.
Neil has built a growing and trusted reputation across the sports sector, specifically in professional football circles, providing unique expertise in advising on conducting due diligence, intelligence acquisition and risk analysis processes to support elite player/coach Talent Identification and recruitment.
This has led him being regularly invited as a guest speaker and subject matter expert to speak on leading football industry vocational courses with the English and Scottish Football Associations, UEFA & leading sports education institutions, such as the Real Madrid Sports Graduate School, in addition to presenting at leading clubs (Premier League).
Neil has also been asked to contribute to football media articles and interviewed for his expertise and insights, with notable outlets / publications such as The’i’ newspaper, L’Equipe, Training Ground Guru, Off the Pitch, The Athletic & New York Times.
Team
His team comprise vastly experienced investigative and intelligence practitioners, with unique backgrounds working in elite high-performing teams from law-enforcement, Government agencies, military intelligence, and corporate business.
They approach every case from a wholly independent viewpoint with no preconceptions, providing unbiased scrutiny and an extra level of detail to produce in-depth reports offering a comprehensive understanding of the situation.
They are supported by a bespoke global network of trusted ‘in-country’ operatives, carefully selected for their knowledge and expertise.
