Senior Consultant/Associate Director, Intelligence and Investigations

About the role

As part of Control Risks' growth strategy for Intelligence & Investigations (II) in Italy, we are seeking a highly experienced Senior Consultant / Associate Director to be based in Milan. This role is designed for a seasoned intelligence and investigations professional with a strong track record in managing and delivering complex mandates across a range of sensitive advisory engagements, including strategic intelligence, pre‑transactional diligence, internal investigations, and litigation and disputes support. The successful candidate will play a central role in executing the Italy go-to-market strategy, with a particular focus on pre-transactional, contentious, and strategic intelligence work for private market investors, law firms, and corporates. Working closely with the Country Manager and the Italy team, as well as the broader II practice and Intelligence & Analysis (I&A) department globally; the role requires a high degree of independence, strong commercial acumen, and an established professional network in Italy. The candidate will be expected to originate opportunities; convert them into mandates; and lead their delivery to the highest technical and ethical standards, contributing materially to revenue growth and market positioning. There are three priorities for the role: Effective delivery of intelligence and investigations projects. Drive business development activities with priority buyer groups. Provide coaching and mentoring to junior team members. Time in the role is expected to be divided between four areas as set out below: Technical delivery (40%) Exhibit technical excellence in the delivery of intelligence and investigations mandates, including strategic intelligence, pre‑transactional diligence, internal investigations, litigation and disputes support, and other sensitive advisory engagements. Act as a senior executive on engagements, taking end‑to‑end responsibility for scoping, execution, quality control, client interaction and delivery, with minimal supervision. Apply strong judgement and contextual understanding of the Italian political, regulatory, judicial and business environment to ensure that outputs are commercially relevant, defensible and actionable. Business Development & Growth (35%) Take ownership of, and actively contribute to, strengthening Control Risks' II profile and commercial presence in Italy, in line with the firm's go‑to‑market strategy. Proactively originate opportunities and procure meetings with priority buyer groups, with a particular focus on: - Private market investors - Law firms - Multinational corporates Contribute to converting commercial discussions into mandates. Maintain and grow existing client relationships, identifying opportunities to expand scope and deepen engagement across relevant client functions and situations. Operational & Risk (5%) Monitor and manage engagement risk throughout the project lifecycle, exercising senior judgement on legal, reputational, ethical and commercial considerations, and escalating to the Country Manager / Partner Group as required. Ensure investigations and intelligence work is conducted in line with Control Risks' internal governance, ethical standards and applicable Italian and international legal frameworks, including with regards to the maintenance of the Investigations Register. Contribute to effective financial and operational management of engagements, including resourcing decisions, margin discipline and forecasting. Professional Development (10%) Take ownership of personal professional development, maintaining strong market knowledge across Italy and relevant client sectors. Provide coaching, mentoring and informal development support to junior colleagues, particularly on II tradecraft, client engagement and commercial judgement. Significant experience in the Intelligence/Investigations industry working as a consultant/manager within a professional services, consulting, legal and compliance, or investment‑facing environment. Proven ability to independently lead and deliver complex engagements in Italy, including pre‑transactional intelligence, internal investigations and disputes‑related mandates. Strong understanding of how intelligence and investigations support investment decision‑making, litigation and arbitration strategy, regulatory matters and sensitive corporate situations. Practical experience conducting and supervising human intelligence collection and analysis in the context of highly sensitive commercial or investigative mandates. Demonstrated commercial acumen, including experience originating work, converting relationships into mandates, and managing engagement economics and margins. An established and relevant professional network in Italy, particularly across private capital investors, law firms (M&A, disputes, white‑collar crime, investigations) and senior corporate stakeholders. Experience operating as a seller-servicer, balancing business development responsibilities with high‑quality de