Why Cognitive Diversity Builds Better Teams
By Colin Crowden
Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) is not just a technical discipline. It is an investigative craft that thrives on curiosity, critical thinking, and context.
The most effective OSINT teams are built not just on piloting technical tools but on diversity of thought, background, and lived experience.
This concept struck me square in the face having met a US ODA team on a deployment. The team was compact, highly skilled and cognitively diverse. The team composition ticked every box not only with weapons specialists but also an embedded fabricator and their 3D printer, and an intelligence operator.
It did take me a moment to realise this unit was what the 80s TV show, the A Team was modelled on and I found myself having a slight fan boy moment!
Now we all strive to build our own A Team within our organisations and hiring for that diversity means looking beyond CVs and credentials and building teams that think in different ways to solve the same problem.
Diverse OSINT teams bring distinct perspectives that help uncover hidden insights others miss.
“If everyone is thinking alike, then somebody isn't thinking.”
- General George S. Patton
OSINT is often defined by its tools, scrapers, mapping software, search platforms, but this view obscures the core skill: interpretation. Analysts must frame questions, navigate uncertainty, detect deception, and uncover connections others miss. These abilities are not facilitated by technology alone. They are developed through experience, shaped by mindset, and sharpened by diversity of thought.
The most effective OSINT analysts are not necessarily those with the longest technical résumés, but those who ask the best questions.
Investigative thinking, lateral reasoning, cultural insight, and ethical judgement are what elevate collection into intelligence. Whether someone comes from journalism, law enforcement, migration, human rights advocacy, or online communities, the strength lies in how they perceive and process the world- not just the tools they know.
Effective OSINT teams blend technical ability with human insight, critical reflection, and contextual understanding.
“Cognitive diversity is the inclusion of people who have different styles of problem-solving and can offer unique perspectives because they think differently.”
- Alison Reynolds and David Lewis, Harvard Business Review
Building cognitively diverse teams requires intent. It means hiring people who might not come from traditional intelligence pipelines. It means valuing multilingual speakers, neurodivergent thinkers, those with lived experience of conflict or displacement, and those with deep familiarity with digital cultures. A team of people who think differently will challenge each other’s assumptions, spot blind spots, and reach insights no homogenous group ever could.
This is also where CVs begin to fail us. Traditional CVs reward linear career paths and institutional prestige. They often miss the investigator who has published high-quality findings online, the gamer who understands fringe platforms, or the linguist monitoring Telegram channels in three dialects. These are the minds that make the difference but they rarely tick the right boxes.
CVs are not irrelevant, but they should not be used as filters. They are simply one lens. Hiring processes should include scenario-based interviews, analytic simulations, and opportunities to demonstrate reasoning and judgement. To build better OSINT teams, we must evaluate how people think - not just where they have worked.
“We are more innovative and more creative when we have people around us who see the world differently.”
- Matthew Syed, Rebel Ideas: The Power of Diverse Thinking
OSINT requires both structured reasoning and intuitive interpretation. Diverse minds bring both.
I’m a firm believer that its not how we collect information but how we process it that sets a good OSINT team apart.
Cognitive diversity is not a feel-good HR slogan; it is a competitive advantage. The OSINT teams that will succeed in the coming years will not be the ones with the biggest stack of tools, but the ones that think most flexibly, critically, and collaboratively.