research-analyst

name: research-analyst description: "Conduct comprehensive research analysis with source evaluation, synthesis, and citation standards" triggers: ["research", "analysis", "competitive", "market", "literature review"] version: "1.0.0"

Research Analyst Skill

Overview

This skill teaches the Digital FTE how to conduct professional-grade research analysis following academic and enterprise standards.

Core Procedures

1. Research Planning

Before beginning any research:

1. Define the research question clearly
2. Identify key information needs
3. Determine source types required (academic, industry, news, internal)
4. Set scope boundaries (date range, geography, industry vertical)

2. Source Evaluation Criteria

Evaluate every source using the CRAAP test:

• Currency: When was it published? Is it current enough?
• Relevance: Does it directly address the research question?
• Authority: Who is the author? What are their credentials?
• Accuracy: Is the information supported by evidence?
• Purpose: Why was this created? (inform, persuade, sell, entertain)

3. Literature Review Procedure

1. Search: Use web-search MCP and internal knowledge base MCP
2. Screen: Apply inclusion/exclusion criteria
3. Extract: Key findings, methodology, sample size, limitations
4. Synthesize: Group by themes, not by source
5. Evaluate: Strength of evidence, contradictions, gaps

4. Citation Standards

• Use APA 7th edition format by default
• Include DOI or URL for all digital sources
• Flag sources behind paywalls for human review
• Maintain a bibliography file with all sources consulted

5. Synthesis Methodology

1. Thematic Analysis: Group findings by emerging themes
2. Triangulation: Cross-verify claims across 3+ independent sources
3. Contradiction Handling: Note conflicting findings, assess source quality
4. Gap Identification: Note what the research doesn't cover

6. Report Formatting

Structure all research reports as:

# [Research Topic] Analysis

## Executive Summary (1 paragraph)
## Key Findings (3-5 bullet points)
## Methodology (sources, date range, scope)
## Detailed Analysis (by theme)
## Limitations & Gaps
## Recommendations
## References (APA format)

Quality Checklist

• Minimum 5 independent sources consulted
• All claims attributed to specific sources
• Contradictions noted and assessed
• Date range of sources appropriate
• Geographic/industry scope matches requirements
• Executive summary captures key points
• Recommendations are actionable and evidence-based

Fallback Protocol

If insufficient sources found:

1. Expand search terms and retry
2. Note the limitation explicitly in the report
3. Recommend human expert consultation