About RAND Europe

Good decisions rely on good evidence

In fast-changing times, it is even more crucial to use evidence-based insights to inform complex decisions, ensure scarce resources are used most effectively and maximise payback from investments.

Emerging trends – such as changes to the geopolitical order and established conventions, growing data overload, accelerating technological advances and shifts in the workplace, to name just a few – pose new questions that require new approaches. What’s more, as debates become more polarised, the trust that the public places in expert opinion and empirical research needs renewing.

The answer is not to retreat from evidence – which only increases risk and leaves decisions more vulnerable to challenge – but to reaffirm and demonstrate its value. At RAND Europe, we believe that good evidence helps shape sound answers to pressing societal challenges.

RAND Europe uses evidence to help improve decisions

RAND Europe is a not-for-profit, nonpartisan policy research organisation with a long and proven commitment to high-quality research, underpinned by rigorous analysis. As the European arm of the RAND Corporation, we share its mission to help improve policy and decision making through objective research and analysis.

For nearly 30 years, we have built an empirical understanding of critical topics: from education and employment to health and wellbeing; home affairs and social policy to infrastructure and defence and security issues; through to innovation policy and research impact.

We approach each project as unique, informed by a deep understanding of the policy context. Our strength is in designing policy, providing analysis and making recommendations grounded in disciplined research. Believing in the power of facts, we help our clients reach better decisions with the greatest public benefit, to help make communities safer and more secure, healthier and more prosperous. In short, we work to bring about a world where people thrive.

Impact is the measure of our success

Having impact through our work is a vital measure of our success. We continually assess how our research and analysis helps those whom we serve. Specifically, we evaluate our success according to how well we achieve three aims:

1. First, we ask ourselves if our work focuses on the issues that are most important to those concerned about the wider public good.
2. Second, do our analytic results reach the right audience to help improve the quality of decisions, discussions and debate.
3. And finally (and perhaps the most difficult to achieve), does it help create changes in policy, practice or methods that improve lives.

We feel that if we score well on these fronts and if our research yield results so clear and compelling, decision makers will take note – and more importantly – take action.

Our vision inspires our focus; our values define how we work

Our vision is to be the European policy research partner of choice for those who serve the public good.

Our values define the beliefs and behaviours that make us trusted partners and reflect the essence of our organisation:

• Quality: we pursue excellence.
• Objectivity: we are independent and impartial.
• Collaboration: we are stronger through the power of partnership.
• Service: we serve the public good and those with whom we work.
• Learning: we always look for better ways to do things.

Our values remind us and others what our work and organisation stand for, and convey our commitment to improving the world we live in. We strive to put them into practice in everything we do.

Our people are key to our achievements

As a knowledge organisation, we hire the brightest people. But being bright is not enough. We also look for integrity, empathy, curiosity, professionalism and creative thinking. RAND Europe people also live our values and are committed to making a positive impact in the world.

Diverse backgrounds, multiple nationalities and languages, combined with an inclusive culture, help us to flourish. Blending know-how across a range of research disciplines and methodologies helps us to generate superior insights.

This combination of experience and expertise brings depth and breadth to our work. From our office locations in the UK and Belgium, our people are tackling a greater diversity of projects than ever before and trust in our work grows among decision makers.

We solve problems using rigorous and innovative approaches

We bring fresh approaches to tackle complex questions, often by establishing new angles of enquiry and methodologies for research. For example, we use gaming methods to help decision makers consider the impact of different policy options in a simulated environment.

Foresight and scenario techniques help our clients to keep abreast of future trends and make informed projections when setting forward-looking strategy. We simulate the economic effects of policy options to estimate their costs at national and global levels. We analyse large datasets to understand how incentives influence behavioural change.

Using wide-spectrum evaluation approaches, we create bespoke and tested approaches to help clients understand – in real time or for the next time – what is going well, what could be better, and where best to focus to deliver improved outcomes.

Our network helps us to fulfil our mission

In our work, we collaborate widely because we recognise that we cannot solve every problem on our own. And in doing so, we have created a strong network committed to an analytical approach to decision making.

We carry out research on behalf of clients across Europe and internationally, in the public, private and third sectors – including governments, foundations, charities, universities and companies. Our work for private and third sector clients continues to grow. Our wider network has expanded to include alumni, friends, sponsors and trusted advisors who provide independent, informed guidance.

Objective analysis, effective solutions sums up the RAND approach; together, they underpin our aim to make the world a better place.